Harp the herald, angels sing!

If angels could talk, would they want the harp to sing for them, or with them?

After listening to 13-year-old Vien Ignacio play the harp with Mariel Ilusorio on piano, my imagination keeps taking me to the realm of angels. Never actually having heard them before, I’m imagining that if angels were to choose an instrument to play with and play on, it would be the harp.

The harp is of ancient origin – is that why we associate harps with kings and queens of long ago, in their castles? The logistics to move a harp from one place to another is not easy. In Vien’s case, you’re talking Antipolo, where she lives, and Makati, where Mariel lives and where the concert venue was located. How the two musicians agreed on where to get together and how often to rehearse for their event last Sunday at Sunshine Place Senior Recreation Center on Jupiter street, I would not try to guess.

And yet, they pulled it off, beautifully, harp’s ethereal personality grounded, so to speak, by piano’s full-throated eloquence. The roof deck of the venue was charmingly appropriate on a cloudy Sunday afternoon at 5 o’clock, the air charged by a gentle, mellow anticipation. It was a full house, but no one had to stand. A hint of rain did not materialize, so it was another blessing.

For this performance, Vien chose a dress that seemed to float, as light as a butterfly’s wings. In a shade of pinkly peach, it appeared to flutter when she stood up to acknowledge her audience’s cheers, brava!

How often do we get to attend a harp concert in Manila? How many harps are available in our music stores? How many music teachers can play the harp?

Logistically speaking, it’s not easy to transport a harp, which is an open frame within which 47 strings are strung, of different lengths and tensile strengths. Plus, without four or more pedals for the harpist to work on, the sound could not, would not be brilliant enough.

My Christmas wish for PBBM is a command performance by Vien in Malacañang, no less. What say the office of the social secretary?