Rare Glass Harmonica Concert

Invented by Benjamin Franklin in 1761, the glass harmonica (aka “glass armonica”) was named after “armonia,” the Italian word for harmony. This unique instrument features a series of glass bowls graduated in size to produce music. Its tones are both haunting and beautiful. For the holiday season, the New Haven Museum’s Volunteers-in-Action present a rare glass harmonica concert featuring Vera Meyer on Sunday, December 9, at 2:00 pm at the New Haven Museum. Refreshments from Chestnut Fine Foods will be served. Admission is $20 per person; $15 for Museum Members; free for children 12 and under. Pre-register at (203) 562-4183 x10 or rsvp@newhavenmuseum.org.

The glass harmonica was popular among European monarchs, with Marie Antoinette having taken lessons as a child. About 300 compositions have been originally written for glass harmonica, including works by Mozart and Beethoven.

Vera Meyer discovered glass music in 1983 when she happened upon street musician Jim Turner playing his 70 musical wine glasses on the street in Harvard Square in Cambridge, MA. She was so captivated by the sound of the instrument that she immediately worked to acquire her own glass instrument. Vera is co-founder of Glass Music International, an organization that promotes a renaissance of glass music around the world, after 150 years of obscurity for the instrument. Vera wishes to dedicate all future concerts to the memory of Gerhard, her friend and mentor.

The New Haven Museum, founded in 1862 as the New Haven Colony Historical Society, is located in downtown New Haven at 114 Whitney Avenue. For more information, contact Michelle Cheng, Director of Education, at (203) 562-4183 ext. 11 or education@newhavenmuseum.org.