About Brien Engel
Brien Engel is part of an exciting new community helping to revive and promote the enchanting art of glass music. His instrument is a glass harp, consisting of 50 glasses of different sizes which he plays by carefully rubbing the rims with his moistened fingers. He taught himself to play his first set in 1993, built on a summer trip to Olympia Washington. His current (third generation) instrument - the one with the 50 glasses - is one of the largest in the world, having unusual range for an instrument of its type. In fact there are some glass armonicas which do not have as extensive a range as Brien's instrument.
While glass music is his main focus at the moment, Brien has has studied guitar for most of his life, and recently he discovered a love of mbira music of Zimbabwe, and is studiously practicing mbira! Brien has also composed original musical scores for puppet shows, live theatre, and film documentaries.
How did he get into this glass music? Well, in the 80's he worked as a theatrical sound designer in the Atlanta theatre scene, inventing or 'treating' live instruments and sound effects for use in productions, as well as making awesome thunder and lightening tapes. In one particular production-- the Edgar Allen Poe Festival, held at the old Kress Building Theatrical Outfit (may it rest in peace), he created a number of small 'glass arrays' with no particular tonal pattern, for actors to play during spooky and/or ethereal scenes… this led to the question 'hmmm, what about more glasses?' and, 'hey, what about a lot more glasses and a pattern, so I can play a lot of songs and stuff?'
After writing a piece of music for the Decatur New Music Festival in spring of '93 for a small harp and a borrowed glass armonica, Brien was inspired and determined to build the real thing, and decided to take off for the northwest, install some carpet, visit friends, see some mountains, and go pester the local restaurant supply store salesman.
And the rest is the ongoing story of building it all up, expanding the instrument, ever-thirsting to try new things on the harp, or continuing to successfully integrate it in recording projects with other instruments, unusual choices that turn out well-like pedal steel guitar, even accordion!
A Georgia resident for 23 years, Brien has now performed in hundreds of schools across the nation with a glass music program, and performed for many libraries, nightclubs, senior communities, festivals, and college campuses. He has toured Germany and performed in Dresden, Munich, Koln, and Bonn. From 1997 to 2000 he also served as president of Glass Music International, an organization devoted to the promotion of glass music.
Whether played with simple melodies or complex and ethereal harmonies, glass music has an unmistakable sound. Brien's extensive repertoire includes popular songs, Jazz standards, and classical music, including historical compositions by Mozart, Rollig, and Schulz written for the glass armonica.
