Watch a video of John Doan performing on 20-string harp guitar.
The guitar became a leading instrument of the 20th century because of its versatility. One simple stringed and fretted chordophone gave generations of musicians the ability to play rhythmic chords and endless melodic lines.
But some musicians are never satisfied. Guitars with seven strings and double neck guitars were popular for the range they added to the instrument. The 12-string guitar—somewhat of a misnomer because it still plays like a six-string but with unison or octave pairs of strings—was beloved for its rich sound.
One instrument was nearly forgotten though. The harp guitar came in various forms, explained John Doan, Willamette University music instructor and harp guitar virtuoso. Doan is a music historian who found various harp guitars through research and often estate sales in Oregon where he’s from.
The instrument immediately intrigued him, Doan explained, as it provided a broader range of possibilities than he was used to with the modern guitar.
“Basically, my understanding was the guitar was designed to accompany your singing with chords, but when you want to do something fancy with it, the guitar goes through this kind of tug of war between the chords and something that is more melodic and solo-like,” he said. “So when that happens, the player invariably starts experimenting.”
The 20-string harp guitar that Doan studies and performs with includes two necks, one for the traditional six strings, and another neck for six more base strings. Though some of his instruments do have a fretted base neck, he doesn’t require frets for the base, Doan explained. He keeps the base notes tuned to his most often used notes, letting the deeper strings ring out and providing a bedrock of resonance over which to dance with the remaining strings.
Extending from the treble side of the traditional six strings are eight “super treble” strings, which are mounted to the body of the guitar. These are tuned to a scale—much like the traditional harp—so that the player can use the last two fingers of the plucking hand to reach the brilliantly high-sounding strings.
“Part of the problem with guitar is you have to do two things to get the note out: You have to find the right string and then finger it or fret it,” he said. “But if you want to play music with baseline and melodies and chords, then the harp guitar makes sense because I can play one base note—which I don’t fret—and my hand is free to go on some melodic flight of my imagination without my other hand having to hold down a note.”
Reviving a forgotten instrument is no small task, and Doan has done all he can to popularize the harp guitar. His debut harp guitar album Eire—Isle of the Saints, won accolades and awards for its contribution to the Celtic music canon.
More albums followed, bringing other familiar melodies as well as some originals to the genre of harp guitar music that Doan has expanded nearly by himself. He’s also produced DVDs and television shows, including his Emmy-nominated A Victorian Christmas with John Doan, which he continues each year as a live show.
“I have picked up the harp guitar and created literature with it and convinced others to do the same,” he said. “I fashion myself as a composer because all the music I play is my own or I arrange it. I think of all of the music I play as a story.”
And that’s what Doan hopes to do for his audiences, including those that make the show in Solvang, is take them through a musical storybook journey.
He’s been all over the world with his instrument, from spiritual sites of significance in Ireland to river rides in China, and he said each place inspired its own kind of music. What he imparts is inherently emotive and evocative, he said, so listeners should arrive with open ears and an open heart.
“I’ve found myself almost having to be an apologist in presenting something to the audience that will move them instead of just passing time,” he said. “Music, it could be something that stretches us all, and we grow by the end of the concert.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne is baffled by a seven-string guitar, let alone one with 20 strings. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
COURTESY OF JOHN DOAN’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL
This article appears in Mar 10-17, 2016.
