Workshop topics
Over the last 30 years of my teaching career, I've been very lucky to have the opportunity to not only see some fabulous teachers doing what they do best, but also have had the chance to work with them, and to lead workshops and tutor all over the world. Including NZ events - The NZ Harp Festival 2004, Harp Weekends, Harpenz, The Harp Retreat and in the UK - Benslow Music School, Retreat to the Harp and the Edinburgh International Harp Festival in Scotland, Somerset Harp Festival in New York, USA. I've also spoken at online events such as "Hangin' with the Harp" on the 'Step up Your Sightreading' and talked about my publications and compositions - most of these online appearances can be found on YouTube and in various places around my website.
Never Touched a Harp Before? Not A Problem - taught in schools around the Coromandel, Hauraki and Auckland.
Welcome to your first harp lesson (wings and halo are not part of the plan!). Within 15 minutes you will have a couple of harp techniques under your fingers, and be starting on a simple harp tune. Copy cat to learn some new harp tunes and harp techniques like glissandos. Absolute harp beginners only - we won't be reading any notes/music.
I Hate Sightreading!! Somerset Harp Fest, USA 2024
Really??? I love it!
I love the freedom it gives me to open and play a new piece of music with a high degree of accuracy. Then I can consider if I liked the sound of it (or not!) and whether to take the time to learn it.
Interested? This workshop will give you the overview for how to tackle your sightreading – from the very first steps…C..D…C up to the level you want to be able to read at.
Resources mentioned – 'Sightreading for Harp' books 1-4, by Anna Dunwoodie and Lisa Williamson
Cool Harp Techniques for Beginner Harpists
Okay - you need to know your way around the harp a little for this - we're going to learn how to produce a good harmonic in each hand, how to etouffle, P.D.L.T, xylophonic sounds, and harp strums. Then we'll learn to play a little ensemble tune with muffled effects caused by a chunky yarn caterpillar threaded in your strings. Grade 1 is a minimum level for the ensemble tune.
Removing the Barriers to Learning
Lots of beginner and intermediate tips and techniques for teachers, parents and students on making the path to success easier for all students.
I have a special interest in working with students with specific (diagnosed or not) learning disabilities such as Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Autism, Aspergers, Irlens Syndrom and Auditory processing disorders and have developed little ways to make some aspects of music more obvious and helpful to the learner who can then thrive rather than just survive in their lessons.
A Round and A Round Somerset Harp Fest, USA 2024
Ever wanted to try out someone else's harp, but didn't want to make a song and dance about it? In this workshop, we get the harpists to sit, with their harp, in two circles, and place a set of round tunes on the music stand.... and we start playing. The rounds are easy enough, and the format of playing rounds means that we can drop in and out as we like... so at some stage, the director (Anna) will call out ' circle 1 (or 2) change' and everyone will move around to the next harp, and feel what that one is like.... a low key and fun way to make some music, try other harps and collaborate in a bigger sound.
Ensemble Music – what’s not to love about it?
How to bring it all together – what am I as a member of an ensemble expected to know about being in an ensemble?? I can play my part at home, but there is so much more than just playing the notes by myself.
How do I ensemble online? It’s do-able!! Learn how!
Music resources supplied for this workshop
Let’s Ensemble Together
It doesn’t matter if you are gathering in person, or online – we can duet (do it!) together with cleverly planned duets for harpists at beginner and intermediate levels.
Music resources and audio files supplied. Attendees will get their music in advance so they have a chance to become a little familiar with the music in advance of getting together.
Choice of celtic/world or Anna Dunwoodie original duets.
Make It Up - How to Improvise at the Harp
The beginners guide to improvisation - firstly chords - what's important to know about and what can we selectively ignore to start with. What other notes can I choose and what do I do with my levers?
You'll find yourself improvising happily to a straightforward chord combination in no time.
Lead Sheets- playing tune or accompanying - there is a place for everyone.
Let's talk about how you can contribute to a session or sing-a-long where your only resources is a leadsheet. From absolute beginner to the harpist who wants to play the tune and accompaniment, there is something for everyone when it comes to leadsheets.
Start memorising! (Somerset Harp Fest , USA, 2024)
Memorising music can be a skill that some people think they were not given , but maybe, just maybe, it's about having access to music that invites you to learn it by logical hands shapes and patterns, and tunes that stick in your head. In this workshop we will look at several examples of music which has all the right components for being straight forward to memorise. A workshop aimed at the early intermediate harpist but manageable for any harpist who can get their fingers around 3 note chords and 4 note scales comfortably. Build up to confident memorising by starting with tunes that have great patterns throughout.
Kiwi Celt Tunes – taught as a 5 day course at Edinburgh International Harp Festival 2019, short version taught at Somerset.
Explore the unique sounds of ‘traditional’ and contemporary songs and tunes from New Zealand. NZ was a landing point for many people following the Celtic diaspora and the exploration of the far corners of the globe in the late 1700s. They brought with them the music of their homelands, and over time, while we still have a strong and keen Celtic backbone, that music has taken on a Kiwi flavour that stands out as different from the contemporary or traditional of the Celts. And we are proud of it!
Monkey See, Monkey Do
Some people get offended at this phrase – please don’t! If you want a fun and full on way to learn some new tunes, I’ll be the lead monkey, showing you what to do, and you be on team monkey and copy me. We’ll learn new tunes in small chunks with lots of repetition and plenty of chance to let your ears help you out with the learning.
Different levels available – novice/ beginner / intermediate
Themes – Kiwi Celt, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Christmas music (old and even older tunes) or Anna Dunwoodie originals.
Where Do I Begin?
Are you thinking you might like to teach someone else to play the harp? Where do you start? I can help you develop some strategies to teach beginners (I don't encourage harpists to jump in and teach more advanced musicians) and what to consider when you are planning lessons for students.
Preparing for Trinity College Exams
I've prepared a lot of students for Trinity College Harp Exams since 1999 - from Initial Grade to Grade 8. In the early days I worked with chief examiner, Danielle Perrett, and benefitted from asking her every single question I had about why and how the syllabus was set up this way, and what the expectation of the student was. In 2026 Lisa and I started writing the 'Sightreading for Harp' books, and examined the syllabuses inside and out to use that information to create a progressive SR book, and more recently, when I was asked to contribute music to the Trinity and MTB syllabuses, I examined my own compositions to analyse the aspects that would make them worthy of joining the syllabus. Currently I have 8 pieces in the Trinity syllabus. But! It's not all about the pieces - understand, as the student, what you need to know about the technical work, and the extra tests and aim for that distinction mark without getting distracted.
Composing like an age-old folk musician!
This is a course that takes 3 to 5 sessions to analyse the structure, tricks and techniques of the traditional Celtic tunes and... we will be writing our own tunes based on the same ideas that have worked for hundreds of years.
As taught at the NZ Gaidhealtacht 2012, suitable for any melody instrument.
Harp 101
A refresher on how to get our fingers around our strings and do it with ease.
Theory Matters
It really does (just like sight-reading really matters!) and unfortunately many musicians prefer just being able to play rather than understanding the underlying concepts behind the notation, structure, shape and make up of the music they want to play.
What you need to know to stay ahead of your music - you won't learn it all in this lesson, but you will find out what it is really important to know about at your level, and go away with a list of resources for filling out your theoretical understanding.
Different levels available - non music reader/beginner/intermediate
Over the last 30 years of my teaching career, I've been very lucky to have the opportunity to not only see some fabulous teachers doing what they do best, but also have had the chance to work with them, and to lead workshops and tutor all over the world. Including NZ events - The NZ Harp Festival 2004, Harp Weekends, Harpenz, The Harp Retreat and in the UK - Benslow Music School, Retreat to the Harp and the Edinburgh International Harp Festival in Scotland, Somerset Harp Festival in New York, USA. I've also spoken at online events such as "Hangin' with the Harp" on the 'Step up Your Sightreading' and talked about my publications and compositions - most of these online appearances can be found on YouTube and in various places around my website.
Never Touched a Harp Before? Not A Problem - taught in schools around the Coromandel, Hauraki and Auckland.
Welcome to your first harp lesson (wings and halo are not part of the plan!). Within 15 minutes you will have a couple of harp techniques under your fingers, and be starting on a simple harp tune. Copy cat to learn some new harp tunes and harp techniques like glissandos. Absolute harp beginners only - we won't be reading any notes/music.
I Hate Sightreading!! Somerset Harp Fest, USA 2024
Really??? I love it!
I love the freedom it gives me to open and play a new piece of music with a high degree of accuracy. Then I can consider if I liked the sound of it (or not!) and whether to take the time to learn it.
Interested? This workshop will give you the overview for how to tackle your sightreading – from the very first steps…C..D…C up to the level you want to be able to read at.
Resources mentioned – 'Sightreading for Harp' books 1-4, by Anna Dunwoodie and Lisa Williamson
Cool Harp Techniques for Beginner Harpists
Okay - you need to know your way around the harp a little for this - we're going to learn how to produce a good harmonic in each hand, how to etouffle, P.D.L.T, xylophonic sounds, and harp strums. Then we'll learn to play a little ensemble tune with muffled effects caused by a chunky yarn caterpillar threaded in your strings. Grade 1 is a minimum level for the ensemble tune.
Removing the Barriers to Learning
Lots of beginner and intermediate tips and techniques for teachers, parents and students on making the path to success easier for all students.
I have a special interest in working with students with specific (diagnosed or not) learning disabilities such as Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Autism, Aspergers, Irlens Syndrom and Auditory processing disorders and have developed little ways to make some aspects of music more obvious and helpful to the learner who can then thrive rather than just survive in their lessons.
A Round and A Round Somerset Harp Fest, USA 2024
Ever wanted to try out someone else's harp, but didn't want to make a song and dance about it? In this workshop, we get the harpists to sit, with their harp, in two circles, and place a set of round tunes on the music stand.... and we start playing. The rounds are easy enough, and the format of playing rounds means that we can drop in and out as we like... so at some stage, the director (Anna) will call out ' circle 1 (or 2) change' and everyone will move around to the next harp, and feel what that one is like.... a low key and fun way to make some music, try other harps and collaborate in a bigger sound.
Ensemble Music – what’s not to love about it?
How to bring it all together – what am I as a member of an ensemble expected to know about being in an ensemble?? I can play my part at home, but there is so much more than just playing the notes by myself.
How do I ensemble online? It’s do-able!! Learn how!
Music resources supplied for this workshop
Let’s Ensemble Together
It doesn’t matter if you are gathering in person, or online – we can duet (do it!) together with cleverly planned duets for harpists at beginner and intermediate levels.
Music resources and audio files supplied. Attendees will get their music in advance so they have a chance to become a little familiar with the music in advance of getting together.
Choice of celtic/world or Anna Dunwoodie original duets.
Make It Up - How to Improvise at the Harp
The beginners guide to improvisation - firstly chords - what's important to know about and what can we selectively ignore to start with. What other notes can I choose and what do I do with my levers?
You'll find yourself improvising happily to a straightforward chord combination in no time.
Lead Sheets- playing tune or accompanying - there is a place for everyone.
Let's talk about how you can contribute to a session or sing-a-long where your only resources is a leadsheet. From absolute beginner to the harpist who wants to play the tune and accompaniment, there is something for everyone when it comes to leadsheets.
Start memorising! (Somerset Harp Fest , USA, 2024)
Memorising music can be a skill that some people think they were not given , but maybe, just maybe, it's about having access to music that invites you to learn it by logical hands shapes and patterns, and tunes that stick in your head. In this workshop we will look at several examples of music which has all the right components for being straight forward to memorise. A workshop aimed at the early intermediate harpist but manageable for any harpist who can get their fingers around 3 note chords and 4 note scales comfortably. Build up to confident memorising by starting with tunes that have great patterns throughout.
Kiwi Celt Tunes – taught as a 5 day course at Edinburgh International Harp Festival 2019, short version taught at Somerset.
Explore the unique sounds of ‘traditional’ and contemporary songs and tunes from New Zealand. NZ was a landing point for many people following the Celtic diaspora and the exploration of the far corners of the globe in the late 1700s. They brought with them the music of their homelands, and over time, while we still have a strong and keen Celtic backbone, that music has taken on a Kiwi flavour that stands out as different from the contemporary or traditional of the Celts. And we are proud of it!
Monkey See, Monkey Do
Some people get offended at this phrase – please don’t! If you want a fun and full on way to learn some new tunes, I’ll be the lead monkey, showing you what to do, and you be on team monkey and copy me. We’ll learn new tunes in small chunks with lots of repetition and plenty of chance to let your ears help you out with the learning.
Different levels available – novice/ beginner / intermediate
Themes – Kiwi Celt, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Christmas music (old and even older tunes) or Anna Dunwoodie originals.
Where Do I Begin?
Are you thinking you might like to teach someone else to play the harp? Where do you start? I can help you develop some strategies to teach beginners (I don't encourage harpists to jump in and teach more advanced musicians) and what to consider when you are planning lessons for students.
Preparing for Trinity College Exams
I've prepared a lot of students for Trinity College Harp Exams since 1999 - from Initial Grade to Grade 8. In the early days I worked with chief examiner, Danielle Perrett, and benefitted from asking her every single question I had about why and how the syllabus was set up this way, and what the expectation of the student was. In 2026 Lisa and I started writing the 'Sightreading for Harp' books, and examined the syllabuses inside and out to use that information to create a progressive SR book, and more recently, when I was asked to contribute music to the Trinity and MTB syllabuses, I examined my own compositions to analyse the aspects that would make them worthy of joining the syllabus. Currently I have 8 pieces in the Trinity syllabus. But! It's not all about the pieces - understand, as the student, what you need to know about the technical work, and the extra tests and aim for that distinction mark without getting distracted.
Composing like an age-old folk musician!
This is a course that takes 3 to 5 sessions to analyse the structure, tricks and techniques of the traditional Celtic tunes and... we will be writing our own tunes based on the same ideas that have worked for hundreds of years.
As taught at the NZ Gaidhealtacht 2012, suitable for any melody instrument.
Harp 101
A refresher on how to get our fingers around our strings and do it with ease.
Theory Matters
It really does (just like sight-reading really matters!) and unfortunately many musicians prefer just being able to play rather than understanding the underlying concepts behind the notation, structure, shape and make up of the music they want to play.
What you need to know to stay ahead of your music - you won't learn it all in this lesson, but you will find out what it is really important to know about at your level, and go away with a list of resources for filling out your theoretical understanding.
Different levels available - non music reader/beginner/intermediate