Noteworthy Sheet Music Announces New Publications for Harp Ensemble

SOMERVILLE, Mass. - July 21, 2014 - PRLog -- Noteworthy Sheet Music, LLC (NSM) is an online sheet music publishing enterprise with a catalog of >120 editions, most of which are unavailable from other sources.  NSM specializes in, but is not limited to, sheet music for flute and alto flute. They offer original contemporary works by distinguished American composers, facsimile editions of rare historical scores, and unique transcriptions of pieces from the classical repertoire.  Selected NSM publications are offered as professionally-printed hard copies, and all of NSM’s catalog listings are available as convenient pdf downloads from the NSM website.  Visit www.NoteworthySheetMusic.com for additional information about the new releases mentioned below and other NSM editions.  New sheet music selections are uploaded often, along with preview pages, contemporary composer biographies, useful links, reviews and articles.

NSM has just published two arrangements created by Judith Ross for the Massachusetts Harp Ensemble.  Ms. Ross received a B.M. with Distinction and M.A. from the Eastman School of Music.  She studied harp with Eileen Malone and Pierre Jamet, and harmony, keyboard, and composition with Nadia Boulanger (considered one of the greatest musical pedagogues of the 20th century).  She is a winner of the Paderewski Gold Medal in piano.   Ms. Ross has given frequent solo and orchestral performances throughout New England, and is the founder and director of the Massachusetts Harp Ensemble.  She has taught at the State University College of NY at Fredonia, Boston University, Lesley College, New England Conservatory, and El Coro de Niños in San Juan, Puerto Rico.   For 37 years she taught solfège, harmony, form and analysis, and harp at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA, where she is former Chair of the Theory Department.

“Cockles and Mussels”, also known as Molly Malone or In Dublin's Fair City, is a popular song thought to have been first published in Boston, MA, in 1876, in a collection of college songs.  The 1884 London version, published by Francis Brothers & Day, lists the piece as a comic song composed by James Yorkston.  The piece is especially beloved in the city of Dublin, where a statue of Molly Malone has been erected on Grafton Street.  Judith Ross, founder and director of the Massachusetts Harp Ensemble, has created numerous mixed level harp arrangements over the years.  She welcomes harpists of all levels of expertise into her ensemble, so most of her arrangements are designed to include parts of different levels of difficulty.  That way, anyone can have a chance to participate and join in the fun.  The Massachusetts Harp Ensemble is a Boston area treasure, enjoyed and appreciated by local harp students and their teachers, many of whom are already familiar with Ms. Ross' arrangements in manuscript form.  Now some of these works are available to the broader harp community as new, typeset editions prepared by Noteworthy Sheet Music.  “Cockles and Mussels” includes two intermediate level pedal harp parts and one easy lever harp part.  http://www.noteworthysheetmusic.com/nsm/products-a-services/strings/157-ross-cockles-and-mussels-harp-ensemble

“The Croppy Boy” is one of the saddest lrish ballads of the 1798 rising.  The title refers to the young rebel soldiers, who wore their hair closely cropped.  This harp ensemble arrangement was also created by Judith Ross and specifically designed for performance by harpists at varying levels.  The Beginner, Easy, and lntermediate level parts are intended for lever harp, but can be played on pedal harp, and may be performed by one or more harpists.   The Advanced harp part, for the teacher or advanced student, is intended to be performed by one person on pedal harp. http://www.noteworthysheetmusic.com/nsm/products-a-services/strings/155-ross-the-croppy-boy-harp-ensemble