Wendy Bla.-

Wendy is looking to pull a few strings in Vegas.

A harpist, Wendy says she supported herself quite nicely in New York with gigs at restaurants, nightclubs, hotels and private parties, including performing for Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope and Donald Trump.

"I was constantly busy in New York, working six days a week in hotels," Wendy says.

But she wanted a change and came to Las Vegas in December.

"Because it's the entertainment capital of the world," she says.

And there isn't much competition. No one else is making a living strictly playing the harp on the Strip. The New York native, who politely declines to discuss her age, says she has earned a living as a solo harpist since the age of 16.

"I come from a musical family," Wendy says. "I have actually performed since I was 6, with my brothers and sisters. We played in all the hotels in upstate New York."

She played piano, accordion, violin and clarinet, but she turned to the harp when she went solo. "I had the urge to play something different," Wendy says. "I enjoy sitting behind my instrument expressing myself."

She won't play with an orchestra. "Out of two hours, the harp plays maybe 10 minutes," she says. But she sometimes uses a trio of backup musicians. She performs all kinds of music on her harp, including Top 40 and standards. She also sings.

She has had a few gigs in the six months that she has been here - mostly private parties and weddings. She tirelessly makes the rounds, knocking on doors, leaving her name with agents and entertainment directors, anyone who may have need for a harpist.

She knows that a lot of entertainers in Las Vegas are out of work, but isn't discouraged.

"I have a specialty, so I'm thinking positive," she says. "You have to be realistic. I just want to work and make a nice living. I'm not going to be a Madonna here."