On the Double: Harp Adventures with Cynthia Shelhart

Christmas harp music downloads now available on iTunes!

Cindy — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:38:00 GMT

More exciting news: That Night in Bethlehem is now available for digital download on iTunes! You can preview music before purchasing the full album or selected tracks.

That Night in Bethlehem:

Also available on iTunes: my previous CD of Celtic and acoustic music, Limberlost Angel.

Limberlost Angel:

If you like what you hear, please take a moment to post a review. Thanks in advance!

Cheers,
Cindy

PS: Digital downloads (as well as physical CD sales) are also available at CD Baby...you can also post a review there.

Celebrating my new CD in Victorian style

Cindy — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:03:00 GMT

On Saturday, I had the pleasure of performing music from my new Christmas CD, That Night in Bethlehem, at the Westchester Township History Museum in Chesterton IN (my hometown).

The museum was formerly a private home, known locally as "the Brown Mansion." It now operates as part of the Westchester Public Library system in northern Porter County IN.

We packed 35 concertgoers of all ages into the parlor, front hall and dining room, and I played music from the new CD to occasional accompaniment from the grandfather clock. Thanks to Curator Jane Walsh-Brown, Programming and Publicity Assistant Lu Anne DePriest and Museum Educator Tory Duhamell (who took these photos) for coordinating such a special event!

New Christmas CD in stock!

Cindy — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:40:00 GMT

It's here! That Night in Bethlehem, my new Christmas CD, has arrived, and is selling well at CD release events. Thanks to everyone who came to the Holly Days celebration at Sheep's Clothing Knitting Supply and the Chesterton Mistletoe Market last weekend, and thanks to everyone who has purchased a CD (or CDs!) during the past week.

The CD is now available from my online store for holiday listening and gift giving, along with my previous CD Limberlost Angel and harp music publications.

That Night in Bethlehem is also available from CD Baby in 2 formats: physical sales and digital distribution (full CD and individual tracks). CD Baby will also distribute the CD to other digital sources, such as iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, etc. in the future; I'll post to let you know when some of these distributors "go live."

Here's a link to the CD Baby page for That Night in Bethlehem:

If you're within driving distance of Chesterton IN (northwest IN), I will perform selections from That Night in Bethlehem at a solo concert this Saturday, December 12, 2009, 2:00 PM CST at the Westchester Township History Museum. Hope to see you there! For more information on this concert and other performances, check my performance calendar.

This congratulatory surprise from Disc Makers and Colossal Mastering came in the big brown truck yesterday:

A nice addition to my harp studio wall!

Happy holidays,
Cindy

It's beginning to sound a lot like Christmas: new Christmas CD coming December 4!

Cindy — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:36:00 GMT

I'm back, with a big announcement: I'm releasing a Christmas CD, That Night in Bethlehem, on December 4!

From the back cover:
That Night in Bethlehem offers listeners a variety of medieval to modern carols, songs and dance tunes, performed by Cynthia Shelhart on solo double-strung harp. Celtic holiday music of Wales, Ireland, Shetland, and the Isle of Man complements carols from England, France, Germany, Austria, Scandinavia and Appalachia, along with Cynthia’s original compositions for the Christmas season.

This CD was recorded in Valparaiso IN at The Alley Recording Company by Marc Nelson and mastered by Dan Stout at Colossal Mastering, Chicago IL. Right now, the folks at Disc Makers in New Jersey are finishing the CD replication and printing the great-looking eco-wallet CD jackets. That Night in Bethlehem is scheduled to arrive at my home the first week in December, just in time for a series of CD release events (and holiday gift-giving!):

Friday, December 4, 5:00 - 7:00 PM: CD release event at Sheep's Clothing Knitting Supply, Valparaiso IN, as part of Valparaiso's "Holly Days" celebration. I'll play background music, share the "stage" with a local author's book signing event, and have CDs available at my very favorite knitting store.
Saturday, December 5, 9:00 AM - 12:00 noon: Background holiday music and CDs available at the Mistletoe Market at Bailly Elementary School, Chesterton IN (my hometown!). Sponsored by the Chesterton-Duneland Chamber of Commerce.
Saturday, December 12, 2:00 PM: CD release concert at the Westchester Township History Museum, Chesterton IN (known to locals as "the Brown Mansion"). I'll play music from the new CD in this beautifully restored historic home-turned-museum, surrounded by period decor and holiday trimmings. After December 12, the Museum Store will sell both my CDs (they sell Limberlost Angel, too) to visitors.

You can find more information on these events at the "Schedule" page on my website. While you're there, why not join my email mailing list?

Good news: you don't have to wait until December 4 to place an order for the new CD! You can pre-order now (yes, today) from my online store. Credit card orders are available via PayPal, or you can email harp@cynthiashelhart.com or call 219.508.3558 if you would like to pay by mail order check. I'll ship advance orders on Monday, December 7.

CDs and MP3s will also be available soon from CD Baby and iTunes. I'll let you all know when these sites make the CD and downloads available. Thanks for your patience; it may take a little while.

Special thanks to everyone who has come to my holiday concerts since 1993-- this CD's for you! More news on CD delivery and events soon.

Happy holidays,
Cindy

New duo partner

Cindy — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:11:26 GMT

Last Saturday, I played a wedding with violinist Rachel Krieg from LaPorte IN. She performs and teaches in northwest Indiana, and was also the accompanist at St. John's United Church in Chesterton for 2 years. (I'm the Director of Music there). This photo was taken after the outdoor ceremony at Briar Ridge Country Club in Schererville IN.

Congratulations, Donna & Steve! Rachel & I look forward to more gigs in the future.

26 May 2009: (Online) Moving Day

Cindy — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:21:00 GMT

I knew it was coming... eventually, I'd have to change to a different website setup. I'd like to say thanks to my former website providers (and fellow Hoosiers), NoteWay Media, who provide great website solutions for independent musicians.

So, it's moving day: my new website, online store and blog are now live. The online store for the new site has more information about my current harp publications, plus room to add new ones. And you'll receive orders directly from my ~~basement~~ warehouse in Chesterton, Indiana.

I'm looking forward to blogging more with the new setup, especially when I travel to teach at OSAS at the end of June. Let me know what you think about the work-in-progress!