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Dråm-Esther Swift-Hermanos Corbalán-Park Stickney
Dråm
The Swedish musicians Erik Ask-Upmark and Anna Rynefors - known as
"Dråm" perform their Nordic music in a captivating way with much charm
and humour. The quietness of Sweden’s deep forests and wide open spaces
is reflected in the sonorous qualities of the harp, which goes back to
Viking times, blending perfectly with the haunting and mellow Swedish
bagpipes and the unique Swedish instrument, the Nyckelharpa (keyed
fiddle). They are both Riksspelman - “Master Musician of the
Realm” and have taken their music to many places, including Anna playing
for thousands of children in The Three Billy Goats Gruff and
Erik performing in China on the World’s first ice harp! Dråm approaches
Nordic music with respect and love, imparting a contemporary and
passionate character to a tradition.
Esther Swift
Esther will perform her own Time Spinner for solo pedal harp,
commissioned by her former harp teacher Eira Lynn Jones, which was
written in celebration and honour of the life of their mutual friend and
fellow harpist Helen MacLeod. She will follow this with her own setting
of Problems to Sharpen the Young, a poem about immigration in
the context of a 9th century recreational mathematics problem, by Irish
poet Rachel McCrum. She will then perform one of her favourite songs by
Kate Bush, as well as her lockdown single Song for a Quiet Winter
as recently featured on Radio 3’s Night Tracks.
Hermanos Corbalán
Sixto and Juanjo will take us on a journey through the musical
landscapes of their native Paraguay, full of harmonies and sounds that
have their roots in the compound 6/8 time typical of that region. Their
virtuosic and expressive playing will transport us into the freedom of
their world of harmonic, rhythmic and melodic improvisation.
Park Stickney
“Yes, my office is always this clean”:
a video house concert with Park Stickney, involving jazz and
serendipity. An at-home concert which explores the question “Can we
possibly make this any more logistically convenient?”, a concert with
the smallest possible carbon footprint. Stickney will perform while
wearing one of his prized collection of (2) Edinburgh Harp Festival
t-shirts. This, however, isn’t surprising as he’s been basically wearing
them nonstop since March 2020. [flash photography and filming strongly
encouraged]
Concert links will be emailed to you shortly before the Festival
Harp to Harp pre-concert conversation 19:00-19:30
Music from 19:30, with 20-minute interval
All concerts will be available to watch at your leisure until midnight
on Monday 26th April
until 11 April 2021
Online Concerts