Children play harp music and Jungle sounds on custom laser harp in new Virginia Children`s Hospital.

Dec. 11, 2008 - PRLog -- The roar of a Lion and an Elephant`s trumpet echo down a hospital`s corridor, followed by the sounds of Jungle frogs and drums! Is it an invasion of this new Children`s hospital by wild animals?
No it is just the custom carved laser harp installation created by Glenn Hill of Mountain Glen Laser Harps LLC , being played by children coming in to have their exams. The jungle sounds are now followed by gentle cascades of harp notes, falling in overlapping waves every time a laser beam in broken by a child`s hand. This gentle sound is followed by the sound of ocean waves with gulls and seabirds filling the halls.  And then for the occasional hospital staff party, the harp can be programed to be a laser "Virtual DJ", with samples of James Brown and other rock & blues music that can be played like a "record scratch", just like DJ`s do!

This amazing harp was created to entertain children when they come to the new hospital for exams, and the biggest worry of the hospital staff was that the children would not want to leave the harp to head toward the exam rooms!
This laser harp was commissioned by  the "Children`s Hospital of the King`s Daughter`s", in Virginia Beach Virginia. This brand new branch Hospital was opened to the public in early November of 2008. The Children`s Hospital of the King`s Daughter`s" is the facility of choice for pediatric care in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.

These low powered and very safe 5mw red lasers are suspended between the frame of a purple dyed , highly figured Maple, lap-sized harp. They shine in space between the "neck" and "sound box" of the harp, in the same way that harp strings do, except that these strings are made of red laser light.This child sized lap harp sits on it`s own small cabinet that holds a lap top computer, MIDI controller and stereo sound system, all that is needed to create almost any type of sound or music imaginable.

The software that  runs the laser harp is fully programmable, with the capacity to respond to up to 70 breaks of a laser beam every second, and each laser can have up to 60 different events or sound effects programed to be controlled by it. The interactive software and MIDI controller was created by OptiMusic Tech Limited, in Britain.

This laser harp can play almost any type of sampled natural sounds or music, or any musical instrument a synthesizer can produce, and in endless interwoven combinations that  can boggle the mind. It is fully programmable with a full wave-file editor and built-in synthesizer. The software has a full library of music and sounds, and any type of sounds can be loaded and edited. The way that this laser harp works, and the ways it can be programed can be explained as these different Play Modes:

* Trigger Mode.  In this mode, breaking a beam always triggers the event, sound (a sample, loop or MIDI note), image or video that that particular beam has been preset to trigger. Each beam will always trigger its own preset event when broken. e.g. If the beam  number one is set to play a bass drum and beam  two a snare drum; then  one will always play a bass drum and  two a snare.

* Sequence Mode.  In this mode, breaking any of the beams plays a preset melody or song one note at a time. Familiar tunes may be played by the breaking the beams in time with the song. Little or no musical ability is required to play a tune. Similarly, a sequence of images could be displayed or an image could be built up one part at a time.

* Event Mode. When broken, a beam set to 'Event Mode' can change octaves, sounds, songs or programmed settings for any or all of the beams.

Switch Modes

* On-Off.  A sound will play only while a beam remains broken. The sound stops when the beam is unbroken.

* Play to end. Once triggered, a sound will play to the end regardless of when the beam is unbroken.

* Toggle Mode. Breaking a beam the first time triggers a sound which plays to the end (or loops) until the beam is broken a second time.

All the beams do not have to be set to the same Play or Switch Mode - each beam may be set up differently.The system can also interface with most existing lighting control systems (via MIDI inputs to your lighting board or controller.)

The software can also trigger still and video images, controlled by the laser beams, though in this installation that part is not being used. The custom laser harps  that Glenn Hill builds can be in any shape and style, with from eight to thirty two lasers, with both red and green lasers.

The "Strong National Museum of Play", in Rochester New York has a custom carved laser harp that they commissioned Glenn Hill to build in 2006. Their laser harp is five feet tall, and carved out of gilded Myrtle wood, to be the "giant`s Harp", from "Jack and the Bean Stock". It has a beautiful female face and head, with flowing locks of golden hair across it`s top, and a flowing gilded gown draping down the harp`s pillar. It is installed in the museum`s "Adventures in Reading" exhibit. This laser harp also has eight red lasers, and has been enjoyed by millions of children over the last nearly three years.

Glenn J. Hill of Mountain Glen Harps LLC  has been building custom designed , carved and sculpted one-of-a-kind harps for over thirty years. From harps with single string bands of nylon, gut or wire strings, to double and cross strung harps, to electro-acoustic and MIDI harps, Glenn has designed and created the widest array of harps of any builder anywhere.

# # #

Creating custom one-of-a-kind carved and sculpted harps with, nylon, gut and wire strings, for over thirty years. Making single, double and cross strung harps in all sizes from 10 to 42 strings. Custom laser beam MIDI harps, with red and green lasers.