The association

Even back in the 1960s and 70s, when I travelled to the Netherlands almost every year to attend the ‘International Harp Weeks’ organised by Phia Berghout, I wondered whether a harp association could be established in Switzerland, as in other countries. I was also asked about this on several occasions during the meetings in the Netherlands.

 

But in our small Switzerland, with the then still scarce number of harpists, there were, as far as I know, only about twenty professional harpists in the various cities and radio orchestras, who were mostly also active in the opera and the conservatory, and who were more or less busy, and there were only a few amateur harpists, so I didn’t see any point in founding a harp association. The idea was abandoned time and again.

 

Then came the ‘3rd World Harp Congress’ in Vienna in 1987. In the meantime, the boom in harp playing worldwide had been fuelled by the high demand and, no doubt, also by the meetings in the Netherlands, and harpists and even more harpists came to Vienna from an astonishing number of countries, including Switzerland. Some of our amateur harpists had the wish to promote a community in Switzerland, and Mr Rudolph Frick then asked me whether I would support and participate in the founding of a Swiss Harp Association.

 

Of course I was in favour and willing to do so, because it seemed to me to be a very good idea, and I was happy to help. I was elected as the first president of the Swiss Harp Association, and I was very pleased to be able to work with the other founding members, who were all very enthusiastic and committed.

It seemed to me that the time was ripe for a foundation. Since I was still quite active in my profession at the time and I was also reluctant to spend the time and I had never felt a particular talent or desire for organisational and administrative work, the desired conditions were met in Mr Frick, who was a publisher and a man of business: he would take over all the administrative tasks. We were not short of ideas and plans on either side.

So, on 14 May 1988, the ‘Swiss Harp Association’ was founded in the Belvoir Park in Zurich. 

It seemed to me that the time was ripe for a foundation. Since I was still quite active in my profession at the time and I was also reluctant to spend the time and I had never felt a particular talent or desire for organisational and administrative work, the desired conditions were met in Mr Frick, who was a publisher and a man of business: he would take over all the administrative tasks. We were not short of ideas and plans on either side.

So, on 14 May 1988, the ‘Swiss Harp Association’ was founded in the Belvoir Park in Zurich.