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<P>Tibicen said: </P>
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<P>>Note, that contrary to the you-only-can-play-either-wire-or-gut >theory, I have seen him >[Andrew lawrence-King] swap back and forth in concert. I asked >him about that, and he >said said he grew his nails on one hand and not the other. *shrug* Maybe he was pulling my >leg. </P>
<DIV>No, he wasn't pulling your leg. Or your finger. Using nails on the melody hand and fingerpads on the harmony hand is common in Latin American harp technique and appropriate to renaissance Spanish technique. Some jazz harpists (Andreas Vollenweider, for instance) also use this technique or a similar one using a combination of nails and finger or thumb pick on the melody hand. I've also encountered some wire-strung players who use the combination technique with success. </DIV>
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<DIV>I'm currently working on finding an appropriate nail length so that I can switch between Spanish cross-strung (gut) and "concert celtic" (nylon with fairly strong tension). Switching to a lighter-strung medieval harp is not as much of a problem. I've never had long or even longish nails -- I started out on piano when I was too young to let them grow -- so this is an all new experience. </DIV>
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<DIV>-- Signy</DIV></DIV><br clear=all><hr>Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at <a href="http://explorer.msn.com">http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></p></html>
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