I’d like to take a moment and hipster out as I present this
next group, called “The Glass Duo,” because I’m fairly certain you haven’t
heard of them. BUT GUYS, I’M TELLING YOU THEY ARE THE COOLEST THING I’VE HEARD
IN A LONG TIME. The Glass Duo consists of two players, Anna and Arkadiusz
Szafraniec, who started out playing violin and trumpet and now play glass harp.
What is a glass harp, you ask? It’s an arrangement of glasses, much like your
average water glasses, that are sized so that when they’re touched, they sound
a specific tone. The Szafraniecs are the only glass harp musicians in Poland
and one of very few glass harp groups worldwide. They tour music festivals
around the world (though mostly in Europe) showing off their mad skillz.
The ease and grace with which The Glass Duo performs is
astounding. I was stunned the first time I heard them and have a playlist of
their recordings on YouTube bookmarked (also I’m attaching that link to this
post). The fact that they can achieve such a high level of performance and expression
with glasses is just incredible and, quite
honestly, jaw dropping. I can pretty
much promise you that you’ve never heard a sound like this before; it’s
ethereal and strangely beautiful, a similar sound to the glockenspiel, but lighter
and more fragile. It makes me think of sugar being spun or frost climbing a
window, which I am aware is cliché as hell (I’m an English major for goodness
sake), but you’ll understand when you listen.
I’m attaching their cover of J. S. Bach’s “Tocata and Fugue
in D minor” because the piece is pretty complicated for organ-much less two people
and a table full of cups- but they nail it and give it a whole new sound! I
know that I certainly don’t have the
coordination or dexterity to play something like this, with so many cups, with
another person, without breaking something Definitely take a look; watching
them play is half of the magic and intrigue..
Happy Listening!
Hanae
▶ J.S. Bach - Toccata and Fugue in D, glass organ (part 2/2) - YouTube
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