Harp Column Blogs: Brandee YoungerArchive

No matter how much research I do beforehand, every now and then, I end up facing a flight of stairs alone. I don't know if all harpists dread stairs, but I do! Many harpists in NYC don't mind, because they have harp movers to move their harp, but what about those jobs you have where you don't have a mover?

I approach the top or bottom of a staircase and one of two things happen: An overly anxious man runs and insists on helping me. But it's not really help...they want to do it themselves but don't realize how cumbersome (not heavy) the harp actually is, and they don't know how to take directions. My heart starts racing and I start running my mouth insisting that they stop. I can't sit watching my harp being thrown in the air! If I had a limitless supply of harps, it would be fine, but I don't. So, it's either that, or nobody offers to help. People watch and ignore. Both are equally frustrating. What's the solution? I wish I could carry my little brother in my back pocket because he's a very well trained harp mover! After all these years, I'm STILL working it out...