Choosing appropriate ornamentation part II

Last night, or more like early this morning, after much debate we made our final decisions on ornamentation. After a beautifully satisfying dinner celebrating Elizabeth's 25th birthday (two days early) courtesy of her mum, we walked back to my apartment and sat hunched over our work at my kitchen table. My husband went to bed... the cats went to bed... the crazy upstairs neighbor went to bed (yes, I have one too)... but we bravely soldiered on. Carefully, I held the super-glue bottle up with a tiny drop of glue on the end, as El gingerly touched the tip of her broken earring to it, then inserted it in its rightful place. We had finally completed the answer to the dreaded question "so...what are you going to wear?"

To an outsider, this may seem like a very shallow thing to consider. However, a harpist has many things to think about when preparing a performance outfit. First and foremost is functionality at the harp - do the shoes allow for fast and accurate pedaling without excessive noise? Can you actually walk to the harp in those heals without falling on your face? (the all-time mistress of awesome harp shoes is our professor Isabelle Perrin whom we have witnessed playing the Tournier Sonatine in strappy red stiletto sandals with a heel that would make a runway model blush.) Does the dress rustle or scrape the harp? Do you have to remember to gather it up and sit on it to avoid getting the feet stuck in its length when you go to move pedals? And of course, can you actually breathe and move your arms about in it? How about the jewelry? Do the earrings hit the harp, and is the necklace even necessary? Trust me, this is just the TIP of the iceberg of questions in the category of functionality. Next comes that of esthetics. Aside from deciding if the dress makes you look fat or if it is the right color for you, is a more serious consideration: is it appropriate for the setting? Elegant enough, but not too preposterous? A harpist at a competition must remember that her appearance not only reflects her personality but is also a sign of professionalism. On a social level, it is a sign of respect for the jury and for the traditions of classical music. Artistically, it can even reflect the character of the repertoire being played... Lastly, the harpist should feel that she looks like 1,000,000 bucks. Performing in a competition is such a strangely psychological occurrence, that feeling good about how you look may just give you that extra boost of confidence you need to really let go.

Luckily, we have been working on El's wardrobe since the Hungary competition, and we were able to choose four beautiful dresses from her collection. Equally lucky is the extra pair of black shoes that Claude (of the Paris Camac store) donated to the cause a while back (both Claude and El are HUGELY tall - from my 5 foot 3 inch perspective anyway, and have trouble finding shoes big enough for them in France). And, as of last night, all of the jewelry has been chosen, tested and fixed up.

Note to self: don't forget the iron!