1. Please introduce yourself.

Serafina Steer, Sefa for short.

2. When did you start to play the harp?

When I was about 9.

3. What made you to start playing the harp then?

My mum is a costume designer for mostly theatre and opera and I saw it in the orchestra pit whilst sitting in her rehearsals. I started asking when I was about 7 and was having music lessons at a saturday music school in London which was free if you went to a state school in London but it took them some time to find a harp understandably.

4. Please let me know your musical back ground/history.

I just played the harp and piano till I was about 16. I played lots of instruments but those I had lessons on. I was sort of serious, I always thought/knew that music would be what I'd do but I didn't work very hard. Then my parents moved out of London and I moved schools a bit and the prospect of staying in the all girls grammar school I was in at the time for sixth form was unappealing. so I auditioned for a music school in Manchester. I had seen a documentary about the place on tv and was quite intrigued. I was understandably surprised to get in. I practised alot. Then went to music college quite unquestioningly classical harp repertoire is, for the most part, really not as interesting as ... Well, it wasn't were my interest lay and I also found it jarring to play this antique music, beautiful though it may be. So I was always doing and still do lots of contemporary and improvised music. Then started organising gigs for friends and myself in south east and east London. Since we all had these secret things we did. And for me that side has grown and taken over really.

5. What made you to sing with playing harp like your current style?

Boys.

6. When I listented to your album I was a bit surprised because you sweared. But I think its a natural way to express your emotion.

Swearing is very normal nowadays.i do smile when it shocks people. The harp is so rife with associations that its probably one of the few contexts people are capable of being shocked within. I don't like to think to much about this kind of thing because i'm trying not to get too self analytical. People keep asking me this kind of question and really its a strange one.

8. which artists influenced on your music? Tell me some of your favorite artists.

Days to talk about this. Not necessarily favourite but in phases have listened to a lot too- Kate Bush, Penguin Cafe Orchestra, The Smiths, Teardrop Explodes/ Julian Cope, Brian Eno, Leonard Cohen, Broadcast, The Chap, David Byrne/Talking Heads, Velvet Underground/Lou Reed & Nico, David Bowie, Cocteau Twins, The Cure, Flying Lizards/David Cunningham..

9. You have collaborated with many many artists such as Tunng, Cibelle, James Yorkston, Adem etc... in London. Those artist’s music are maybe quite different, I think...But it means you have wide-ranged musical talent. What is the difference between when you play alone and when you collaborate with somebody? And which do you prefer?

I really like playing on other peoples stuff; it makes me feel less of an egoiste. I can offer ideas and take suggestions. My own stuff hmm. I don't know. Probably am a bit of a nightmare to work with. I wouldn't have one without the other.

10. I was very curious that you were squatting before. The harp is expensive instrument. So people might think the girl who plays the harp should be grown up by rich family and living in a good place...It might be my prejudice though...how is your usual life?

My parents are oddballs, they are very nice and have their own mixtures of ups and downs. And so do my brother and sister. This is my usual life. My parents both work in the arts and just get by doing their things, very well in my opinion. I'm very privaliged in lots of respects but London is very expensive and the opportunity of living in drum street and being able to concentrate more on what I wanted ( songs, lots of things and musical things that have nothing to do with money) was a real lucky strike. Studying music and being equipped to earn a living through music and not being able to hold down proper jobs is dangerous terratory. Having the harp in a derelict building was also dangerous terratory but I took it around everywhere (bars/free parties/ mini festivals/parks) for years and only realised how dangerous it was in march this year after a gig for friends in ucl. and that was the annual party for librarians. So...'squatting' makes it sound like we were all taking crack and stealing bicycles. it was lovely to have some space for once! I don't know. I have been earning some kind of living from music since i was about 15. My parents are not rich. If i can't afford to pay rent i generally move out.