Description
John Cheshire Ariel’s Song in A-flat major
Compositions by the English harpist John Cheshire’s are strewn through all the historical, personally bound collections of sheet music from the 19th to the early20th centuries kept in my archives. Nonetheless, because his music was on the lighter side, it seems that these pieces were ignored and never included in the teaching repertoire. This accidental neglect has now been remedied. I wish to share with you the pleasures of those little gems that ooze charm and showcase all the enchanting techniques harpists relied upon during la belle époque. Each piece brings a different character into play. All of them would be well received by the public in various performance situations. They were published either in England (around 1902), or posthumously in the United States in 1912.
Ariel’s Song
Long before Disney, here comes Ariel’s Song in A flat by Cheshire. This one was published by J.B. Cramer in London at the turn of the 19th century. At first glance, Ariel’s Song looks deceptively simple, with its catchy, singable tune. But watch out, it’s supposed to go presto! Connected or leaping, the fingering is dominated by a kind of see-saw pattern, the thumb singing the tune and other fingers adding the accompaniment. Toward the end, the left hand comes in to play a few high notes for facility’s sake. To make the last phrase sound staccato, as suggested in the music, it is recommended to play the quarter note with the right hand (with a thumb or second finger) and do the inner notes of the chords with the left.
