Christmas Harp Music

‘Tis the Season! I have Christmas harp music for sale, my CD Harp Carols.

Album Cover design by Luara Moore
Album Cover design by Luara Moore

 

“Harp Carols” is a collection of ancient noels on solo harp and features clarinetist Rosalyn DeRoos on the last song. Except for two pieces, all songs are traditional Christmas carols. “Harp Carols” celebrates Europe’s music of 15th Century – 19th Century holiday season and will transport you to a place of Old World calm during this winter’s busiest month. Also included are an improvisation on Gabriel Faure’s “Pavane,” and “Journey to the Magi,” an original tune a la Alice Coltrane with influence by the T.S. Eliot poem.

I will be playing a seasonal concert in Seattle area this year! The concert will be one of healing and meditation featuring harp solos and duets, honoring the quietude of the winter solstice and the light within each one of us during this dark season.

I’ll be performing live December 23rd, 2016 at:
Healing Harp Tones, a harp concert in duet with Monica Schley & Motter Snell.
Interfaith Community Sanctuary
1763 NW 62nd St
Seattle, WA 98107
7pm

Download “Harp Carols” here for $7 or purchase the disc for $12 on Bandcamp.

Here I am, playing ‘Carol of the Bells,’ a Ukrainian folk song, circa 15th Century

The Daphnes EP

My trio, The Daphnes, has just released a self-titled EP on Bandcamp. Please listen. Its cheap to buy!

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This summer, we have played at Seattle’s hippest historic hotel, The Sorrento; and the modern glass exhibit at Seattle Center, Chihuly Garden & Glass.

Follow us on Facebook or Twitter @MonicaSchley and come hear our next live show!

The Daphnes @Chihuly Garden & Glass
The Daphnes @Chihuly Garden & Glass

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Keep the Night Dark

I am recording an album! I’m so thrilled to be working on my first full-length album of original songs.

Entitled, ‘Keep the Night Dark’, this work is a 12-track album reflective of many musical styles: waltz, jazz, Indian raga, ambient drone, do-wop, classical, neo-folk with added vocal lyrics repurposed from my original poems and inspiration from the writings of contemporary Am. poet Anne Sexton, 17th Cent. British mystic William Blake, 18th Cent. French epicurean Brillat-Savarin, Greek mythology, and the world’s first feminist/poet, Sappho.

All songs of KtND were written over the past five years. I am super excited by stellar musicians participating! – my bandmates in The Daphnes (Nate Omdal, bass and Julie Baldridge, violin), plus two amazing drummers (Greg Campbell and Jeremy Jones) and more mystery surprise sound makers!

Harp repertoire of this kind does not readily exist. KtND reflects my wildly wide range of musical tastes. Because I long to play music that covers a broad scope, it took a break from performing to realize the only composer who could fulfill that desire was me!

While recording at Gallery 1412 last week, Greg asked me if I’d always sung. I did. I had. I had just stopped. For about 15 years. When I studied music in college, I thought I should focus on harp. The harp is a complex instrument and I had much to learn. Since it took so much of my time to study, I didn’t have energy to sing. So that was that.

When I stopped performing 5 years ago for a while to have a child, I found myself singing to her all the time. Then, I would write the songs out or record them. Thus, there’s a thematic feeling all the way through that I think comes from subterranean tide pools of maternal emotion. The album also covers general and mythic mother/daughter relations, and nighttime activities like stargazing at constellations and recognition of light pollution.

Soon, Sonarchy Radio will broadcast a session of KtND songs that The Daphnes recorded in June of this year – Stay tuned!

I will also be doing some fundraising concerts for the album this fall as I begin to wrap up the recording process.

Fundraising Concert of November:
Harpy Hour – Tues. November 3rd 

Stone Way Cafe – 
3510 Stone Way
Seattle, WA  98103
Happy Hour + Harp Music = Harpy Hour
4-6pm
$1 off drinks

 

Like My Facebook!

Enough already. That’s what you’re thinking, right? Everyone wants to have 150 thumbs up and 1000 likes! Well, I guess that makes me no different. I just want to make sure someone out there’s reading my posts : )

Here I am, waiving my hands in the air saying, “Like me! Like me!”

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Monica-Schley-harp/81551655517

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