Articles

History Players Luthiers The Harp Guitar Gathering and other Events Books & Articles: Bibliography

All articles by Gregg Miner, unless otherwise noted.


What is a Harp Guitar?
"Harp Guitar": What's in a Name?
(Members Only access)
Harp Guitar Patents 
Harp Guitar Tunings

Harp Guitar Timeline of Significant Events (Members Only access)
Encyclopedia of Harp Guitar Players of the Past 
Fretted Harp Guitars

Harp-lutes
 
Harpolyres
 
Mixed Family Hybrids & Other Related Forms
 
Lyre Guitars & Related Instruments
 
Extended Range Guitars
 
Super-Trebles: To Infinity and Beyond
(Members Only access)

Makers Articles

Altpeter Harp Guitar and Double-Harp Ukulele
The Harp Guitars of Joseph Bohmann
Dyer Harp Guitars: The Knutsen-Dyer Connection
The Dyer Harp Mandolin Family and Knutsen’s Influence
 
The Mysterious Five-Course Harp Mandola
The Harp Guitars of Settimio Gazzo and Other Genoese Luthiers
The Gibson Harp Guitar by Benoît Meulle-Stef 
Tullio
Giulietti and Sons by Roger Belloni, edited by Gregg Miner 
Harwood Harp Guitars 
The Lacôte Harp Guitars

The Harp Guitars of Mario Maccaferri (Harpguitars.net Members Only)
May Flower Harp Guitars
Harp Guitars and Related Instruments of Monzino & Sons
Marvelous Mozzani! The Incredible Harp Guitars of Luigi Mozzani
Harp Guitars of the Chinery Collection 
The Birth of the American 12-string Guitar
 
Frank E. Coulter Harp Guitars and Other Stringed Instruments
 
Milanese Master Luthier Luigi Galimberti
 
Tony Biehl, a Harp Guitar Manufacturer Ahead of His Time


Featured Harp Guitar of the Month Series

"Harpe-guitare," catalog # 1550 in the Brussels Musical Instrument Museum
A Portuguese Knutsen?!

The Bohmann Monster

Lyon & Healy's Monster Bass Harp Guitar

A Dyer Detective Story
Harp Ukuleles 
Another 1-of-a-Kind Knutsen Convertible

Harp Guitar: Hybrid with a Heritage by Duncan Robertson (from Frets Magazine, November, 1979)
The Oldest Extant Gibson Harp Guitar by Gregg Miner with Benoît Meulle-Stef
The Mystery Maccaferri
America’s First True Harp Guitar
"Chitarra monumentale"and its relation to the Gazzo harp guitars of Pasquale Taraffo
The Shutt Mando-Bass-Harp-Guitar
A Unique Lacôte Décacorde by Françoise Sinier de Ridder, with Gregg Miner
Lacôte / Coste Heptacorde by Bernhard Kresse, edited by Gregg Miner 
Stephen Bennett’s Great-Grandfather’s Dyer 

The House of Stathopoulo Harp Guitar
by Paul Fox 
The Grunewald Harp Guitar

The Behee Lyric Harp Guitar
 
The Petzval-Scherzer Guitharfe
 
Weymann Harp Guitar with Double "Tree of Life" inlay 
The Harp Guitar of Boris Perott 
Tony Biehl Harp Guitar: Ahead of Its Time
 
A Short History of the Modern Archguitar
 
Dyer Harp Mandolins and the Symphony Harp Plectral Ensemble
 
The Harp Guitars of Emilio Calamara
 
The Paul Gardie/Harmony Orchestral Harp Guitar

Harp Guitar Player of the Month Series, Historical

Heinrich Albert and the World's First Harp Guitar Quartet
Italo Meschi, the Last Italian Troubadour 
Chris Knutsen: Harp Guitar "Triple Threat"
Neil G. Christian: The Harpguitar: Its History and Its Only Practitioner (from Guitar Player, March, 1976)
Mario Maccaferri, Concert Harp Guitarist
Pasquale Taraffo: The World's Greatest Harp Guitar Virtuoso by Franco Ghisalberti & Gregg Miner
Albert Shutt and the Mando-Bass-Harp-Guitar 
Tullio
Giulietti and Sons by Roger Belloni, edited by Gregg Miner 
Maccaferri, Revisited
 
George Dudley, America’s Most Famous Unknown Harp Guitarist
 
Black Harp Guitar Players 
James Reese Europe and the Clef Club Orchestra
Roy Butin, Revealed!  
The Harp Guitar of Boris Perott  
The Legacy of the Cera Brothers
 
Vardon, Perry and...Wilbers?
 
Søffren Degen by Thomas Nielsen 
Emilio and Emily Calamara: A Tale of Two Musicians by Sheri Mignano Crawford

The Knutsen Archives 

Knutsen Stringed Instruments: Categories, Styles & Terminology
Chris Knutsen's Patents
Harmony in the Family by Jean Cammon Findlay
What’s in a Name?
by Jean Cammon Findlay
Knutsen Residences Today
by Jean Cammon Findlay 
Does Chris Knutsen Have Living Descendants?
by Jean Cammon Findlay 
Chris Knutsen: Vignettes of a Life
by Jean Cammon Findlay 
Steamboats: How Chris Knutsen Traveled around Puget Sound by Jean Cammon Findlay 
Lester Payne’s Mandolin and Guitar Orchestra

Otto Anderson
 
Otto Anderson, Instrument Maker for Chris Knutsen
by Jeanette Detlor
Otto Anderson Violin
 
Exploring the Knutsen - Anderson Connection
 
Ingman Ivar Strum
 
Bert Amend & the One-Armed Musicians
 
Dyer Harp Guitars: The Knutsen-Dyer Connection
 
The Dyer Harp Mandolin Family and Knutsen’s Influence
 
The Mysterious Five-Course Harp Mandola
 
A Dyer Detective Story
A Knutsen Bass Guitar? 
Harp Ukuleles 
Another 1-of-a-Kind Knutsen Convertible
 
Chris Knutsen: Harp Guitar "Triple Threat"

The Knutsen-Weissenborn Connection by Gregg Miner, with Jonathan Kellerman


Harp Guitar Player of the Month Series, Contemporary

Phil deGruy: Limitless Guitar 
Michael Hedges
by Nate Blaustein 
Phil deGruy, Revisited!
 
So who exactly IS Brin Addison and why is he suddenly Harp Guitarist of the Month?

A Short History of the Modern Archguitar

Harp Guitar Player of the Month Series, Historical

Heinrich Albert and the World's First Harp Guitar Quartet
Italo Meschi, the Last Italian Troubadour 
Chris Knutsen: Harp Guitar "Triple Threat"

Neil G. Christian: The Harpguitar: Its History and Its Only Practitioner (from Guitar Player, March, 1976)
Mario Maccaferri, Concert Harp Guitarist
Pasquale Taraffo: The World's Greatest Harp Guitar Virtuoso by Franco Ghisalberti & Gregg Miner
Albert Shutt and the Mando-Bass-Harp-Guitar
George Dudley, America’s Most Famous Unknown Harp Guitarist
Black Harp Guitar Players 
James Reese Europe and the Clef Club Orchestra
Roy Butin, Revealed! 
The Harp Guitar of Boris Perott
The Legacy of the Cera Brothers 
Vardon, Perry and...Wilbers?
Søffren Degen by Thomas Nielsen 
Emilio and Emily Calamara: A Tale of Two Musicians by Sheri Mignano Crawford

After Six:  Player's Tips by Stacy Hobbs

Playing Out, Part 1: WHY?  
Playing Out, Part 2: WHEN?

Playing Out, Part 3: WHERE?

Getting Started

For Beginners

Rolling Through

To Ring, or Not to Ring
 

In a Pinch
 

“CAGED” at Last
 
Pickin' Low
 
"Low Down Leo"

"Making Musical Choices" by Stephen Bennett
Playing the Harp Guitar by John Doan (from Frets Magazine, Sept, 1988)
TD ELECTRIC HARP GUITAR APPROACH by Tim Donahue
The "Expanded" Harp Guitar: Adding Possibilities with Super-Trebles by John Doan

Miscellaneous

Harp Guitar Tablature: In Search of A Standard by Nate Blaustein and Gregg Miner
Harp Guitars at Healdsburg by Frank Doucette
Harp Guitarists Visit Alex de Grassi's Weekend Guitar Workshop by Gregg Miner


Harp Guitar Luthier of the Month Series

Harp Guitars at Healdsburg by Frank Doucette
Stephen Sedgwick by Brad Hoyt

Arpa Viola Caipira, Part 1: Genesis and Design by Brad Hoyt
Arpa Viola Caipira, Part 2: Construction and Innovation, featuring Luthier Stephen Sedgwick by Brad Hoyt
Harp Guitars at the Guild of American Luthiers 2006 Convention
William Eaton: Instruments for the New Age (from Frets Magazine, January, 1983)
Shopping For the Perfect Harp Guitar by Frank Doucette
Birth of a Harp Guitar: The Story of Wingert HG1-0207.I.M.4 by Frank Doucette
The "Expanded" Harp Guitar: Adding Possibilities with Super-Trebles by John Doan
Albert Shutt and the Mando-Bass-Harp-Guitar 
Non-Standard Scale Harp Guitars
Meet the (Harp Guitar) Maker: Woodley White

A Short History of the Modern Archguitar


The Harp Guitar Gathering

The Harp Guitar Gathering, Nov 1 & 2, 2003
Trip Report: The 2nd Annual Harp Guitar Gathering by Fred Carlson
The 3rd Annual International Harp Guitar Gathering by the Participants
The 3rd Annual International Harp Guitar Gathering: Schedule of Events
The 4th Annual International Harp Guitar Gathering by the Participants
The 4th Annual International Harp Guitar Gathering: Schedule of Events
The 5th Annual International Harp Guitar Gathering

See Main HGG page for all years.

Year of the Harp Guitar

Year of the Harp Guitar: June, 2006 - July, 2007
Harp Guitars at the Guild of American Luthiers 2006 Convention 
Harp Guitarists Visit Alex de Grassi's Weekend Guitar Workshop
Harp Guitars at Winfield! by Joe Morgan
The Museum of Making Music presents Harp Guitars: Passion, Imagination, Artistry

Miscellaneous

February, 2007: The Miner Museum Acquires Important Rare Specimens (Members Only access)


Harp Guitar Bibliography: Books and Periodicals (Partial list)

Special thanks to John Doan and Stephen Sedgwick for contributions

Periodicals:

Acoustic Guitar, May 2003: Harp Guitar Revival
Acoustic Guitar, October 2005: G.A.S. Station (Gregg Miner)
American Lutherie No. 10 American Plucked Instruments at SMM.
American Lutherie No. 21 1990 The Mandolin Orchestra in America.
American Lutherie No. 22 1900 Andalusia and the Modern Guitar.
American Lutherie No. 29 1992 Harp Guitar: That Extra-String Thing.
American Lutherie No. 34 1993 A New Look at Harp Guitars.
American Lutherie No. 38 1994 The Ukranian Bandura.
American Lutherie No. 51 1997 Of Sympitars and Suzalynes.
American Lutherie No. 69 2002 Prepare to Meet the Maker: Kerry Char
American Lutherie No. 87 18th Convention, Tom Shinness
American Lutherie No. 88 Benoit Meulle-Stef, Lyre Guitars, Basslautes
American Lutherie No. 137 2019 Delving Into the Vagaries and Mysteries of Early Gibson Guitar Strings By Way of the Harp Guitar by G. Miner
Early Music Today, October / November 1997 The Theorbo
Fretboard Journal #41 Spring 2018 A Lost Scroll of the Ages (Orville Gibson harp guitar) by Gregg Miner
Frets November 1979, Harp guitar, Hybrid with a Heritage
Frets March 1982, The Lute, Instruments from the Ages
Frets January 1983, William Eaton, Wechter
Frets September 1988, Harp Guitar Renaissance
Frets Winter 2006, Harp Guitar Exhibition
Guitarmaker No. 58 The First True Harp Guitar
Guitar Player, 1976, The Harp Guitar and Its Only Living Practitioner
Guitar Review 115 (Winter 1999)
Guitar Techniques, October 1994 Music Maker Publication
20th Century Guitar, March, 2005: Oddball Harp Guitars
The Ukulele Occasional Vol 2: Harp Ukuleles
Vintage Guitar, October 2005: Gibson Harp Guitar

Books:

Allen, George & Karl Geiring, Instruments in the History of the Western Music, Unwin Publishing, 1978
Bacon, Tony. The Ultimate Guitar Book, (DK) Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1993
Baines, Anthony.(Ed) Musical Instruments Through The Ages, Penguin Books Ltd, 1978
Bains, Anthony. European and American Musical Instruments, New York, The Viking Press, 1966
Baines, Anthony. Victoria and Albert Museum, Catalogue of Musical Instruments Vol II Non-Keyboard Instruments, Printed by Jarrold and Sons Ltd, 1968
Baines, Anthony. The Oxford Companion to Musical Instruments, 1992
Bone, Phillip. The Guitar and Mandolin: Biographies of Celebrated Players and Composers, 1914 London: Schott & Co. Ltd
Brogger, Kenneth. Danish Guitars & Their Makers, Forlaget Roset, 2001
Brookes, Tim. Guitar: An American Life, Grove Press, 2005
Button, Stuart W. Julian Bream: The Foundations of a Musical Career, 2006
Caldwell, John. The Guitar in England 1800-1924, Oxford University. Garland Publishing Inc 1989
Carter, Walter. Gibson Guitars, 100 Years of an American Icon, (GPG) General Publishing Group Inc 1994
Chinery, Scott with Tony Bacon. The Chinery Collection, 150 Years of American Guitars, Published in the UK by Balafon Books, 1996
Crawford, Sheri Mignano. Mandolins, Like Salami: A History & Personal Memoir, Zighi Baci Publishing, San Francisco, CA, 2005
Egger, Margarethe. Die Schrammeln in ihrer Zeit (the Schrammels in their time)
Evans, Tom and Mary Anne. Guitars: from the Renaissance to Rock, Facts on File, New York 1977
Freeth, Nick & Charles Alexander. The Acoustic Guitar, Bramley Books 1999. Courage Books, Philadelphia - London
Frignani, Lorenzo & Intelisano, Giovanni. La Storia della Liuteria Centopievese, 2006
Gruhn, George & Walter Carter. Acoustic Guitars & Other Fretted Instruments: A Photographic History, GPI Books/Miller Freeman Books, San Francisco, 1993
Guild of American Luthiers. Big Red Book of American Lutherie series. Book 1, contains issue #10, Book 2 contains issue #21 & 22, Book 3 contains issue #29 & 34
Hartman, Robert Carl. Guitars and Mandolins in America: Featuring the Larsons' Creations, Maurer & Co., 1984, 1988
Hartman, Robert Carl. The Larson Creations, Guitars and Mandolins, Centerstream Publishers, 1996
Hartman, Robert Carl. The Larsons' Creations, Centennial Edition, 2007
Howe, Steve. The Steve Howe Guitars Collection, IMP Publishers 1993
Intelisano, Giovanni. Mozzani: Un liutaio e la sua arte, Arts & Crafts
Jahnel, Franz. Die Gitarre und ihr Bau. Frankfurt am Main, Verlag Da Musikinstument, 1963 (Translated Edition) Manual Of Guitar Technology
Katalinić, Vjera & Majer-Bobetko, Sanja, Editors. Ivan Padovec (1800-1873) and His Time, 2007
Kellerman, Jonathan. With Strings Attached: The Art and Beauty of Vintage Guitars, Ballantine Books, 2008 (numerous Knutsen instruments)
Kuronen, Darcy. Dangerous Curves: The Art of the Guitar, 2000 MFA Publications
Mactaggart, Peter and Ann (Ed) Musical Instruments in the 1851 Exhibition, published by Mac & Me Ltd
Marcuse, Sibyl. A Survey of Musical Instruments, David and Charles Newton Publications 1978
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The Spanish Guitar, La Guitarra Espanola,1991-1992
Miner, Gregg (Carolyn Grant, editor). Floating Strings: The Remarkable Story of the Harp Guitar in America, Museum of Making Music 2017
Miner, Gregg. Norwegian Wood, 2018
Miner, Gregg. W. J. Dyer & Bro. Symphony Harp Mandolins and the Symphony Harp Plectral Ensemble, 2019
Moldrup, Erling. Guitaren: Et eksotisk instrument i den danske musik, 1997
Munrow, David: Instruments of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, Oxford University Press, London 1976
The New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments
. London: MacMillan Publishers Ltd, 1980
Noe, George T. & Daniel L. Most. From Harp Guitars to the New Hawaiian Family - Chris J. Knutsen - History and Development of the Hawaiian Steel Guitar, Noe Enterprises, 1999
Ramirez III, Jose. Things about the Guitar, Soneto Ediciores Musicales
Rodgers, Jeffrey Pepper. Vintage Guitars: the Instruments, the Players, the Music, String Letter Publishing, 2001
Jose L. Romanillos. Antonio de Torres, Guitar Maker, his Life and Work, Element Book Ltd, 1987
Sachs, Curt. Real-Lexikon der Musikinstrumente, 1913
Sachs, Curt. The History Of Musical Instruments, W.W.Norton & Company Inc Publishers, 1940
Sinier de Ridder. La Guitare, Paris 1650-1950, 2007
Summerfiel, Maurice J. The Classical Guitar, Its Evolution & Its Players Since 1800, Ashly Mark Publishers, 1982
Timmerman, Alex. De Mandoline en De Gitaar: Door de Eeuwen Heen (The Guitar and the Mandolin Through the Ages). AETii-Producties, 1994
Timmerman, Alex. Guitars with Extra Bass Strings (chapter in Ivan Padovec), 2007
Wright, Michael. Guitar Stories Vol II, 2000|
Zuth, Josef Handbuch der Laute und Gittare, 1926

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