Vibroacoustics of a gothic harp.

The gothic style of harp was popular across most of Europe from the late medieval period to the Renaissance. To study the vibroacoustic behavior of gothic harps, one was constructed from plans created by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts from a late German model in their collection. The vibrational behaviors of the soundboard and soundbox were measured at various stages of construction of the instrument. Once complete, the instrument was subjected to modal analysis and radiativity measurements using Weinreich’s method. The sound radiation of this harp is dominated by two breathing modes at 188 and 273 Hz and higher modes around 350 Hz, which together function like the A0/T1 resonance pairs seen in the soundboxes of many other instruments including modern concert harps. As the frequency increases, radiation is emitted from higher up the soundboard and from higher soundholes, as has been observed in other harps. Unlike modern instruments, the gothic harp’s thin back plays a large role in sound production.