The Parson & the Songmen

S2 20 The Children of Arganteilin (The Story Of The Harp In Cornwall)

Mike Bosworth Season 2 Episode 20

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Recently, Mike went to visit Barbara Griggs for a chat about the place of the harp in Cornish music. What you are about to listen to is a fascinating podcast, brought to life by the engaging, informative, and witty explanations from Barbara.

"After many years playing Early Music on recorders and viols, I took up the harp when moving to Cornwall. This led naturally to an interest in the early music of Cornwall and historic harps. Playing the folk music of Cornwall introduced me to many Cornish musicians, in particular Mike O’Connor, with whom I have collaborated in the production of 'Above the Tin Stream' and 'The Quay Street Harper'. Our latest book, 'The Children of Arganteilin', is the story of the harp in Cornwall".

Both Bards of the Gorsedh, Mike and Barbara realised that the other Celtic lands of the British Isles all have a well-documented tradition of harping, but that this had received little attention in Cornwall. 'The Children of Arganteilin' gathers information on a thousand years of Cornish harping, drawn from manuscripts, lexicons, account books, iconography, wills and newspaper reports. Here are the harps and the harpers, from titled ladies to medieval church musicians, the rag and bone man and the renowned performer. Here is the history of the harp in the land west of the Tamar and a vision of its future.

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Mike's website: mikebosworth.uk

Podcast producer: jontidball@hotmail.co.uk

Follow Mike on: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Parson-and-the-Songmen/100093220748945/

Mike's YouTube page for Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould songs:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=thimblerigg+videos

Sabine Baring-Gould Centenary Celebration Group - 1924 to 2024: https://www.sbgcentenary.co.uk/

Simon Mayor, ace mandolinist: mandolin.co.uk

Mike O'Connor, musicologist and musician: http://www.lyngham.co.uk/

Barbara Griggs, Cornish-based Harpist: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Children-Arganteilin-Harp-Cornwall/dp/0954106857

Pete Coe, One Man Folk Industry: https://petecoe.co.uk/