Diese Web Site dient der Kommunikation mit Spielern des Musikinstruments AUTOHARP. Diese sind zu ca. 99 % Muttersprachler des Englischen; die paar anderen haben's halt gelernt. Deshalb ist diese Web Site in Englisch.
Aber mittlerweile gibt es auch eine Seite auf Deutsch: www.Siggis-Saiten-Seite.de!
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People got aware of the dust on my autoharp [0] and some called me Dusty-Harp-Ziggy. Now, contrary to dust on the bible, which comes from not reading it and is therefore deplorable (as we know from a famous song), the dust on my 'harp comes from having it lying on top of the nearby desk in order to have it always ready for being taken up and played. So, instead of taking on the dust, I assented and took on the name for my autoharping personality: Ziggy Harpdust. [1]

As an autoharper and generally, I'm not really convinced of the importance of being earnest. Nevertheless I always heed the Bellman's advice, slightly adapted:
For the 'harp's a peculiar creature, that won't
Be played in a commonplace way.
Do all that you know, and try all that you don't:
Not a chance must be wasted to-day!

Welcome to the Web site of
"Ziggy Harpdust"

This is the Web site of an autoharper. The site's main purpose is to serve as a platform for sharing music, samples of playing autoharp, particularly recordings demonstrating the working, the viability of my autoharp arrangements of tunes I like.
If you'd like to hear my music[2], then please focus on the Recordings column after clicking on the following blue link:

Table of Music and Musings

It is the site of a "naughty" 'harper as I sometimes find myself in opposition to the mainstream approach to the autoharp, even in disobedience of my respected and revered autoharp teachers. Therefore this site also serves as a platform for discussing autoharp-related ideas and attitudes and for presenting music notation showing results of my approach to assigning chords for melody playing.
If you'd like to read about those ideas or have a look at sheet music (with my arrangements for chromatic autoharp),
then please focus on the Notes and Notation columns after clicking on the following blue link:

Table of Music and Musings

The "Why" and "What for" of my musical endeavour and this Web site are dealt with in the table's bottom couple of rows in more detail. [3]


Hot news! (August 2011): I have now a YouTube channel with self made autoharp videos!

(YouTube allows presenting tunes I cannot present on my site because of copyright restrictions.)


When the year 2009 began, a project also began, a project by the Cyberpluckers, an Internet community of autoharpers that I joined more than 10 years ago, the project to produce together a Christmas CD. I was bold enough to contribute a track! For info on that 2 CD set click on Strike The Harp or buy it on CD Baby .
In early November '09 I concocted a little review paper which you can read here.


Me and my d'Aigle 'Harp:

(click on the picture for learning about my chord bar layout and for a look at my ZephyrHill 'Harp)

Photo copied from www.schuettekeller.de
Used by permission


I have been to the 11th International Bluegrass Festival in Buehl on 4 May 2013 (as I was the ten times before, of course!).
For pictures from earlier dates click here and scroll down to the Images links!
If you click on "Stimmungen" and scroll down to the second but last picture, you may spot me in the lower left part of the photo, holding a soft drink, not my autoharp, alas.
And I am looking forward to going to the 12th International Bluegrass Festival in Bühl on 2 and 3 May 2014!
Hope to see YOU there!

Apropos Bluegrass festivals: After Bühl there is just time enough to recover and get ready for GrevenGrass on Whitsun, 19 May 2013.
It will be my 5th time driving north to Greven for having a great time on the Ems river meadows with authentic Bluegrass music from noon till midnight.

And even more, down south: I'll be attending probably the 27th Bluegrass Family Festival in Stetten near Zurich on 17 August 2013
- been there several times: always a great experience! -
and certainly also the 15th Sunny Mountain Bluegrass Festival in Lommis, Switzerland, on 7 September 2013 (confirmed by personal communication).
For quite a few years now, I've been there to each festival, so many times that I forgot the year of my first time up there on Sonnenberg castle. I had always a wonderful time.


You may contact me via the Cyberpluckers list (www.autoharp.org) or via my YouTube channel (if you also have a channel) or via Facebook (if you are on Facebook)
(or by sending snail mail to the address below or electronic one to "aharpsiggi" at the service "yahoo.com").

Impressum: Diese nicht-kommerzielle Web-Präsenz wird betrieben von Siegfried Knöpfler, Überlinger Str. 8, 78351 Bodman-Ludwigshafen. Es gilt der Haftungsausschluss.

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[0] The autoharp is one kind of chord zither, another kind is the Akkordzither.
In the early 20th century, autoharps have been marketed in Germany also using the name Akkordzither. So there is potential for confusion.
In order to clarify the issue I once sent a post to the Cyberpluckers: Chord Zithers.
[November 2013: Unfortunately half of the links in that old post don't work anymore.
I hope to find time soon for a replacement.]


[1] And, yes, I've been listening to David Bowie.


[2] All my recordings are strictly instrumental. If you like to hear superb singing+autoharping I recommend Alexandre Zindel's site.


[3] So lasst uns jetzt mit Fleiß betrachten, was durch die schwache Kraft entspringt.
Den schlechten Mann muss man verachten, der nie bedacht, was er vollbringt.
Das ist's ja, was den Menschen zieret, und dazu ward ihm der Verstand,
dass er im innern Herzen spüret, was er erschafft mit seiner Hand!
-- aus Das Lied von der Glocke (Friedrich Schiller)

(Cf. Song of the Bell and its explanation)