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Thread: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

  1. #1

    Default Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    Hey everyone,

    I recently met a luthier who restored this harp guitar. After some chatting we decided it could be fun to make some music together, and try to get some sort of period correct piece going. With his harp guitar being early 1900's/maybe late 1800's and my mandolin being around 1914, it seems like they could have easily crossed paths at some point. The only thing is that I can not find much of any music written specifically for these instruments!

    He sent me this piece which does very much sound like a mandolin playing the melody.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXP2sb_p45I

    Just trying to see if anyone knows any of this kind of music and is willing to share!

    Thanks!

  2. #2
    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    Valentine Abt was a well-known American mandolinist from early twentieth century. I have some of his published sheet music but I don’t know if I have that piece arranged specifically for harp-guitar accompaniment. I could take a look but I don’t recall that piece specifically. You might contact Gregg Miner who is the harp-guitar expert. His website is harpguitars.com
    Jim

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  3. #3

    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    Harp-guitar player Roy Butin (Abt's accompanist in the video you posted) was a frequent accompanist of mandolinists, including Samuel Siegel, e.g., [I took the liberty of conducting a quick YouTube search].

    Pasquale Taraffo also accompanied mandolinist Nino Catania on two sides:






    I don't know if scores or transcriptions are available of the latter. Regarding the former, much of the Siegel stuff was published. However, if the publications included guitar, they were scored for the standard instrument. The player would likely need to do a little creative realization to incorporate the sub-bass diapasons working from period publications (shouldn't be too difficult; they're mostly bass-chord—boom-chick or boom-chick-chick—type accompaniments).
    Last edited by Eugene; Dec-05-2022 at 5:44pm.

  4. #4

    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    Neil Gladd is a member here; composer, transcriber, and publisher; retired librarian with past affiliation with the Library of Congress; and collector of old mandolin sheet music and 78-rpm recordings. Dropping a line to him may also provide some insight (but do note his disclaimers).

  5. #5
    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    I have a biography of Abt written and compiled by his grandson, John Abt. That piece in the OP was originally a piano work arranged for various other instruments usually including mandolins and guitars but I am guessing that these are not necessarily the parts played by Abt and Butin and, as Eugene noted, probably not for harp guitar.

    There do seem to be some more modern music either composed or arranged for mandolin and harp guitar.
    Jim

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  6. #6

    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    There's a harp-guitar forum on the Acoustic Guitar site. Chances are that some of those devotees are interested in sheet music.

  7. #7
    Registered User Neil Gladd's Avatar
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    Default Re: Any Music for Harp-Guitar and Mandolin?

    Quote Originally Posted by Eugene View Post
    Neil Gladd is a member here; composer, transcriber, and publisher; retired librarian with past affiliation with the Library of Congress
    Well, there were some recordings of arrangements for mandolin and harp guitar, but I've never seen anything published for mandolin and harp-guitar. It was probably too exotic, even then. This Abt piece that I edited was originally published for mandolin and guitar, but they used a harp guitar on the recording. You could still play it on a standard guitar just by tuning the 6th string down to a D.

    http://www.neilgladd.com/Publications/NGP%202004.html

  8. The following members say thank you to Neil Gladd for this post:

    Eugene 

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