The term harp ukulele is used to describe two different variants of the
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; ); also called a uke (informally), is a member of the lute (ancient guitar) family of instruments. The ukulele is of Portuguese origin and was popularized in Hawaii. The tone and volume of the instrument vary with size and con ...
:
*an ukulele with unfretted strings extending from the body, essentially forming a miniature
harp guitar
The harp guitar is a guitar-based stringed instrument generally defined as a "guitar, in any of its accepted forms, with any number of additional unstopped strings that can accommodate individual plucking." The word "harp" is used in reference to ...
*an ukulele with an "arm" extending from the upper bout, often hollow to increase the volume of the sound chamber, which visually resembles a harp guitar but does not support added strings.
History
The harp ukulele appeared in the 1910s, when the harp guitar was experiencing some popularity, and the ukulele had just begun to experience nationwide popularity in the United States due to its use at the
Panama–Pacific International Exposition
The Panama–Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California, United States, from February 20 to December 4, 1915. Its stated purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely s ...
of 1915.
After the popularity of both the harp guitar and ukulele faded, the harp ukulele lost what little market share it had. However, in the late 20th century various luthiers returned to experimenting with the harp ukulele design, both the string-less extended-bout type, as well as the added-strings true harp type.
Early 20th Century harp ukulele luthiers
*
Chris Knutsen
Chris Knutsen (June 24, 1862 - November 6, 1930) was an American luthier of the early 20th century, primarily known for his Hawaiian guitars and harp guitars.
Biography
Johan Christian Kammen was born in Norway, the third child and second son ...
(Seattle, USA)
[Zachary R. Fjestad, S. P. Fjesta]
''Blue Book of Acoustic Guitars''
Blue Book Publications, Inc. 2003-2005.
Modern makers
*Anuenue
DL Noble(USA)
Emerald Guitars(Ireland)
GRENOSI(Austria)
Jay Buckey(Ukraine)
(Japan)
*Michael Dunn (Canada)
*Thomas Emmett Owen (Hawaii, USA)
Ziegenspeck(Wales)
External links
*Gregg Miner
''Ukulele Occasional'', 2004.
References
{{reflist
Ukuleles
Harps