 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Friend, • From The Manager: Park Stickney Workshop & Concert!
• Feature Article: The Proud Harp of Paraguay
• About Carolyn & HUI: The Pasadena Showroom • Carolyn Recommends: Beat the Heat: Celtic Cocktail Corner
Please add " carolyn@pacificharps.com " to your white list or address book in your e-mail program, so that you have no trouble receiving future issues! | | | | | | | | | |  Park Stickney Workshop & Concert! We are so very excited about Park's upcoming visit, and we wanted to extend his personal invitation to each and every one of you - so here, directly from Park himself, are all the lovely details! We hope to see you there! Although Park Stickney claims that it wasn't his plan at the age of 10 to become a world-traveling jazz harpist, he did, in fact, embark on that path then by competing in the first International Jazz and Pop Harp Festival.
Since then, after finishing his studies at the Juilliard School in New York, he has traveled across Europe, Asia and the U.S., as a soloist and teacher, as well as with a variety of ensembles whose music ranges from jazz to classical to rock.  WORKSHOP The Low-Down: We'll take some jazz standards and use them as a basis to explore a little (painless) jazz theory (scales, chords, etc.), improvisation, rhythmic ideas, as well as harp-specific techniques like lever/pedal slides and pyrotechnics. Bring your own matches (just kidding!!) No jazz experience necessary. This class is appropriate for both lever and pedal players.
The Nitty Gritty: Date: Saturday, October 27th
Time: 11:00am-1:30pm
Cost: $30 to Participate, $20 to Audit
Location: 922 N. Craig Ave, Pasadena, CA 91104. (Carolyn's house) There will be harps here if you can't bring your own (but please let Carolyn know). Come to the back patio. Weather permitting we will have the workshop on the patio under the trees. Refreshments afterwards!
*Space is limited so please RSVP for this workshop! CONCERT The Nitty Gritty: Date: Saturday October 27th (same day!)
Time: 7:30 pm (start time!)
Cost: $20 Admission, $15 Students & Seniors
Location: First Baptist Church
75 North Marengo Pasadena, CA 91101
Parking: Street, or in the parking garage on Holly 
The Proud Harp of Paraguay How much do you know about the South American country of Paraguay? Here’s one fun fact – the harp is its national instrument! In Paraguay the harp has evolved over the past four centuries into a unique, 36-string breed that's played, unlike ours, with the fingernails instead of fingertips. The resulting sound is the music of Paraguay, part harpsichord, part guitar, and harpists can be found from the concert halls of the capital city to homes throughout the countryside.  One rural town, Cazaapa-mi, is home to unassuming general store owner Don Benitez. After his shop closes each day, he he retires to a back room where his harp stands out in sharp contrast to the rest of the room - over five feet tall, the immaculately varnished wood instrument stands nearly as high as Benitez. It is uniquely Paraguayan because of the way it's been shaped - literally and figuratively! - by centuries of Paraguayan culture. Derived from the Spanish harps of Jesuit missionaries who arrived 400 years ago, the missionaries taught indigenous Paraguayans how to play until the 18th century when the Jesuits were recalled to Spain. As a result of the teachers’ departure, many frustrated players destroyed their harps and returned to life i n the jungle. Eventually, however, the Paraguayans began rebuilding the beloved instruments - using only memory and local materials.  Lifelong harpists like Benitez are not hard to find throughout Paraguay. Proud of the long fingernails that distinguish them not just as shopkeepers and workers, but as musicians, harpists pluck away inside performance halls, broadcast studios and even the airport terminal in the capital city of Asuncion. Generations of Paraguayan harpists have learned to play here. At Arpa Roga, a family-run harp school inside a private home in Asuncion, young musicians can be found furiously studying, while the walls inside the performance room are lined with portraits of students each posing proudly with his or her harp. A combination of Spanish and Guarani, (Paraguay's widely spoken indigenous language), Arpa Roga translates to “Home of the Harp.”
Paraguayan polka is the country's most popular traditional music, often accompanied by guitars and accordions, and generating a distinctive harmony by combining multiple rhythms. And when the music resonates from the 36 strings of their harp, it is the distinctive and proud sound of Paraguay!
 Australian harpist Carolyn Sykes has been performing in Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States for the past 30 years. She came to Los Angeles fifteen years ago to study for her Masters Degree at the California Institute of the Arts, and has been a manager with HUI for the past three years. The showroom in Pasadena features two sections, one for pedal harps and one for lever harps. Carolyn has also established her private teaching and performing studio Pacific Harps, which you can see more of at www.pacificharps.com. Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have or to schedule a harp appointment! Contacting the Pasadena Showroom: Call: 626.791.6262 Visit: 922 N. Craig Ave. Pasadena, Ca 91104 Beat the Heat: Celtic Cocktail Corner  With the cool weather last week we thought fall was here to stay, but this week promises to be another scorcher!(You got us...this newsletter was supposed to go out last week...but we still find this information very useful!)Not to worry - the best way to beat the heat is with a good cocktail, and we have the perfect one. Originating from the Tenpenny in New York, it suits the west coast just as well. Say hello to...The Unstrung Harp!
The Unstrung Harp
1½ oz. Gosling’s Black Seal rum
1 oz. ginger syrup*
2 limes, halved and crushed
3½ oz. prosecco
Shake the rum, syrup and limes with ice. Pour into a large, sturdy wine glass. Add prosecco.
*To make ginger syrup, dissolve two teaspoons of sugar in a tablespoon of ginger juice from grated ginger.
| | | | | | | | | |  | | The Triplett Catalina Staveback with Loveland levers and 34 strings, for $2995 including case (price just reduced!) | |  | New! The Triplett Celtic ll in walnut, 34 strings, for $4595 - stave back! | |  | New! The Triplett Celtic ll in cherry, 34 strings, for $4195 flat back | |  | The Triplett Signature in bubinga with 36 strings, for $5095 | | | | | | | | The Camac Hermine, on sale for $2,995 including the cover (discount of $335) | | | | The Camac Korrigan, including the cover for $3,295 (discount of $535!) | | | | The Triplett Monterey, offered at $3,775 (10% discount). Includes full levers and case as well as a full seven year factory warranty. | | | | | | | | The Camac Athena, with a straight soundboard and 47 strings, for $13,950 (was $14,950). Brand new ones just in from France - amazing sounding ebony! | | | | The Camac Athena extended soundboard, also 47 strings, for $18,950. Two on sale for $16,950 brand new models just in from France!! Mahongay, ebony, walnut, natural finishes. | | | | The Venus Penti, with 46 strings and extended soundboard, for $14,750. | | | | The Venus Encore, red mahogany with gold detailing, for $14,750. | | | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | Copyright 2010 Pacific Harps. All Rights Reserved. | | | | |
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