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An autoharp is a string instrument in the zither family. Its distinctive structural feature is a set of bars, each with damping pads that mute the strings not belonging to a specified chord. A chord is played by pressing the corresponding bar against the strings with one hand while them with the other.
On 20 May 1884, Hermann Lindemann and Karl August Gütter applied for German Patent 29930 for a "Device for damping individual strings on string instruments" ( Einrichtung zum Dämpfen einzelner Saiten bei Saiteninstrumente). It was issued on January 5, 1885 and claimed chord bars with the same effect as Zimmermann's but a different mechanical implementation. The profile of the instrument is intermediate between the initial symmetrical form and the smaller wing shape. It is widely held that Gütter had produced such instruments prior to the 1881 US patent and thus inspired it, but that assertion has yet to be substantiated in any dated source from that time.
Nine months were allowed for what might be substantial changes to a provisional specification before a “complete specification” was required. The date initially assigned to the application was retained throughout the examination process and given to the approved patent however great the differences in the two specifications might be. Grob and Gütter changed the focus of their claims entirely in a complete specification submitted on March 11, 1885. It dropped all mention of the piano and replaced the mechanical damping device taken from the German patent, with perpendicularly operated bars of the type exhibited by Zimmermann at the 1884 World’s Fair. A second means for permitting “the various tones belonging to a harmonious chord” to be produced on a zither was added. It attached plectrums to bars with the lateral action of Zimmermann’s 1881 patent.
The profiles of both of alternatives in the March 1885 drawings are identical not just to each other, but to Zimmermann’s small-style autoharps as well. This cannot reasonably have been coincidental but the question of who first used that profile remains to be resolved. It is not claimed as an innovative detail in the cited patents. If damping bars are taken as the definitive attribute of an autoharp, the question of its external contour might therefore appear to be moot. Nevertheless, overriding significance has been ascribed to the characteristic wing-shaped profile when dating the advent of the modern autoharp.
A stylized representation of the word was registered as a trademark in 1926.US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Electronic Search System, September 7, 2006. The word itself is currently claimed as a trademark by the U.S. Music Corporation, whose Oscar Schmidt Inc. division manufactures autoharps. The USPTO registration, however, covers only a “Mark Drawing Code (5) Words, Letters, and/or Numbers in Stylized Form” and has expired.US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Electronic Search System, May 25, 2009. In litigation with George Orthey, it was held that Oscar Schmidt could only claim ownership of the graphic device, the word autoharp having come into generic use.
On the edge opposite the top pin-block is either a series of metal pins, or a grooved metal plate, which accepts the lower ends of the strings. Directly above the strings, on the lower half of the top, are the chord bars, which are made of plastic, wood, or metal, and support felt or foam pads on the side facing the strings. These bars are mounted on springs, and pressed down with one hand, via buttons mounted to their topside. The buttons are labeled with the name of the chord produced when that bar is pressed against the strings, and the strings strummed. The back of the instrument usually has three wooden, plastic, or rubber "feet", which support the instrument when it is placed backside down on a table top, for playing in the traditional position.
Strings run parallel to the top, between the mounting plate and the tuning pins, and pass under the chord bar assembly. Modern autoharps most often have 36 strings, with some examples having as many as 47 strings, and rare 48-string models (such as Orthey Autoharps No. 136, tuned to G and D major). They are strung in a chromatic scale manner which, however, is sometimes modified into either diatonic or fully chromatic scales. Standard models have 12, 15 or 21 chord bars available, providing a selection of major chord, minor chord, and dominant seventh chords. These are arranged for historical or systemic reasons.Orthey, Mary Lou (2001). Autoharp Owner's Manual, p.3. . Various special models have also been produced, such as diatonic one-, two-, or three-key models, models with fewer or additional chords, and a reverse-strung model (the 43-string, 28-chord Chromaharp Caroler).
| Bass octave | E3 |
| Tenor octave | E4 |
| Alto octave | E5 |
| Soprano octave |
There are a number of gaps in the lowest octave, which functions primarily to provide bass notes in diatonic contexts; there is also a missing G3 in the tenor octave. The fully chromatic part of the instrument's range begins with A3 (the A below middle C).
Diatonically-strung single-key instruments from modern are known for their lush sound. This is achieved by doubling the strings for individual notes. Since the strings for notes not in the diatonic scale need not appear in the string bed, the resulting extra space is used for the doubled strings, resulting in fewer damped strings. Two- and three-key diatonics compromise the number of doubled strings to gain the ability to play in two or three keys, and to permit tunes containing accidentals, which could not otherwise be rendered on a single-key harp. A three-key harp in the circle of fifths, such as a GDA, is often called a festival or campfire harp, as the instrument can easily accompany fiddles around a campfire or at a festival.
| D7 |
| G |
The standard, factory chord bar layout for a 15-chord instrument, in two rows, is:
| D7 |
| G |
The standard, factory chord bar layout for a 21-chord instrument is in three rows:
| A |
| B7 |
| Em |
A variety of chord bar layouts may be had, both in as-delivered instruments, and after customization.
Shown is a 1930 refinished Oscar Schmidt “Model A”. This harp has two DeArmond magnetic pickups (one under the chord bars), with a d'Aigle fine-tuning mechanism, and d'Aigle chord bar assembly, and was used in a 1968 MGM Records/Heritage Records recording by Euphoria.
Partly because of this playing mode, the autoharp came to be thought of as a rhythm instrument for playing chordal accompaniment, and even today many still think of the instrument in that way. New techniques have been developed, however, and modern players can play melodies on the instrument: diatonic players, for example, are able to play fiddle tunes using open-chording techniques, "pumping" the damper buttons while picking individual strings. Skilled chromatic players can perform a range of melodies, and even solos including melody, chords, and complex rhythmic accompaniments.
In the mid-20th century performers began experimenting with taking the instrument off the table and playing it in an upright position, held in the lap, with the back of the instrument (having the "feet") held against the chest. Cecil Null, of the Grand Ole Opry is usually credited as the first to adopt this playing style in public performance, in the 1950s. In this position the left hand still works the chord buttons, but from the opposite edge of the instrument, and the right hand still executes the strums, but now plays in the area above the chord bars. (See Joe Butler illustration, below.) This playing mode makes a wider area of the strings available to the picking hand, increasing the range of tonal possibilities, and it proved very popular. It was soon adopted by other performers, notably by members of the Carter Family.
By the early 1970s some players were experimenting with finger-style techniques, where individual fingers of the right hand would pluck specific strings, rather than simply hold a pick and strum chords. Bryan Bowers became a master of this mode of playing, and developed a complex technique utilizing all five fingers of his right hand. This allows him to play independent bass notes, chords, melody, and counter melodies as a soloist. Bowers was also one of the early pioneers in adding a strap to the instrument and playing it while standing up.
The American country musician Maybelle Carter brought the instrument to prominence in the late 1940s by using it as a lead instrument when performing with her daughters the Carter Sisters. Carter's granddaughter Carlene Carter plays the autoharp onstage and on her recordings of songs that include "Me and the Wildwood Rose". Several Lovin' Spoonful songs feature the autoharp playing of John Sebastian, including "Do You Believe in Magic" and "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice". He played the instrument in the 1979 Randy VanWarmer hit song "Just When I Needed You Most".Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of No. 1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications), pages 228-9.
Bryan Bowers developed a complex finger-picking style of playing the autoharp (as opposed to the more common strumming technique) which he initially brought to bluegrass performances with The Dillards in the 1970s, and later to several of his own solo albums.
British singer songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae regularly plays the autoharp and composed the title track from her 2010 album The Sea on the autoharp.Interview with Corrine Bailey Rae on BBC 6 Music about her Mercury nominated album "The Sea", Wednesday, 1 September 2010.
Norwegian avant-garde artist Sturle Dagsland frequently performs with an autoharp.
Singer/songwriter Brittain Ashford of the band Prairie Empire is known for using autoharp in her music, including the 2008 release "There, but for You, go I". She also regularly performs on the autoharp as part of her role in Ghost Quartet, a four-person song cycle composed by Dave Malloy.
French singer/songwriter Pomme performs with an autoharp for songs such as "les oiseaux" "On brulera" "Umbrella" and many more.
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