Driftwood Harp

Pippa Reid-Foster's debut CD is a set of original compositions and arrangements for the clarsach – traditional Scottish harp. The album has an uncluttered purity befitting the instrument, and is reminiscent of Alan Stivell's 1964 album Telenn Geltiek. Reid-Foster is a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and is based in the Argyll region on Scotland's west coast; Driftwood Harp draws upon the sights and sounds of the area, as well as on Celtic folklore. The rhythmically shifting opening track ‘The Selkie’ conjures up the mythical, half-seal, half-human creature while ‘The Mermaid Song’ is a delicate rendition of a traditional Gaelic song. Original tunes evoke scenes and landscapes. In ‘Steam Boats on Crinan/The Herring Lassies of Argyll’ Reid-Foster shows that the harp can be simultaneously haunting and jaunty, and her virtuosity creates something akin to a rhythm guitar accompaniment for her complex melodic lines.

There's plenty to please traditionalists on Driftwood Harp – such as the three jigs that make up ‘Kilmartin Glen Campsite’ – but the more ethereal quality of tracks such as ‘Elements 1’ and the six-minute finale, ‘Deirdre in Dreams’ go further in showcasing Reid-Foster's skill as a composer as well as a performer.