Prelude in c minor from BWV997, played by Constance Allanic on a Davidsharfe made in 2008 by Claus Henry Hüttel, after an original by Johann Volckmann Rabe, 1740. This harp is fully chromatic, the strings organised in two parallel rows. The buzzing in the bass register is caused by the so-caled bray-pins which lightly touch the strings as they swing.
It is thought by some people (=harpists) that the Suite BWV997 might have been written originally for harp and would thus be the only harp piece by Master Bach. Indeed, with its very high treble voice, the writing is quite different from the way Bach usually writes for keyboard instruments. This high treble fits the range of this harp perfectly, if I tune my highest e natural string to f (the piece doesn't ask for e'''). Also, it allows me to use the brays in the bass only, not in the treble, thus giving the illusion of having two different instruments in one.
But I am quite sure that if J.S. Bach had intended this as a harp piece, he would have chosen a different key, one with less flats in the key signature. The Dutch word for 'flat note' is the same as the word 'mole' and, well, playing a piece with so many of those on a chromatic harp feels a bit like dancing in a field full of molehills....
