NOTE: The following is an article DHC wrote for the Dutch magazine Folk Harp Folks. This is the final version of the article submitted to Folk Harp Folks and does not necessarily reflect the exact version of the article appearing in the magazine.

CREATING “THE GUINNESS 500” BLUES
When I first read about all the events that would take place at the 2008 World Harp Congress in Amsterdam, the one that most piqued my sense of adventure was the Guinness attempt for the largest harp ensemble on record. So imagine my delight when I was invited to not only write one of the arrangements, but solo with the ensemble as well!

Writing the piece was an adventure in itself. I was committed to writing a new Blues, with four harp parts, playable on lever and pedal harp, for beginners, intermediate and advanced harpers. I wanted the ensemble to play like a “Big Band” – and I wanted it to be fun to practice! (Composing it was like solving a Rubik’s Cube puzzle!) I decided to call the piece “The Guinness 500” in honor of the 500 hands that would premiere it.

To compose it, I recorded each part myself, then improvised the “solo part” I would perform in concert. The hardest part for me was writing for beginners – trying to figure out how to make the parts easy enough for them, but still fun to play.

I also knew that playing in swing rhythms was unfamiliar for some harpists, so I recorded each part and put it all online so players could download both the audio and the manuscript. And since I knew I would make some mistakes, I invited players to email me with questions and suggestions. Their input became an important part of improving the piece in little ways even after it was “finished.”

All of this was done months before the premiere, because hundreds of harpists had to learn the pieces, and many teachers would be working on it with their students. We would only have one rehearsal all together so everyone had to seriously practice ahead-of-time!

PLAYING “THE GUINESS 500”
The day of the big event we all came with our harps to the huge Ferry Terminal on the Amsterdam harbor. We’d all received a detailed schedule, created by Guinness Committee Chairman and initiator Yolanda Davids, with instructions for EVERYTHING, including loading, tuning, lunch break and even bathroom trips! These little details were so important, because all our hard work writing and learning the pieces could have easily been undermined by simple logistical problems with 250 harps!! So often people forget that any artistic endeavor requires serious attention to ‘unartistic’ details, yet it is that kind of attention that makes the art succeed. This was a perfect example of how well that could be done.

I felt very proud walking to the terminal with my new CAMAC 5-kilo, custom-built carbon-fibre lever harp. It was so easy to carry – I could even go right up the escalator. Imagine trying that with a pedal harp! When I stepped inside the huge building, already more than a hundred harpists had arrived and were tuning up. It was ... WOW!

Sections were taped in different colors on the Terminal floor to create “rays” of harp players all fanning out from the large stage, with aisles between them so people could easily move around. I would not have thought to arrange the room that way – it was so simple, and so brilliant. Big harps and little harps, big harp players and little ones were all tuning and practicing, and everything was proceeding with surprising calm, thanks to volunteer coordinator Annemieke IJzerman and the 35 volunteers all helping to move harps and solve problems. It was exciting to see so many harpists, young, old, in-between, including some dear friends like Mercedes Gomez who had flown all the way from Mexico City for the World Harp Congress.

Along with the volunteers, the room was filled with the players, the composers, the sound engineers, the press, the conductor, some parents of younger players. Of course, the whole Guinness Committee was there: Yolanda Davids , Lenie de Meij, Gertru Smit-Pasveer , Annemieke IJzerman – the only one missing was Kirsten van den Hogen, who was that very week giving birth! And even before we started rehearsing, a crowd began to form all along the balcony of the terminal. Where else could they form?? There were so many harps there was almost no place else to sit!

The moment I most wished I had my camera was when the elevator doors opened and I watched a parade of harps being carried out. First one, then another and another -- there must have been a dozen or more harps in that one elevator! And me without a camera!

Once the rehearsal started, everything was run by stopwatch, with American conductor/composer Kevin Kaska “leading the band,” and presenter Mariska Pool keeping us on schedule, translating comments from the conductor and rousing our enthusiasm. Thanks to Mariska, we got through all the pieces in time (another World’s Record, I think) then had a break for lunch and soon it was time for the official “attempt!”

There were four pieces on the main program and an additional piece that would be performed later – in a second attempt to create the world’s LONGEST harp ensemble with a piece by composer Claudia Rumondor called “WARP.”

Each piece in the main program was very different. Rosetty’s piece, “Mooi Meisje,” was based on a famous Mexican folk song (a fact I didn’t know, but was told by my friend Mercedes Gomez), with Frank Groothof singing. It was so beautiful!!! When I heard 250 harps accompanying a singer, I regretted that I hadn’t written a piece I could sing – it sounded so glorious to sing with hundreds of harps! Kaska’s piece, “Invocatio,” was the most difficult to play – and you could hear that Kaska has written music for film. There were many stops and starts during the rehearsal of this piece, but by the time of the performance, it sounded great. Alfredo Rolando Ortiz’s beautiful “Cumbia Verde,” with its Latin Rhythms, was dedicated to those who work towards a green world that respects and protects nature.

Finally, it was my turn, and hearing my “The Guinness 500” played by nearly 500 hands was thrilling! Imagine 500 hands playing a 12-Bar Blues! I only wish we could play it many more times – but taking this band on the road would be quite a feat!

As I looked down at the harpists and harpers, I was impressed and touched by the focus of all the players, by how seriously they took the event and how much they had obviously practiced. Everyone had worked so hard! In one case, I saw a mother sitting next to her child, beating out the rhythms. Everyone was focused and serious; deeply concentrated. As we played my tune, Mariska Pool ran around the room, jumping up and down crying “Have fun! Yeah! That’s great!” like our own personal cheerleader! Focusing AND having fun is hard work – especially when you’re going for a world’s record!!

As a composer, I always get new inspirations once I hear a piece actually played. With “The Guinness 500” I had many ideas afterwards about dynamics and other performance effects – so, now I’m thinking about what I’ll do different next time – whenever that “next time” happens! It’s always that way for me: I completely enjoy the experience, but then immediately start thinking about how I could make it even better next time!

AFTERWARDS: SUCCESS AND THE FUTURE
When the concert was over we still didn’t know the results of the World’s Record Attempt. We knew we were very close to the official record, but only the official Guinness counters could tell us if we’d made it. The “Moment of Truth” arrived and the three officials marched solemnly to the stage: notary Birgit Snijder-Kuipers, violinist Peter de Leeuw and renowned harpist Susann MacDonald, chairman of the WHC board. We held our breath as they stepped to the microphone and announced – WE DID IT!! Yahooo!!!! We all cheered and whooped and hollered like a sports team that just won an International trophy!

After the event, as I was interviewed for a television show, the interviewer pointed out all the children in the ensemble and asked if I thought of them as the future of the harp. I looked at the children, but I also saw the adults, and the teenagers, and I said, “What you must see here is ALL the ages and levels of harp players playing TOGETHER. That is the real future – that this music and this instrument can bring us together across generations in this way.”

I congratulate the World Harp Congress and the Guinness Committee for this Big Dream, this huge challenge, and for doing such a wonderful job of dreaming big, yet attending to the details and logistics so we could all come together for such a challenging and wonderful international event – and create five new harp ensemble pieces, in five completely different styles, in the process! Bravo!!! I’m so happy I got to be part of this very special musical adventure!

WATCH VIDEO ON YOUTUBE
On YouTube, you can see video of my piece (along with other pieces from the attempt) being played at the World Harp Congress if you search for “The Guinness 500.” And while you’re at YouTube, you can also see many of my videos by searching for “hipharp.”

PLAY THE PIECE YOURSELF
The videos are fun, but they don’t nearly capture the excitement of being right inside the largest EVER harp ensemble, all playing live! So if you want to put your own ensemble together and play “The Guinness 500,” you can still download the audio and ensemble parts at HipHarp.com (click on the “Student’s Page” button from the “Galleries” Page). Since I was improvising the solo part, that part is not written out – so feel free to make up your own version!

To buy harp music and recordings of my music, see the “Products” page at www.HipHarp.com.

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Additional Edits by Michael Belcher
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