The harp was perfected with Sbastien Erard’s invention of the double-action pedals, which can shorten each string twice, raising the pitch by a semitone or a tone. The harp appeared occasionally in the orchestra in the 18th century, but regular appearances, as well as most of it’s solo literature dates from the late 19th century.The Guitar Family of InstrumentsThe oldest instrument with neck and fingerboard I can find dates back to 2500 B.C. It is from the dawn of human civilization, the Sumerians. It appears on a clay tablet attached to the temple Bel between the Tigris & Euphrates rivers. It shows a shepherd with a flock of sheep playing an oval shaped instrument with a neck three times the length of the body. Details like the number of strings, the existence of frets, or type of tuning pegs are not clear.Two Hittite sculptures were found that depict stringed instruments with fingerboards, dating back to 1500 B.C. The fist was found at Sendshirli in North Syria by German archeologists. The stringed instrument has a strap and rests on the players knee. The player is shown with eyes fixed on the playing fingers of the left hand. The second Hittite stringed instrument with fretboard is appearing in a sculpture on the castle ruins of Bos-ojok in the northern part of Asia Minor. Very interesting details present themselves for the first time in history, such as the sides incurve so as to bear a striking resemblance to the modern guitar, several sound holes are visible, there is the appearance of frets in a graded scale down the fretboard in a regular series, and it also appears that two strings are attached to the head and a plectrum is attached by a ribbon.The Ud, or Arabic Lute was introduced into Europe by the Moors during their occupation and conquest of Spain around 711. The history of the Ud is ancient, going back far beyond written history that currently exists. Through the crusades and trade, the Ud was spre...
