Liz Farr is Knoxville's most accomplished harpist. She has been teaching in the Music Department at Pellissippi State Community College for three years, primarily as a voice teacher. When the student demand is there, she also teaches violin and harp, as well as piano if there's an overload for the piano faculty. In addition, Liz serves as adjunct faculty at UT where she teaches harp, and plays violin with the Knoxville Symphony.
As the founder and director of Farr Horizons, a chamber trio built around the flute, harp, and cello, Liz has developed a repertoire that bridges the gap between classical and traditional music. She says she discovered Celtic music about the same time that she got her first harp, and "found it resonated with my musical self, and is the most popular music for my audiences."
Recently, CRA asked her about a Celtic music course she test-drove last semester at Pellissippi. "It was suggested by some of the other faculty at the College and sort of fell in my lap. I wasn't interested at first in taking on such an undertaking," she mused, "so I let several semesters go by before agreeing to try". She says the enrollment was the tricky thing, "One has to have a minimum number to sign on before it's officially a course, so some recruitment was necessary. And even then, I didn't know what sort of instrumentation or experience I would have in the final tally."
Liz described the group as "a performance ensemble for credit" whose goal is to "explore music from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Nova Scotia, so far." Students worked to develop a repertoire, ornamentation, and style. In addition, they listened to various Celtic bands (on CD and in concert), and joined in at workshops offered by the Knoxville Scottish Music Society. She says the class had a bit part in the Music Department's Solo Class final concert and were given the honor of being the party music for the retirement celebration for one of the music faculty.
At the end of the semester, students left the course with several tunes in their hands and heads, plus a real appreciation for the skills needed to keep that concentration for the fast tunes. Liz believes the class "will be a part of Pellissippi for some time to come, and that the enrollment will keep growing." Aside from learning the musical skills, students also had a lot of fun reading through and selecting music to polish and make into sets. Says Liz, "It has turned out to be quite a blast for all of us, especially me!"
Thanks, Liz. Keep up the good work!