Sylvia Woods (harpist)
Encyclopedia
Sylvia Woods is an American harpist and composer perhaps best known for her role in the worldwide renaissance of the Celtic harp, or cláirseach. Woods began selling and writing music for Celtic harps in the 1970s, when the instrument was not widely known in the United States, contributing to a groundswell of interest in the Celtic harp and music. Woods was named one of the “most influential harp forces of the twentieth century” by HarpColumn magazine.
Woods won the prestigious All-Ireland Harp Championship in Buncrana, County Donegal in 1980, only the second American ever to have done so. She was invited back to Buncrana the following two summers to teach a harp course for local children, borrowing harps from all over Ireland so the children would learn to play the instrument which is the symbol of their country.
Woods toured with Robin Williamson
and His Merry Band in the 1970s and was featured on the group's three albums. Celtic harps were not readily available at the time, so Woods was often approached after concerts by people who were intrigued by her instrument, which she had purchased in Ireland. In response to their multiple requests, Woods started selling harps and also began developing collaborative relationships with several instrument makers, encouraging them to build harps, and providing feedback on technical issues and user-friendly features.
Woods’ relationship with harp makers, along with her work in bringing folk harp to a wider audience, led to her leadership role in the early days of the International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen as the group’s first President.
Noting a lack of repertoire and resources for the folk harp, Woods began writing and arranging music specifically for folk (or lever) harp in 1978. Woods’ first book, Teach Yourself to Play the Folk Harp, is perhaps the best-known tutor for lever harp, and has been the introduction to harp playing for thousands of musicians. She has since published more than three dozen books and arrangements for the Celtic harp, encompassing a wide variety of musical styles from folk to classical to pop.
Woods’ initial foray into harp sales grew into a large mail-order catalog offering products and resources for harpists worldwide; her brick-and-mortar store, the Sylvia Woods Harp Center, opened in 1992 and is believed to be the largest harp store in the world, with between fifty and 100 harps on the floor at any given time.
have performed this suite as their major concert of the year. The Brandiswhiere suite has even been choreographed for dance productions in the U.S. and Europe.
Wood’s two other solo recordings, Three Harps for Christmas, Volumes 1 and 2, feature traditional Christmas carols from all over the world. These recordings have been played extensively by radio stations all over the United States during the Christmas season.
In addition to her solo albums, Woods has played on the recordings of many other prominent musicians such as Jimmy Messina, Al Stewart
, Joemy Wilson
, Kay Gardener, Aeoleus, Artie Traum
& Pat Alger
, and Caswell Carnahan.
To further promote the folk harp and her own music, Woods has appeared on many television and radio shows, including three appearances on the ever-popular radio broadcast A Prairie Home Companion
, starring Garrison Keillor
. Woods has been interviewed on dozens of radio stations throughout the U.S. and Great Britain, including by Studs Terkel
on WFMT
in Chicago. Many of Woods’ concerts have been simulcast on radio stations across America.
In January 2003 Woods performed with the legendary Irish band The Chieftains
for their five California concerts.
Woods has performed on the soundtracks of several major motion pictures, including Dead Poets Society, Prancer, and Only the Lonely, under the direction of Academy Award winning composer Maurice Jarre
. In addition, Woods has performed on soundtracks for several PBS and commercial television shows.
A 1981 Los Angeles episode of Romper Room
that featured Woods and her harp was nominated for an Emmy Award
.
History
A lifelong musician, Woods began playing pedal (concert) harp in college after walking into the harp room at the University of Redlands in Southern California and asking for lessons. She continued to study pedal harp after receiving her bachelor’s degree, but upon discovering and purchasing a Celtic harp, dedicated her life to making Celtic harp music available to the public. Subsequent travels around the world as a soloist and ensemble performer cemented Woods’ reputation as a formidable talent in the folk harp milieu.Woods won the prestigious All-Ireland Harp Championship in Buncrana, County Donegal in 1980, only the second American ever to have done so. She was invited back to Buncrana the following two summers to teach a harp course for local children, borrowing harps from all over Ireland so the children would learn to play the instrument which is the symbol of their country.
Woods toured with Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson
Robin Williamson is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and storyteller, who first made his name as a founder member of The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
and His Merry Band in the 1970s and was featured on the group's three albums. Celtic harps were not readily available at the time, so Woods was often approached after concerts by people who were intrigued by her instrument, which she had purchased in Ireland. In response to their multiple requests, Woods started selling harps and also began developing collaborative relationships with several instrument makers, encouraging them to build harps, and providing feedback on technical issues and user-friendly features.
Woods’ relationship with harp makers, along with her work in bringing folk harp to a wider audience, led to her leadership role in the early days of the International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen as the group’s first President.
Noting a lack of repertoire and resources for the folk harp, Woods began writing and arranging music specifically for folk (or lever) harp in 1978. Woods’ first book, Teach Yourself to Play the Folk Harp, is perhaps the best-known tutor for lever harp, and has been the introduction to harp playing for thousands of musicians. She has since published more than three dozen books and arrangements for the Celtic harp, encompassing a wide variety of musical styles from folk to classical to pop.
Woods’ initial foray into harp sales grew into a large mail-order catalog offering products and resources for harpists worldwide; her brick-and-mortar store, the Sylvia Woods Harp Center, opened in 1992 and is believed to be the largest harp store in the world, with between fifty and 100 harps on the floor at any given time.
Recordings
Woods’ first solo recording was her original composition, The Harp of Brandiswhiere: A Suite for Celtic Harp, which has been acclaimed as an important contribution to contemporary harp literature. Through the instrumental music, Woods tells the story of the harp player Brandiswhiere, a legendary hero who saves the world with the music of his harp. The recording has won numerous awards including "Best Fantasy Album" by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films, and several Popular Music Awards by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Several chapters of the American Harp SocietyAmerican Harp Society
The American Harp Society is a non-profit organization whose mission is "to promote and foster the appreciation of the harp as a musical instrument, to encourage the composition of music for the harp and to improve the quality of performance of harpists." Founded in 1962, the AHS is a member of...
have performed this suite as their major concert of the year. The Brandiswhiere suite has even been choreographed for dance productions in the U.S. and Europe.
Wood’s two other solo recordings, Three Harps for Christmas, Volumes 1 and 2, feature traditional Christmas carols from all over the world. These recordings have been played extensively by radio stations all over the United States during the Christmas season.
In addition to her solo albums, Woods has played on the recordings of many other prominent musicians such as Jimmy Messina, Al Stewart
Al Stewart
Al Stewart is a Scottish singer-songwriter and folk-rock musician.Stewart came to stardom as part of the British folk revival in the 1960s and 1970s, and developed his own unique style of combining folk-rock songs with delicately woven tales of the great characters and events from history.He is...
, Joemy Wilson
Joemy Wilson
Joemy Wilson is a hammered dulcimer player from New Haven, Connecticut. Her first instruments were the piano and violin. She also took voice lessons in high school...
, Kay Gardener, Aeoleus, Artie Traum
Artie Traum
Artie Traum was a New Age Voice Award-winning guitarist, producer and songwriter. Traum's work appeared on more than 35 albums...
& Pat Alger
Pat Alger
Pat Alger is a country music songwriter, singer and guitarist.-Biography:Alger attended Georgia Tech studying architecture but decided to concentrate on writing songs. He started as a solo folk performer at folk clubs...
, and Caswell Carnahan.
Performances
Since 1980, Woods has toured as a solo performer, giving concerts throughout North America and Europe, as well as the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. She has given numerous performances for the American Harp Society and the International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen. She has taught harp workshops and master classes, and has judged numerous harp competitions, including the Guinness World Trophy for the Celtic Harp Competition in Lorient, France.To further promote the folk harp and her own music, Woods has appeared on many television and radio shows, including three appearances on the ever-popular radio broadcast A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion is a live radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor. The show runs on Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Central Time, and usually originates from the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, although it is frequently taken on the road...
, starring Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio personality. He is known as host of the Minnesota Public Radio show A Prairie Home Companion Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (born August 7, 1942) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio...
. Woods has been interviewed on dozens of radio stations throughout the U.S. and Great Britain, including by Studs Terkel
Studs Terkel
Louis "Studs" Terkel was an American author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for The Good War, and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show in Chicago.-Early...
on WFMT
WFMT
WFMT is an FM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, featuring a format of fine arts, classical music programming, and shows exploring such genres as folk and jazz). The station is managed by Window To The World Communications, Inc., owner of WTTW, one of Chicago's two Public Broadcasting Service ...
in Chicago. Many of Woods’ concerts have been simulcast on radio stations across America.
In January 2003 Woods performed with the legendary Irish band The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
for their five California concerts.
Woods has performed on the soundtracks of several major motion pictures, including Dead Poets Society, Prancer, and Only the Lonely, under the direction of Academy Award winning composer Maurice Jarre
Maurice Jarre
Maurice-Alexis Jarre was a French composer and conductor.Although he composed several concert works, he is best known for his film scores, and is particularly known for his collaborations with film director David Lean. Jarre composed the scores to all of Lean's films since Lawrence of Arabia...
. In addition, Woods has performed on soundtracks for several PBS and commercial television shows.
A 1981 Los Angeles episode of Romper Room
Romper Room
Romper Room is a children's television series that ran in the United States from 1953 to 1994 as well as at various times in Australia, Canada, Japan, Puerto Rico, New Zealand and the United Kingdom...
that featured Woods and her harp was nominated for an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
.
Books of Music for Harp
- Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Beauty and the Beast
- Chanukah Music For All Harps
- Fifty Christmas Carols For All Harps
- Fifty Irish Melodies
- Fifty-Two Scottish Songs
- Forty O’Carolan Tunes
- Four Holiday Favorites
- Gecko Tails
- Harp of Brandiswhiere, The
- Hymns and Wedding Music For All Harps
- Irish Dance Tunes
- Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
- John Denver Love Songs For the Harp
- Lennon and McCartney For the Harp
- Music Theory and Arranging Techniques For Folk Harps
- Pachelbel’s Canon
- Seventy-Six Disney Songs
- Songs of the Harp
- Teach Yourself to Play the Folk Harp
- Twenty-Two Romantic Songs
- Wizard of Oz, The
Sheet Music for Harp
- All the Pretty Little Horses
- America Medley: America & America the Beautiful
- Brandiswhiere’s Triumphant Return (harp & flute)
- Dead Poets Society
- Harpers Are Not Bizarre
- House at Pooh Corner & Return to Pooh Corner
- In the Bleak Midwinter
- In the Forest (harp & flute)
- Love Theme from Titanic: “My Heart Will Go On”
- Mary, Did You Know?
- Russian Carols Medley (harp & handbells)
- Simple Gifts
- Spiritual Medley (harp & handbells)
- Spiritual Medley (harp solo)
- Theme from The Lord of the RingsThe Lord of the Rings film trilogyThe Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
: “Into the West” - Two Christmas Medleys
- Water Is Wide, The
- Winter Bells
- Wondrous Love
Solo Discography
- Harp of Brandiswhiere, The
- Three Harps for Christmas, Vol. 1
- Three Harps for Christmas, Vol. 2