View source for Harp

The '''harp''' is a [[musical instrument]] whose origins go back at least as far as 3,000 BC. The instrument is defined as an open frame over which is stretched a series of graduated strings, set in vibration by plucking with the fingers.

The harp was one of the most important instruments of the [[Middle Ages]]; in particular the type of harp known as a [[wales|Welsh]] Harp or ''"telyn"''. In [[Scotland]], the small harp used as a solo instrument or to accompany [[singing]] was known as a ''"clàrsach"''. The harp remained almost exclusively a musical feature of the [[British Isles]] before it was exported to the Continent sometime before the [[ninth century]].

According to the [[Laws of Wales]], the three things necessary for a gentleman to possess were ''his harp, his [[cloak]] and his [[chess]]board''.

[[Category:Musical instruments]]