You can make a donation to the Author, if you like:
This work was born from the will of enlarge my
personal harp repertoire with a piece in Bach's or Handel's style playable on a
lever harp. It's composition was a double challenge. As a intermediate level
harpist I tried to write music I can play within my technical limits but using
a polyphonic texture. As a composer I must combine the typical baroque forms
with the use of a diatonic scale only.
The suite present the standard dances we usually find in baroque period,
preceded by a toccata. All the four dances are composed on the same formal
scheme, like a set variations on a theme.
The first repeat starts with the motive at the minor tonic (Amin) in imitation
between the two hands, then the harmony shifts to the relative major (Cmaj)
where a new exposition of the motive has place. A closing section with downward
motion in the bass ends the first part with a phrygian cadence on the dominant
(E).
The second repeat starts at the minor fifth degree (Emin) with the motive or
its inversion. After a passage through the subdominant (Dmin) the tonic is
reached. The closing section is a repetition of the same passage in the first
repeat, adapted to the tonic harmony.
The toccata starts with an improvisatory section, following the scheme of the
first repeat of the dances. Then continues with a four voices fugue in a not
too strict style. After a climax on a deceptive cadence the piece ends in the
same improvisatory mood of the beginning.
I composed the piece in A minor but you can play it also in C minor if you want
to have all the levers set down. On a pedal harp you can play it in A flat
minor. The music can also be played on piano or harpsichord.
I included a fingered version of the toccata. The dots after the numbers
indicate where you can stop connecting. The x indicate a finger crossing. In
the dances the notes with a staccato dot should be play as etouffez using only
the thumb and open palm, but they don't have to be too much detached.
You can make a donation to the Author, if you like:
I decided to distribute this music collection for free. I hope many harpists will have fun with this music. If you have also received this PDF, you are free to share it with other musicians, play the songs for yourself or in public. Please let me know if it was a welcome gift by leaving a comment on my blog and sharing eventual recordings of the pieces with me. You can also consider offering me a cup of tea or a cupcake by making a small donation via the PayPal.me link that you can find on my blog.
Thanks and enjoy the music!
