THE HHSI HOLLYBROOK HARP SURVEY

STRINGING

SIMON CHADWICK

The Historical Harp Society of Ireland has made these files available for download as a free resource.
For more information about the HHSI, visit irishharp.org. This project was made possible by a grant
from the Arts Council of Ireland www.artscouncil.ie and with the generous in-kind support of the
National Museum of Ireland www.museum.ie.

The photographs in this report and the project database are being made available with the permission
of the National Museum of Ireland. Unless otherwise indicated, all content is © 2020 the Historical
Harp Society of Ireland.

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Hollybrook Harp Survey

There are some brass wire strings preserved on the Hollybrook harp. As part of the investigation, the
string gauges were measured with a caliper. They were found to be of only two sizes, and they are
much thicker than we expect old Irish harp wire strings to be, about 0.8mm in the treble and 1.5mm in
the bass. Armstrong’s description of the harp in 1904 says it had only one gauge of wire on it, and his
photo shows more strings than are on now, so it looks like at least some of the strings we see today
were put on it in the 20th century for decorative purposes. It seems that the strings we see on the harp
today are not preserved from when the harp was being played, but are later decorative replacements.

However, the laser-scan gives us the chance to accurately measure the string lengths of the harp in its
current state, and those lengths can be used to calculate a possible stringing and tuning scheme for the
harp. The harp could have 37 strings (there are 37 tuning pins, but 38 string holes in the soundboard).
It looks like it could be tuned with 5 strings below “cronan” G, two more than Denis O’Hampsey had
on the Downhill harp; and it would then go right up to top b‴, five more treble strings than the
Downhill harp. The Hollybrook harp probably had brass wire strings for its whole range, from treble
to bass.

The notes of the Downhill harp (in black, from Bunting 1840) overlaid with the extra notes in the
suggested Hollybrook harp scale (in red)1

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irishharp.org

Hollybrook Harp Survey

MEASURING AND ANALYSING THE STRING LENGTHS AND ANGLES

The string lengths and angles of the harp in its current state can be accurately measured from the scan
in Meshlab, by picking a point on each tuning pin and each string shoe, corresponding to where the
string touches.2 Meshlab outputs a series of x,y,z coordinates for these points, and using the
Pythagorean Theorem, the lengths of each string can be calculated.

The Hollybrook harp has 37 tuning pin positions, and 38 string holes in the metal strip down the
centre of the soundboard. We number the pins and the shoes starting with 1 in the treble.

The harp can be set up in its current state in different configurations, which give different stringing
geometries. There are two obvious configurations. Stringing the harp 1-1 would connect pin 1 to hole
1, and so on down to pin 37 connected to hole 37, with hole 38 left unused. This configuration gives
the most plausible string lengths and string geometry.

Other configurations worth considering include stringing the harp 1-2, to connect pin 1 to hole 2, and
so on down the harp, with pin 37 connected to hole 38, and with hole 1 in the treble unused. This
makes the trebles too long and makes the trebles slope at too acute an angle to the soundboard.
Similarly, the harp could be strung 2-1 leaving pin 1 and holes 37 and 38 unused, but this
configuration makes the trebles at too steep an angle to the soundboard.

This diagram shows the string angles for stringing 1-1

The lengths can be plotted on a logarithmic scale, and compared to lines of Pythagorean scaling
(doubling in length every octave). The recommended maximum speaking tension of brass and iron
wire strings give an upper limit to the pitch of the whole harp. The red line shows the upper limit of
Malcolm Rose’s red brass at the suggested pitch level (see below).

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Hollybrook Harp Survey

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MEASURING AND ANALYSING THE STRINGS NOW ON THE HARP

The Hollybrook harp is preserved with some old wire strings on, which were on it when it came to the
Museum. Robert Bruce Armstrong described strings on the harp in 1904:

“The strings at present on the harp are all brass, of the same gauge, and are modern” (p.98). His
photograph (facing p.96) shows the harp with 34 complete strings, as well as what looks like two
broken fragments (in positions 31 and 36).

The harp as inspected in the Museum does not have as many strings; the Sotheby’s photograph from
1986 shows it in a similar state. There are two very different gauges of wire on the harp. Each extant
string or fragment was measured using a fiberglass caliper. The measurements should be considered
to be +/-0.1mm. The measured gauges were of two basic sizes, a thinner brass wire 0.8-0.9mm, and a
very thick wire 1.4-1.5mm.

To understand the suitability, or not, of the strings currently on the harp, a string chart was generated
showing the tensions of the strings currently on the harp if tuned to the suggested pitches. This setup
is obviously far too thick and would break the frame of the harp. If all of the strings were at 0.8mm
the tension would still be higher overall than would be considered normal or practical, especially in
the treble. It would also cause very tight treble strings and very slack bass strings.

It is possible that the harp was strung and tuned with the thinner wires currently on it; if so, this may
have caused the split of the soundboard and the distortion which seems more prominent in the treble.

Alternatively, as Armstrong suggested in 1904, even the thinner wires currently on the harp may have
been put there as decoration after the harp had been retired from use.

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Hollybrook Harp Survey

RECONSTRUCTED STRINGING REGIME

The reconstructed string chart suggests how a copy of the harp in its current state could be strung and
tuned for practical use. To read more about the historical evidence for early Irish harp tuning regimes,
see Simon Chadwick, “Provenance and recording of an eighteenth-century harp”.3

The suggested tuning shows the highest note as b''', and gives 5 strings below cronan G. This is using
all brass stringing, at A=440Hz, which could be a plausible pitch standard for a late 18th-century
setup.

The treble range suggested, up to top b''', is two notes higher than any documented treble range from
the old tradition. The bass range suggested matches the tuning sequence notated in the 1790s by
Edward Bunting, from information told or shown him by one or two of the last of the old Irish
harpers.4

In its original state the string lengths would have been slightly longer. The neck is distorted and the
soundboard has been pulled up. Without doing a rigorous reconstruction of the original form of the
harp, it is hard to say how much longer the strings would originally have been. The mid-range would
be proportionally more affected than the high treble and low bass, due to the distortion of the neck
and soundboard. It is also likely that an early 18th-century pitch standard may have been around a
semitone lower. It is possible that the same all-brass stringing and tuning regime may have worked
well at around A=415 Hz on the harp as built, but this would need to be tested with reconstructed
string lengths.

There are two iron rivets through the cheek-bands in the bass, which may represent two blocked
tuning pin holes. One of them could originally have held a 38th string connected to string hole 38, but
it is not currently clear what their function or nature is.

1
Edward Bunting, The Ancient Music of Ireland, Arranged for the Piano Forte (Dublin: Hodges and Smith,
1840), 23.
2
P. Cignoni et al, “Meshlab: an open-source mesh processing tool,” Proceedings of the 2008 Eurographics
Italian Chapter Conference, ISBN 978-3-905673-68-5: 129–36, DOI:
10.2312/LocalChapterEvents/ItalChap/ItalianChapConf2008/129–136.
3
Simon Chadwick, “Provenance and recording of an eighteenth-century harp,” The Galpin Society Journal 73,
(March 2020): 85–110 and 199–201. See pages 103–5.
4
Queen's University, Belfast, Special Collections, MS4.29.156 (page 150), MS4.29.161-2 (pages 155-6), and
also the scale in the bass on MS4.29.086 (page 81):
digital-library.qub.ac.uk/digital/collection/p15979coll9/id/216/rec/8
digital-library.qub.ac.uk/digital/collection/p15979coll9/id/221/rec/8
digital-library.qub.ac.uk/digital/collection/p15979coll9/id/222/rec/8
digital-library.qub.ac.uk/digital/collection/p15979coll9/id/146/rec/8

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irishharp.org

Hollybrook Harp Survey

Hollybrook harp (NMI DF:1983.2)

suggested stringing and tuning
String lengths of harp in current state extracted from 3D scan data by Karen Loomis
This analysis by Simon Chadwick 3rd March 2020
pin Shoe freq Note Length (cm) Length (in) Gauge (mm) Gauge (in) Tension Metal
1 1 1972 b‴ 6.2 2.4 0.48 0.019 9.5 Yellow brass
2 2 1760 a‴ 7.3 2.9 0.48 0.019 10.5 Yellow brass
3 3 1568 g‴ 7.9 3.1 0.48 0.019 9.7 Yellow brass
4 4 1396 f‴ 8.7 3.4 0.48 0.019 9.4 Yellow brass
5 5 1318 e‴ 9.7 3.8 0.48 0.019 10.4 Yellow brass
6 6 1174 d‴ 10.6 4.2 0.48 0.019 9.8 Yellow brass
7 7 1046 c‴ 11.5 4.5 0.48 0.019 9.2 Yellow brass
8 8 986 b″ 12.7 5.0 0.48 0.019 10.0 Yellow brass
9 9 880 a″ 13.9 5.5 0.48 0.019 9.5 Yellow brass
10 10 784 g″ 15.1 5.9 0.48 0.019 8.9 Yellow brass
11 11 698 f″ 16.4 6.5 0.48 0.019 8.3 Yellow brass
12 12 659 e″ 18.2 7.2 0.48 0.019 9.1 Yellow brass
13 13 587 d″ 20.1 7.9 0.48 0.019 8.8 Yellow brass
14 14 523 c″ 21.9 8.6 0.48 0.019 8.3 Yellow brass
15 15 493 b′ 23.8 9.4 0.48 0.019 8.7 Yellow brass
16 16 440 a′ 25.8 10.2 0.48 0.019 8.2 Yellow brass
17 17 392 g′ 28.0 11.0 0.6 0.024 11.9 Yellow brass
18 18 349 f′ 30.2 11.9 0.6 0.024 11.0 Yellow brass
19 19 329.5 e′ 32.6 12.8 0.6 0.024 11.4 Yellow brass
20 20 293.5 d′ 35.1 13.8 0.6 0.024 10.5 Yellow brass
21 21 261.5 c′ 37.5 14.8 0.6 0.024 9.5 Yellow brass
22 22 246.5 b 40.0 15.8 0.6 0.024 9.6 Yellow brass
23 23 220 a 42.9 16.9 0.6 0.024 8.8 Yellow brass
24 24 196 g 45.4 17.9 0.75 0.03 12.3 Yellow brass
25 25 196 g 47.9 18.9 0.75 0.03 13.7 Yellow brass
26 26 174.5 f 51.1 20.1 0.75 0.03 12.3 Yellow brass
27 27 164.75 e 54.3 21.4 0.75 0.03 12.4 Yellow brass
28 28 146.75 d 57.8 22.8 0.75 0.03 11.1 Yellow brass
29 29 130.75 c 60.9 24.0 0.75 0.03 9.8 Yellow brass
30 30 123.25 B 64.3 25.3 0.75 0.03 9.7 Yellow brass
31 31 110 A 67.9 26.8 0.75 0.03 8.6 Yellow brass
32 32 98 G 71.6 28.2 1 0.039 13.6 Yellow brass
33 33 82.375 E 75.4 29.7 1 0.039 10.6 Yellow brass
34 34 73.375 D 79.5 31.3 1 0.039 9.4 Yellow brass
35 35 61.625 BB 84 33.1 1 0.039 7.4 Yellow brass
36 36 55 AA 87.9 34.6 1 0.039 6.4 Yellow brass
37 37 49 GG 92 36.2 1 0.039 5.6 Yellow brass
38 Total 325.109

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irishharp.org

Hollybrook Harp Survey

Hollybrook harp (NMI DF:1983.2)

As found (measured wire gauges on harp)
String lengths extracted from 3D scan data by Karen Loomis
This analysis by Simon Chadwick 3rd March 2020
pin Shoe freq Note Length (cm) Length (in) Gauge (mm) Gauge (in) Tension Metal
1 1 1972 b‴ 6.2 2.4 0.8 0.032 26.3 Brass
2 2 1760 a‴ 7.3 2.9 0.9 0.035 36.8 Brass
3 3 1568 g‴ 7.9 3.1 0.9 0.035 34.2 Brass
4 4 1396 f‴ 8.7 3.4 0.9 0.035 32.9 Brass
5 5 1318 e‴ 9.7 3.8 0.9 0.035 36.5 Brass
6 6 1174 d‴ 10.6 4.2 0.9 0.035 34.5 Brass
7 7 1046 c‴ 11.5 4.5 0.9 0.035 32.3 Brass
8 8 986 b″ 12.7 5.0 0.9 0.035 35.0 Brass
9 9 880 a″ 13.9 5.5 0.8 0.032 26.4 Brass
10 10 784 g″ 15.1 5.9 0.9 0.035 31.3 Brass
11 11 698 f″ 16.4 6.5 0.9 0.035 29.2 Brass
12 12 659 e″ 18.2 7.2 1.5 0.059 89.1 Brass
13 13 587 d″ 20.1 7.9 0 0.0 missing
14 14 523 c″ 21.9 8.6 1.4 0.055 70.8 Brass
15 15 493 b′ 23.8 9.4 0.8 0.032 24.3 stub
16 16 440 a′ 25.8 10.2 0.9 0.035 28.7 Brass
17 17 392 g′ 28.0 11.0 0 0.0 missing
18 18 349 f′ 30.2 11.9 0.9 0.035 24.8 Brass
19 19 329.5 e′ 32.6 12.8 0 0.0 missing
20 20 293.5 d′ 35.1 13.8 0.9 0.035 23.7 Brass
21 21 261.5 c′ 37.5 14.8 0 0.0 missing
22 22 246.5 b 40.0 15.8 0 0.0 missing
23 23 220 a 42.9 16.9 0 0.0 missing
24 24 196 g 45.4 17.9 0 0.0 missing
25 25 196 g 47.9 18.9 1.4 0.055 47.6 Brass
26 26 174.5 f 51.1 20.1 0 0.0 missing
27 27 164.75 e 54.3 21.4 0 0.0 missing
28 28 146.75 d 57.8 22.8 0 0.0 missing
29 29 130.75 c 60.9 24.0 0 0.0 missing
30 30 123.25 B 64.3 25.3 1.5 0.059 38.9 Brass
31 31 110 A 67.9 26.8 0.8 0.032 9.8 stub
32 32 98 G 71.6 28.2 0 0.0 missing
33 33 82.375 E 75.4 29.7 0 0.0 missing
34 34 73.375 D 79.5 31.3 0 0.0 missing
35 35 61.625 BB 84 33.1 0 0.0 missing
36 36 55 AA 87.9 34.6 1.5 0.059 14.5 Brass
37 37 49 GG 92 36.2 0 0.0 missing
38 Total 597.388