Is there any trick to it?

Changing your bass wires frequently is crucial to the balance of the different registers of the harp. Like other acoustic instruments, the bass is the weakest register, so the material and condition of your wire strings is very important. If you are using the tarnish-resistant strings, they should be changed at least every three years. These wires may not corrode heavily, but still they degrade over time, leaving you with a dead bass register that is way out of balance with the upper octaves.

There are currently three different types of wire strings you can easily obtain to put on a pedal harp. Since 1985, most pedal harps have come with the tarnish resistant strings, but you can also get silver wires with colored C and F and silver wires with copper C and F. I strongly encourage harpists to try the silver and copper wires at least once. You will be surprised how much sound and clarity you are losing with tarnish resistant strings which are coated in nickel, and also paint on C and F. I know several harpists who, after switching to these uncoated wires, could not go back to using the tarnish resistant strings!

A wire should be changed when it becomes dead or loses the volume and quality of sound it once had. A reduction in volume means the wire is imparting less energy into the soundboard and more effort from the player will yield no more sound. A reduction in quality of tone means the sound is less bright and has lost its duration of resonance. Wires go dead gradually. Harpists are surprised to find how dead their wires were when they are replaced with new strings. My experience is that the more frequently and the harder the wires are played on, the faster they go dead. I change the wires on the orchestra harps every year. Those who only play limited gigs can have their wires last for years. Playing affects the strings more than time.

To properly install a new bass wire string, pull the wire up through the tuning pin and rest it in the groove in the stationary nut. The standard amount of slack to leave on a wire is an octave and a fifth (the interval of a twelfth). This should give you about three windings around the pin and an angle that will keep the tension. I have found that a lot of harpists only slack an octave, which is generally not enough angle. Some harps have tuning pins that stick out far and require extra windings.

The wire strings are the driver of the soundboard so it’s important to change them regularly. Generally, I recommend changing your bass wires every year for professional harpists and every two to three years for everyone else. If you’re using silver plated strings, instead of tarnish resistant, these should be changed every year. 

You often don’t notice the sound degradation of your wires because it’s happening gradually over time, as oil and dirt build up from your hands and the surrounding environment. A new set of wire strings makes any harp sound better. 

The main thing to watch out for is a good angle towards the neck going from the stationary nut to the pin. There should be about three wraps around the tuning pin. Pull the string tight through the pin and measure about two and a half inches (about the width of three fingers) of slack above the pin. Bring that slack down, bend the string over, and turn the pin, making sure it’s wrapping in towards the neck. Having this angle does two jobs: it pulls inward on the pin keeping it from slipping and it helps to mitigate buzzing. Lastly, clip the strings as close as possible to the pin to help limit damage to your cover. I like to use side cutting pliers. •