by Bonnie Seely

Sixty-eight fortunate persons had the pleasure of experiencing the performance of Celtic harpist Tom Herald on a blustery Sunday evening, April 9. 2000, from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. The program entitled "All Things Bright and Beautiful", was one of a series of special events planned for Shiremanstown United Methodist Church’s bicentennial celebration. Following a welcome and introduction of the guest performer by Pastor John A. Ile, Tom Herald kept the program moving smoothly as he alternated music and dialog. The dialog served to give background for the pieces he played, and a biography of the player. He opened by stating that music is mentioned 500 times in the bible, and the harp 50 times. The first mention of the harp is in the book of Genesis where Jubal is said to be the father of the harp, and the most familiar the story of a young David being brought to King Saul’s court to soothe the king with the healing sound of the harp. Mr. Herald, who began playing the Celtic harp in 1991, brought two harps with him which were built by Lee Gayman of Mechanicsburg. He opened the musical portion of the program with the mesmerizing notes of "Royal Oak and Forest Green," played on the smaller of the two harps, constructed of cherrywood, and continued on the larger harp, constructed of birds-eye maple and butternut, with three Appalachian melodies which are now, but have not always been, associated with Christmas. Composed by the poor among American settlers—indentured servants, debtors and deported prisoners— the haunting melody of "I Wonder as I Wander" and the equally beautiful "Jesus, Jesus Rest Your Head" were well adapted for performance on the harp. They were followed by two lovely hymns with both "new" and "old" titles—"The Lone Wild Bird" ("Prospect") and the vibrant "Shall We Gather at Your Table" ("Beach Spring"), written to be sung during communion. Ireland contributed the next two pieces, "The Sally Garden" (or "The Willow Tree"), and "The Lark"; and we have Mr. Herald’s 20 years of travel in the U.S. Navy to thank for his elegant performance of "Sakura"—which means simply "Cherry Tree Blossoms." It is customary in Japan for prayers printed on pieces of paper to be tied to trees, and as we listened to the melody, the audience was encouraged to think of prayers blowing through the air. The audience was then invited to hum along to a trilogy consisting of "White Coral Bells," "Lavender Blue," and "Scarlet Ribbons," which the harpist called "Mount Gretna Nosegay" in honor of his position as chairman of music and worship for the century-old camp meeting at Mount Gretna Tabernacle. Typical of music played on the Celtic harp was the medley of Gaelic hymn tunes featuring "Be Thou My Vision" and "Morning Has Broken," followed by Welsh lullabies, including a delicate rendition of "All Through the Night." As he played songs, including "The Ash Grove" and "Early One Morning," taken from "The Golden Book of Songs," which was used in the Pennsylvania school system for 75 years, Tom Herald told us of his "childhood awakening to a love of music," and growing interest in performance on both the organ and the harp. He has played piano, organ and harp for over 500 weddings. Two songs he often plays on the harp for weddings are "The Water is Wide" ("The Gift of Love") and "Amazing Grace." Mr. Herald closed with his "signature piece," the Shaker hymn tune "Simple Gifts"—also known as "Lord of the Dance," Music for Martha," and "Appalachian Spring." Following the concert, the audience retired to Fellowship Hall, where refreshments were provided and served by the Mission Belles. Tom Herald lives in Highspire with his wife, Phyllis, who was in attendance this evening. In addition to giving concerts, he works at Cokesbury Book Store in the Union Deposit Mall in Harrisburg.

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