Sylvia Crawford

Sylvia Crawford is a professional musician, teacher and author. Her recent work has specialised in the old Irish wire-strung harp. Since returning to her native County Armagh in 2013, Sylvia has collaborated with award-winning singer, Pádraigín Ní Uallacháin; Sylvia's research and videos are featured on the Oriel Arts website project (orielarts.com). In 2019, she was awarded a Masters in ethnomusicology for her research, which focused on the eighteenth-century Armagh harper, Patrick Quin. Sylvia's ongoing study of fragmentary written evidence about the lost oral tradition, along with her knowledge of Irish traditional music, have led her to new interpretations of the evidence, and new insights into traditional harp playing techniques, fingering and style. Her book, An Introduction to Old Irish Harp Playing Techniques, was published in 2021. Sylvia is currently working on a second book of arrangements of old Irish harp airs, using her reconstructed playing techniques and fingering.