Articles

The Welsh Triple Harp has three rows of strings.the two outer rows are tuned to the diatonic scale
(Like the white keys on a piano or keyboard) and the inner to the accidentals. (Like the black or sharp notes on a piano or keyboard) making the instrument completely chromatic. It has no pedals or mechanism at all. Sound effects unique to the triple harp can be produced by playing the two
outer rows in swift succession, a sound which is unattainable on the large orchestral harps.
The idea of building a harp with 3 rows of strings actually came from the Italians sometime in the 16th century, where it was developed to cope with the new styles of music that were evolving then. It was a low-headed instrument with 75 strings. It's appeal quickly spread to France and England where Welsh harpers and harp makers in London adapted the harp with three rows of strings and adopted it for the Welsh styles of playing.

The poems and music of Wales have always recorded and perpetuated the beliefs and history of her people and as such, the bards and musicians of Cymru have long been regarded as belonging to an important clan apart from the rest of society. Ancient Chronicles and documents from as far back as the 13th century mention the individual names of pipers, crwthers, & harpers. As in most other things, tradition was transmitted orally from teacher to pupil, down the generations.

Musicians, especially harpers, were regularly welcomed into the homes of gentry, especially at times of church festivals. Poets, harpers, and other instrumentalists would visit the taverns at festivals and fairs. Besides the harp, other popular and widely played instruments were the Pibgorn, and bagpipes, and the six - stringed Crwth, and the isle of Anglesey was the stronghold of both Pibgorn and Crwth until the late 18th century.