Graham Wright

What is your name / where are you from?
Graham Wright, harp maker from Scotland based in Mayo. (Graham Wright Violins & Harps)

How did you start making harps?
My eldest daughter was learning the harp and needed one. I had a lot of encouragement from her teacher, Laoise Kelly. I had been making violins for nearly forty years and it was an exciting challenge. Funnily enough, there was a harp maker based at the violin-making school in Wales where I learned my trade, maybe I should have paid more attention in class! Now I make harps in the West of Ireland. Some of my violin-making colleagues think I’ve “gone over to the dark side” but I love it.

What does the harp mean to you?
It’s an iconic musical instrument, it’s sound so evocative of the place. Essentially, a simple wooden frame but capable of making magic in the right hands.

What do you like most about Lá na Cruite | Harp Day?
I like the idea of celebrating a musical instrument.