At the end of my recent harp customer survey, I said:

"Here's a fun final question. Some harpists have told me that their pets run from the room as soon as they start to play the harp. Others say their pets love the harp and snuggle by their feet while they play. If you have a pet, what is your experience?"

Here are some of the 100 fun responses.

DOGS

7% of dog owners said their dog hates the sound of the harp.

91% said their dog loves the sound.

2% said their dog loves the sound and sings along!



• My dog relaxes and goes into a sleep state with eyes open.
• I have five dogs and they don't seem to care one way or the other!
• My dog loved the harp and would lie nearby and swish paws up and down to encourage me to play. 
• I've had five dogs over the years and each and every one of them loved to be near when I played. They didn't like it so much when strings broke, though.
• My Border Collies sleep whilst I play, as close as they can get.
• I played on Shop Street in Galway and a huge, unknown pit bull slowly moved to rest his face on my foot for an hour!! It was a rescue emotional support for a boy on the autism spectrum.
• I have Huskies and they sing/howl along. One time, two of them ran away and we found them by my playing and listening for their answering howls!!!! They couldn't resist!
• I had one dog that wrapped around the base of my harp, one that ran, and my current dog likes to drag her bed close to both the harp and the cello.
• My dog loves my harp playing but she runs away when I open my violin case!
• My big ugly slobbering bulldog would come in and cuddle up next to harp. He's no longer with me but he loved the harp.
• I have a friend, whose dog "sings" when she plays his favorite piece.
• My dogs love to lie under my bench as I play the harp!!! They always come into my living room when I am teaching a lesson! They love the “live” music!
• Several years ago, I had a large dog that really disliked the high strings getting tuned. She would shake a little and look for the nearest exit.
• All my dogs love the harp. My practice time is our together time.
• I had an Irish Setter that kept time with her head when I played Greensleeves. No other song made her do that. It had to be the Irish in her!
• My dog loves to hear the harp. In certain sections he will howl or moan his disapproval.
• All of our dogs over the years loved the harp. One would lay under the base of the harp after I had pulled it back. Another would climb into the harp case and nap while I practiced, which meant that harp was always adorned with dog hair.  
• Our dogs come and lie on the floor when I play. Soon they are asleep.  
• My dog used to love lying against the base of my harp. She almost died and needed two emergency operations. I brought her home from the vet. Shortly after that I couldn't find her. She had crawled up the stairs and was found at the base of the harp.
• My dog loves my harp. He especially likes playing with the pedals, which can be very problematic when I'm happily playing a piece in C, and suddenly, all my A strings are A-flats!
• Perry, our Basset Hound, is very proud of his 3rd place ribbon on our refrigerator. He was in a singing contest with a Bassett Hound Rescue program, and I played a video recording from my phone of his absolute favorite piece, Lullaby, by Rhett Barnwell.

CATS

13% of cat owners said their cat hates the sound of the harp.

85% said their cat loves the sound.

1% said their cat loves the sound and sings along!

• My cat is a wannabe harpist and plucks the strings with her teeth - it's a struggle to keep her safely away!
• One cat enjoys the harp and will keep me company. The other cat can't figure out why I am petting the harp and not him. This will not do!
• I had 2 cats that lived to be 21 years old, and I think it was because they were always exposed to the harp music.
• If it is nice outside and my windows are open, the cat next door will come over to listen.
• Years ago, I had a cat who would climb into the body of the harp while I was playing.
• My cat loves to hear the harp. She curls up at the bottom of the harp!
• My cat will sit on my music bench with me, climb on top of me, and try to play or bite the strings.
• My beautiful black cat has crossed the rainbow bridge, but he hated it when I would practice. He might be sleeping in a distant part of the house but would wake up, go to the door and howl until I let him out.
• Many years ago, when I lived in an apartment and played the harp with the window open, a cat would come and sit on the windowsill. When I stopped playing, the cat disappeared. 20 minutes later I would start playing again, and the cat returned!
• When I had a cat, he would come into the room when he heard the harp. If the fleece-lined case was out, he'd curl up in it and fall asleep while I played.
• My cat would try to PLAY along, using his teeth to rub on the bass strings and even to pluck them with his canine teeth while I was playing or when he was alone in a room with a harp. Middle of the night, low C booming from downstairs!
• My elderly cat used to wrap himself around the bottom the harp whenever I would practice.
• My cats attack me when I play, chew the strings, try to get at the harp knots through the holes, and one has knocked it over twice. One cat is worse than the others. My dog loved to lie next to the harp and protect it from the cats. Good ol' Jock.
• The cat that I have now, runs around and jumps at his climber and runs up and down stairs. I think happily. The cat we used to have, who was very shy and rarely seen, would come out and dance.
• So, it's not just MY cats who flee the room with their paws in their ears?!!!?? I feel a little bit better.  
• My cat's name is Gliss . . . he loves harp music!

BIRDS

3% of bird owners said their bird hates the sound of the harp.

43% said their bird loves the sound.

53% said their bird loves the sound and sings along!

• My bird matches the key of the piece and improvises to the song.
• I played for a friend's parrot this past summer and the bird danced while I played.
• Birds come to sing by the window when I play the harp.
• My mother-in-law's little blue budgie used to love singing along with the harp. You couldn't shut him up, even with a cloth over his cage! Which was fine unless we were trying to record the music.
• When I play on the porch outside, the songbirds seem to sing along. Sometimes I will play just a few notes and wait for them to answer me.
• I used to have a parakeet that would perch on the strings and peck the strings.
• I have a client who owns a very jealous bird, squawking and clamoring when anyone engages his person. When I play my harp, he stops all that, slides to the front of his cage and stares intently at me. Sometimes he even closes his eyes during the music.
• The wild birds love to hear the harp and often sing along.
• Sometimes hummingbirds flutter outside my window when I play the harp!
• My African Grey parrot changes her mind frequently. Sometimes she loves when I play the harp and will sing along, and other times she will really hate it.
• My dove only coos when the music is really good!

FROGS

• My frog would start to sing along!
• When I was playing outside, I once had a frog sing along.

HORSES

• My horses love harps and harp music. They like to put their noses on the vibrating strings, which can dampen the sound, so they also like to gently put their noses on my hands when I play.
• I have taken my small lap harp out to the horse barn and the horses love to listen.
• My horses are utterly indifferent to my playing. Thank goodness.

RABBITS

• My pet rabbit came and sat in front of the harp and flute during our playing.
• My five bunnies enjoy listening to my harp playing.
• My rabbits love the harp and a particular rabbit loved French and German lit. I was soloing with Ravel’s “Intro and Allegro” and that bunny would stamp and have a fit when I took a break. She faced me sitting about 6 feet from the harp and was always highly critical.

OTHER ANIMALS

• Passing deer stop to listen.
• When I play in my garden, the squirrels will run up and listen.
• I have squirrels outside that come to the glass door and the windows when I play.
• My rats sleep through it all. Me playing my harp doesn't involve snacks for them, so they seem rather uninterested.

HUSBANDS

I didn't ask about husbands, but several people mentioned them!

• It's not about pets, but funnily enough, my husband loves the harp and jumps on the couch with his eyes half closed as soon as I start playing. What a compliment!
• My husband always comes INTO the room when I start practicing. He's not my pet, but he is certainly my biggest harp cheerleader!

Also, in answer to the survey question, "Do you play for other people?" one harpist said she plays in animal shelters, and another said she plays her harp for animals at the local zoo.

In my January newsletter, I mentioned that the cover of The Pyramid Collection women's clothing catalog featured a Dusty Strings harp. My article inspired Helen in Australia to send me the following email.

In the last year, a frequent television advertisement for Mitsubishi Pajero Sport shows a butler playing a small harp at a campsite. (Note: He is playing while wearing white gloves. 😂 )

The scene occurs at 20 seconds in this video.

Helen emailed me again a few days later, saying that her harp friend Ruth had helped her find another Australian car commercial from 2021 that features the harp for a grand total of 2 seconds!

Here's how Innocean, the ad agency for Hyundai in Australia, describes this Hyundai Santa Fe commercial.

"The campaign idea, Little Angels, was developed from an insight that in the midst of family chaos, parents are striving to achieve their own personal moments of harmony. The campaign sees two bickering siblings instantly transformed into little angels complete with harps, singing Enya’s 80’s classic "Orinoco Flow" in perfect harmony."

The harp shows up at 1 minute 14 seconds into the 90-second commercial. Don't blink, or you'll miss it!

These ads reminded me that I featured other harp commercials in my February 2017 newsletter. And, since this current newsletter features animals, here are images from the Starkist Tuna and Laughing Cow cheese commercials. Check out the February 2017 newsletter for more information and Gracie Sprout's article about all the "real harpists" in the Laughing Cow commercial.

(By the way, Gracie also wrote the March 2022 article for me about playing at the Super Bowl. Thank you, Gracie!)

This month's sale includes music about animals.

To get the 15% discount, enter the code Puppy in the "Enter Promo Code" box on your shopping cart page and click "Enter Code" by March 31, 2024. See the "How to get the 15% discount" section at the bottom of this newsletter for more information.

Andrew Lloyd Webber

arranged by Sylvia Woods

including music from Cats

PDF or Book

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

Favorites from the 50s

arranged by Sylvia Woods

including How Much is that Doggy in the Window? and

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

PDF or Book

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

Groovy Songs of the 60s

arranged by Sylvia Woods

including

Puff the Magic Dragon

PDF or Book

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

76 Disney Songs

arranged by Sylvia Woods

including LOTS of music

 about animals

PDF or Book

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

Bouquet for Young Harpists

by Bonnie Goodrich

including Carrots for April the Bunny, The Goldfish, Buffalo Dance, and more

PDF or Book

15% off with Puppy code

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Lullaby Collection

by Angi Bemiss

including Lambs are Sleeping and Cuckoo and an Owl

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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Harping Cats and Dogs

by Kathryn Cater

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

Soaring Strings

by Kathryn Cater

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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Forever in Love with Horses

by Kathryn Cater

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

All the Pretty Little Horses

arranged by Sylvia Woods

PDF or Sheet

15% off with Puppy code

------------------------------

The Frog and the Leprechaun

by William Mahan

PDF and mp3s

15% off with Puppy code

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Angry Birdz

by Cynthia Artish

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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Pastime with Good Company

by Suzanne Guldimann

including The Frog Galliard

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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The Swan

by Saint-Saens

arranged by Barbara Brundage

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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Forget Not the Angels

by Kim Robertson

including The Kitten

PDF

15% off with Puppy code

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15% off select sale items when you use the code word Puppy

Our newsletter promo codes are redeemable online and are only valid for the products listed above in the monthly sale section. They are not valid for phone or email orders. This month's code word is Puppy.

Here's how to get your newsletter discount at harpcenter.com:

#1. Put the items you want to purchase in your cart.

#2. On the page where you view the items in your cart, type this month's code word Puppy in the "Enter Promo Code" box and click "Apply."

The actual price of the featured sale products on this page will then automatically change to reflect the discount. For example,

   Unit Price: $9.95 (the original price)

   Total Price: $8.46 (the discounted price)

You'll also see a note below the Promo Code box saying the name of the promo code you entered and the percentage amount of the discount.

REMEMBER: You must enter this month's code word Puppy in the Promo Code box and click "Apply" on your shopping cart page by March 31, 2024, to get the discount!

If you forget, or if you have trouble adding it to your order, email Sylvia immediately.  

This offer expires at the end of the day on 3/31/2024.