harpist and dolphin whistler
Steve Allerton – harpist and dolphin whistler
Steve Allerton playing his harp
Steve Allerton is a native of Fullerton, New York, near Syracuse. He always loved the water and sailing. It took him seven years to sail down to Key West due to a number of stops along the way.
He claims he arrived in Key West at the tail end of the Key West hippie era and the beginning of the yuppie era in 1982. Steve had previously made a living as a benchman jeweler, and when he arrived, he got a job with Jeff’s Gems doing repairs.
Steve started street performing with a musical saw. He saw an ad in the paper of someone selling a harp. He had no idea how to play the harp but was intrigued enough to buy the instrument and give it a shot. It’s an easy instrument to learn – there are very long strings for deep bass sounds and shorter higher note strings. To Steve, it was self-evident. He learned how to play music quickly. He already knew how to play the flute which was a great combination.
Steve started a charter boat service for tourism and met a woman that booked weddings. He would take people out on his boat for weddings. Gary would play a flute for the wedding march. Later, the lady discovered that Steve could play the harp and said “I get requests for the harp at my weddings all the time.” Playing ceremony music with his harp for weddings was a very cool niche. His first wedding was at West Martello Tower. He met several other wedding planners, started booking two and three weddings a week quickly. Weddings are booked well in advance and are very profitable and Steve was soon booked for over a year.
Steve playing the flute with friend Gary Zimmerman on the hammered dulcimer.
Along the way in the mid 90s, Steve met Gary Zimmerman who played the hammered dulcimer which would sound great combined with Steve’s harp. Steve plays the guitar, the flute, the saw, the penny whistle with all the unique sounds. Gary and Steve became good friends playing similar Irish folk music and other unique folk sounds.
Zimmerman also played music on the Western Union but struggled to play every evening. Soon, he started to split Western Union gigs with Steve. The Western Union gigs didn’t pay as well as weddings but were great fun and there was much more musical freedom. The audiences loved it and would tip generously. Steve and Gary recorded several albums together, and they sold the CDs while onboard the Western Union. Between the wedding gigs and the Western Union, Steve was able to buy a house on Big Coppitt Key. He gave up the jewelry business and became a full-time wedding harpist and musician on the Western Union.
Steve and Gary also performed regularly at Shanna Key and other clubs with an Irish theme. Often, the wedding planners would want more than a harpist so Steve would book Gary and other musicians, as The Solaris Hill Band. The band also performed numerous special events at Fort Zachary Taylor and even had a gig at the Green Parrot.
One special gig that Steve booked by phone was to perform on a private yacht the following weekend. He quoted a price which was accepted. The yacht turned out to be the largest in the harbor – Onassis sized. He arrived with his main harp and a smaller lap harp for backup, in case he broke a string. It was a large Latin family with over 20 people, spanning several generations. 
Steve began to perform during a sumptuous feast. Initially, they were in an air-conditioned salon but, later they wanted to view the sunset on the forward deck. He had his small lap harp and was able continue with great music on the crowded forward deck. The harp music did its magic. The wealthy yacht owner was Impressed and thoroughly pleased with the ability to play his harp during dinner and at sunset. He gave Steve a fantastic tip and bought dolphin whistles (explanation next) for all the family.
Steve is an inventor of sorts. One of his most famous inventions is his “dolphin whistle.” While sailing to Key West years ago, he was entertained and amused by the dolphins that would always seem to appear. He would whistle to the dolphins and they seemed to be returning his sounds. There were duck calls, bird whistles, dog whistles and he got the idea – Why not a dolphin whistle?
As a former jeweler, Steve built his first dolphin whistles out of silver and gold. They worked well but were a bit pricey. Later, they were made out of plastic and became inexpensive and very popular.
Steve tested his whistles for several years on a dolphin that lived in a small lagoon near Sugarloaf Lodge. The dolphin was named Sugar, of course, and Steve would play songs for her on his whistle. Sugar’s favorite song was “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. He would play it often for her. Steve’s dolphin whistles have been sold all around the world and are very popular. Sugar has since passed away but Steve still remembers her as his biggest fan.
Steve Allerton – harpist and dolphin whistler
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