Make Mine a Double
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Written for three lever harps, cello and voices, Make Mine a Double has been commissioned for a concert of contemporary music for lever harp, to be given in Migvie Church Aberdeenshire. At the inaugural meeting for this concert, the players discovered a common love of designer gins. They also discussed the possibility of Lu writing a piece, and when she found the music naturally wanting to drift into four distinct sections, it seemed only fair to call them Gin, Tonic, Ice and Slice.
Make Mine A Double is aimed at intermediate level lever harp players, with the emphasis on playability and fun. Much lever harp repertoire is written for the soloist, or for a melody instrument with harp continuo. Hopefully, this will prove somewhat of an antidote to that.
It is no accident that the word “Arpeggio” is derived from the Italian word for harp – arpeggio runs sit comfortably under the hand on the instrument and harp parts are largely based on inversions of 7th arpeggios. The cello part is adapted from riffs, which are fun to play on bass guitar. The lyrics for the sopranos are intended for percussive effect only. Anyone finding a meaning in them probably isn’t drinking enough gin.
Biography
Born and raised in Northern Ireland, Lu McClintock was raised in a musical family, learning a variety of instruments, and taking up the harp in her teens. She learnt pedal harp with Stephanie and Derek Bell in Belfast, before being sidetracked into rock music. Later years saw her wander into folk, traditional, jazz and blues genres on lever harp. She is easily distracted.
She has played harp and has drunk G & T on every continent except Antarctica, where there is a bit too much ice.
