Note: This page dates back to 2002, when I created the ISLAND
webbook. I'll be updating the links in the coming weeks. Enjoy! - Jane, 1/14/08
Welcome to The
Mystic Harper, a place for musical and magical musings
I
spent most of my childhood years wishing that magic would happen to me.
Finally, after years of experiencing the numinous, the eternal moment,
those vibrant spaces of joy and playfulness, I decided to stop wishing,
and just believe. And what do you know, even though I still walk
the same world, I feel as if I've shifted to the Otherworld. The
natural world is charged with messages, adventure, the unexpected and the
unusual, and with ... fun. I am surrounded by archetypes within the everyday.
And anything from the a heart-shaped leaf found on the roadside, to the
gurgling purr of our small refrigerator tells me that we are surrounded
by a creative universe, one that responds to our own personal belief of
what life is all about.
Who is the Mystic
Harper?
That's
me, Jane Valencia, one half of the harp & song duo Spookytree.
Debra
Knodel & I have been sharing musical adventures for more than twelve
years. We decided long ago that if harping stopped being fun, we'd
better stop doing it. There have been moments when we've "gotten
too serious", but we quickly recovered! These days we're exploring mythic
material and folklore for a new show we're developing. You
can read about our Forest
concerts on our web pages. This new stuff has us pretty excited.
It will be quite a while developing, because we don't merely want to write
up a script and throw a bunch of tunes together, we want to step into the
"skins" of our characters, to live their magic, and understand for ourselves
what it means to be them. More on that project at a later time!
Labyrinth under autumn leaves
Here is a picture of a labyrinth
that I designed and am constructing in my forest. It is a "spiral"
version of the Chartre Labyrinth, meaning that it has a few more swirls
some of the paths. I have two labyrinth projects currently underway
-- one musical, one in writing. The former should be fully birthed
this summer. Hopefully the latter will appear by the end of summer.
I have a solo CD, featuring wire-strung
harp and voice. Here is a brief version of the official blurb:
About
RoseGarden
Enter a landscape of countryside and
chapel, forest and sea. This exquisite recording features music sung
in Welsh and Gaelic, a Renaissance motet, a serene 19th century French
composition, and haunting musical journeys inspired by a 13th century hymn
from the Orkney Islands and by a 16th century Irish aire. Also included
are several poetic original songs and compositions suffused with echoes
from times past and imagery from the natural world.
"Most appealing is the music itself, and the evocative
mood of tranquility and peace, beauty, and ancient mystery in the mix of
pieces both ancient and new ... Jane is a lyrical, tender musician of great
imagination and emotional expressiveness." -
The Folk Harp Journal
Links to my projects and more:
I'm honored to have been interviewed by KotaPress,
a fabulous e-zine, in their August 2002 issue. MP3s and
other samples of my work are also featured. Check
it out!
To purchase my & Spookytree's CDs and to browse other
fun "music & magic" items please visit ...
a harper's garden. - NOTE: we no longer operate this catalog
More about Spookytree
Read
Island
- my handmade web book
this is my newest project -- a compilation of my writings
and some fun with design. Please open my book!
Read my article, "An
American Harper In Wales"
Read a page from The Mystic Harper's Guide to Fun
& Magic On The Harp
For information,
contact:
Jane Valencia
P.O. Box
2928
Vashon,
WA 98070
harpbiz@zendo.com