Mouse's SCA Natterings

My other harp, the West Kingdom legacy harp that used to belong to Siobhan the Fiddler of blessed memory, was able to be repaired! Musicmakers in Stillwater MN did a really fantastic job with the repair, even using epoxy to seal the split/separation on the soundboard so that it would expand a bit easier once the strings were brought up to tension. I am very impressed and highly recommend them if you want a lever harp, which is their bread and butter. Super nice people, lovely harps!

Now comes the fun bit: restringing and retuning it. XD Luckily I have a pretty good supply of bronze wire in the necessary gauges, and Robinson string balls to put on the ends instead of wee divots of thick wire. That's going to make the job much easier! Gonna use 0.16 wire instead of 0.14 wire for the topmost strings, cause the 0.14 is just way too fragile (having broken several of them in past).

I'll be bringing both harps with me to Warriors and Warlords and to Pennsic! Yay!

SO. I am really bad at this whole blogging thing. Even on Facebook I'm bad at it. I will try to be better!

WHAT I HAVE BEEN UP TO:
Harpery -- been playing and practicing a LOT and learning new tunes! As things have been opening back up event-wise I have been bringing my wee harp, though I haven't gathered the courage to play it for anyone yet in public. XD Soon though! I have a pretty solid repertoire of tunes in hand, about five of them that just need a bit more practice and polish before they're performance-ready. I'm still studying with Mistress Telynor too, and we've been working out arrangements for some of those tunes together. ^__^

Scribalry -- been keeping my hand in here too! That "big seekrit project" I was working on when last I posted was a County scroll for Grand Contessa Vera upon stepping down as "plague Queen"; I did the bar and ivy frame for this overall spectacular scroll, and Vera suitably lost her shit over it. <3 I've been doing other scrolls too, mainly replacements for people who lost their original scrolls in fires and such -- working on the second such of these now.

Etc -- I wrote a paper (that's eventually going to be a class) on the medieval harp in the British Isles and entered it in the Wreath of Athena display/competition at Crown a couple weeks ago. I CAME IN SECOND!!! My first time ever doing such a thing -- I am still basking in the afterglow. XD I also researched and am registering a good new name, keeping the Ommadan part (as I've been known as such ever since I started playing in 1975, when heraldic things were much less... accuracy-informed XD). It's being decided even as I type -- hopefully it will go through!

Other than that, I'm considering applying to/volunteering for an office (either as Seneschal or Exchequer) within the Province of the Mists, which is starving for officers and in danger of going into abeyance as people move out of the very expensive Berkeley area. I would hate to see the birthplace of the SCA become inactive as an official group. Working on an SCA resume toward this end; we shall see what comes of it!

And I think that's everything up to now...

Boy, I am REALLY not good at this whole keeping-up-a-journal thing... XD

So yeah, West Kingdom Virtual Twelfth Night was AWESOME! I did eventually play a couple tunes on my harp for the Princess of the Mists, and she was delighted -- as was Telynor, who thought I played excellently for playing in "public" for the first time. ^__^ She's still gleefacing about it XD As am I! It was late, around 11pm, when the Princess came over to the Westermark Zoom room (where I had been hanging out -- I'm a full blown adopted Westermarker now I guess XD), and I hadn't eaten dinner or anything since like 3pm and I was getting bleary eyed and tired, but I promised to do it and I didn't want to let my teacher (or myself) down. And I played! And it was WONDERFUL! I did make a few mistakes but no one either caught them or cared.

Then someone came over from the Bardic room (which had shut down by that time) who had been a good friend of Siobhan, and I played again for her. Made more mistakes, but she was pleased to hear her friend's harp sing again regardless. Telynor said her low key response was likely emotion... <3

ANYWAY since then I have not been sitting on my non existent laurels XDDDD I have been learning new stuff, working on techniques I have already learned in order to get them committed to memory, and working on a class that I plan to teach at probably Collegium, scheduled now for November. Class will be on the history of the harp in the British Isles, focusing on Ireland, Scotland and Wales and the unique instruments therein. ^__^ I'm going to construct the class in such a way as I can present it online if I have to, but I'd rather give it in person XD

So I'm keeping busy and engaged online with the SCA ^__^ How about y'all?

Went to West Kingdom Twelfth Night and Coronation this past weekend and had a BLAST. Friday after I got to the hotel was spent chatting with people at the bar (including the Prince of the Mists, which I didn't know at the time XD), and also on harpery shenanigans with Tangwistel Telynores, or just Telynor, who's a harp Laurel and has an absolutely gorgeous harp styled after the Queen Mary in Scotland. I met Telynor at Boar Hunt a few weeks ago, and we nattered each other's faces off about harps, so we decided to get up at some point and have her look at my wee harp. Which we did! She has a spreadsheet program she wrote to calculate string length and notes based on the wire gauge; measurements were taken, during which we determined that the strings were steel (!) as opposed to brass or bronze. She also took a look at the split on the side, and we talked to a friend of hers who does woodworking to see what he thought. A specimen was taken of the glue inside the harp body and dunked it in a cup of water to see if it dissolved; if it did, it was hide glue and we were golden to fix it, and if it didn't it was wood glue which is horrid to work with. It dissolved! Yay! So Telynor is going to give me a copy of the program and the numbers and I'll run up a string chart so I can restring it in bronze wire of the proper gauges. She also gave me the website of a luthier down in Palo Alto who might be able to repair the split! All in all a very productive evening!

We also stopped by the Bardic Circle and as I told everyone the harp's history, there were several audible gasps -- including from the owner of Siobhan's other harp. They sang her most famous song, the West Kingdom anthem "To The West", and I nearly cried. It gave me chills. ^__^

Saturday was the event itself. First up was the final court of Hans and Helga, during which the first Order of the Acorn (youth award!) was given. Then I went out to the hall and sat with the display of West Kingdom crowns -- the Ancient and Venerable Regalia -- and learned some of the history of the West Kingdom, which is where the SCA got started. (Just down the road in South Berkeley, in fact XD) Then there was Coronation, when Hans and Helga stepped down as King and Queen and Uther and Vera stepped up. There was a lot of fealty swearing during that court. XD a LOT. XD After a break was Uther and Vera's first court, where they appointed the Queen's Guard and various Champions. It was a GREAT court, filled with magic and pageantry with a touch of shtick. I think I'm going to like this reign. XD

Sunday I was going to attend the Herald's meeting, but I woke up feeling lousy and just skipped out and came home without managing to say goodbye to anyone. *sadface* But all in all, a wonderful time was had, I learned more about my harp, plotting and planning for future stuff happened, and I got to see friends I have made and met new friends. Yay! I'm really beginning to fall in love with the West Kingdom....