What is a Wind Harp?

Once upon a time, when there was no surrounding noise in the world and man still had time for patient listening, the aeolian harp was crafted. Many people may know of them from literature but few know it by their sounds.

The aeolian harp's very special tones/ tone combinations cannot be created by man by any "conventional" action on the strings whatever (like bowing, plucking rubbing etc.).

Often, several tones at one time can be heard on only one string. Depending on the wind-speed, new tones appear, while other tones begin to disappear.

Have you ever listened to the sound of the wind and gloried in its power? You are in good company! The music of the Aeolian harp inspired many poets such as Wordsworth, Emerson, and Coleridge, who wrote of its ethereal melodies. The naturalist writer and poet Henry David Thoreau built his own wind harps, being inspired, in part, by the sounds he heard from telegraph wires as the winds brought them to life.

Wind harps have the distinction of being the only strung instrument whose music is composed entirely of harmonic tones. This gives wind harps a vibrant resonance not heard in ordinary music. Wind harps are also the only strung instrument played solely by the wind. These two characteristics combine to create a music that for many people is especially alluring.



When reviewing descriptions of harps and kits for sale, you can reference this diagram. If a harp is said to have a Poplar body, that would mean that the sides as well as the ends are made from poplar. Some harps have different ends to sides, in which case that will be specified.