In 1937, Gustav Bumcke (1876-1963) composed the Scherzo, op. 67 for alto saxophone and double-action pedal harp. Since then, over 50 duos were written for various members of the saxophone family and the pedal harp, yet most of this repertoire is rarely performed and many artists are not yet aware of it. This document investigates works that are (1) composed for two musicians: a harpist and a saxophonist; (2) intended for the double-action pedal harp; and (3) originally composed for this instrumentation (no transcriptions). In Part I, An Investigation of the Development of the Genre, pieces are introduced in chronological order, and placed in historical context. Composers such as Gustave Bumcke and Jean Absil wrote short tonal pieces for alto saxophone and harp. In 1969, Günther Tautenhahn composed the Elegy for tenor saxophone and harp, featuring disjunct melodies with wide intervals. In France, Yvonne Desportes and Ida Gotkovsky composed pieces for alto saxophone and harp. Their pieces are substantially longer in duration and have much higher technical demands for both instruments. During the 1980s composers such as Jacqueline Fontyn, Marc Tallet, and Griffith Rose used a variety of extended techniques and avant-garde notation. Mauricio Kagel's Zwei Akte from 1989 is the longest piece in the genre (c. 28 minutes), with pervasive use of extended techniques. During the 1990s composers wrote saxophone and harp duos involving the bass saxophone and the soprano saxophone. Composers such as Quinto Maganini, François Rossé, Armando Ghidoni, and Tomislav Hmeljak wrote pedagogical pieces, suitable for young and intermediate students. In Part II, Annotated Bibliography, 30 published, readily available works for saxophone and harp are presented. The annotation for each piece includes: title, composer (years), dedication, duration, publisher or contact information for obtaining the piece, type of saxophone used, saxophone criteria grade of difficulty chart, harp criteria grade of difficulty chart, and a short discussion of the piece's form, harmony (if applicable), and any outstanding characteristics.

Anyone concerned with the harp in this century knows of the genius of Carlos Salzedo. His pedagogical, compositional and professional activities have had a tremendous impact on the harp world. With this in mind, the present study considers his transcriptions for harp from other works and his editings of other composers' harp compositions. It is the purpose of this study to find in what ways his work in this area has been helpful to harpists.

When one realizes how little the harp of the 1700's had advanced from its Biblical predecessors, its neglect by such masters as Bach, Haydn, and Beethoven does not seem remarkable. Why should a serious composer waste his time in writing for an instrument with no facilities for modulating, an instrument the weak tones of which would be lost in an orchestra?