Contents: - Biography - Harp techniques - Overview of original works and arrangements - Annotated catalogue of works - Lost works, works of dubious attribution - ''New Method for the harp'' by Parish Alvars - Manuscripts - Publishers - Bibliography This book offers an important contribution to an appreciation of Parish Alvars, and brings Parish Alvars research a great step forward. The biography, based on newspaper reports and letters, contains much new information, giving for the first time an overview of Parish Alvars wide-ranging travels and his circle of acquaintances. An extensive annotated catalogue not only lists practically all his works for the first time, but also clears up many errors and misconceptions. Through the combination of biography and catalogue of works, a cogent and chronologically credible overall view of his life, travels, compositions, and technical and musical innovations was made possible. With numerous illustrations of his friends and patrons, reproductions of title pages, letters and manuscripts, as well as references to the music and the poets who inspired him, this book becomes a living document of his time. ''This man is a magician. In his hands the harp becomes a siren, with lovely neck inclined and wild hair flowing, stirred by his passionate embrace to utter the music of another world.'' Hector Berlioz