Harp·E has announced its new electro-acoustic harp, developed by London-based Dutch designer and harpist Joris Beets in partnership with the Leerorkest, an Amsterdam-based nonprofit organization providing musical instruments to over 5,000 children. Harp·E has already produced more than 200 educational harps to be distributed by the Leerorkest.
Beets is also the designer of Salvi’s electro-acoustic Delta harp, which won the Red Dot Design Award. According to Harp·E’s website, the Delta harp helped make the harp suitable for playing in any genre, whether classical or experimental. However, Harp·E says it wanted to make an electro-acoustic harp that was less expensive and more accessible. “Something needed to be done about the most expensive elements of the instrument—levers, which usually total over 200 intricate metal parts and are extremely expensive, making the whole instrument unaffordable for many,” Harp·E says. The company says its goal is to create an instrument that is “sturdy and lightweight without compromising on the quality of the sound.”
Harp·E says its new instrument aims to reinvent the mechanism and frame construction so that a harp can be produced with high-quality strings, a sound pickup system, and a more affordable mechanism system. The harp is shipped for self-assembly.
Learn more about the new instrument by visiting Harp·E’s website.
