Beginner with New Harp (Problems)

[Fiona Kidd]

Hi Wil-Weten. Morley have stands but I felt I didn’t need it as I am only 5ft tall so the harp sitting on the floor is perfect for me. I will order a carry bag at a later date from Morley but they are very expensive at £475. That said, they are Dusty Strings bags so will be top quality.

I spent a good two hours last night playing her and what a joy it was. When I finished playing I felt happy and relaxed, not frustrated and disappointed. I think we have bonded already.

I have named her Desi. The D-S because she’s a Dusty Strings and the fact I desired a Ravenna for over 15 years.

Maybe I will be able to play a Carol or two in time for Christmas 🙂

[Fiona Kidd]

**UPDATE**

I contacted G4M this afternoon, explained the problems and requested a full refund. The lady I spoke to was very nice and she immediately said two telling words – “Manufacturing fault” so I think they’ve had more than one complaint.

They’ve arranged with the Courier to collect it on Monday so I should have the refund within 10 days from collection.

[balfour-knight]

Fiona, that’s great to hear about G4M! It is also wonderful to read about how much you are enjoying “Desi.” The transport bag for the Ravenna is really designed very well, and is “top notch.” Do work hard and learn those Christmas carols. I have a Christmas concert to do Dec. 11th on my Dusty “Cherie” FH36S, and I always think of “a Celtic harp for Christmas!” It was on Oct. 25, 2015 that I found Cherie, and that was indeed “Christmas in October!”

More harp hugs from both of us,
Balfour and Carol Lynn

[Fiona Kidd]

Hi Balfour and Carol Lynn. At the time of writing this I am still waiting for G4M to send the return documentation. Hopefully it will arrive before the Courier gets here on Monday. I have read on Trustpilot reviews since getting that harp that quite a lot of people have had problems returning/getting refunded so I hope this will not be the case.

As for Desi, she and I are a good pair Both of us have suffered accidental damage. She with her slightly rounded soundboard and me with a bit of a “dowager’s hump” due to being born with a slight curvature of the spine made worse because of an accident just over 2 years ago and age. I think we’re two of a kind and well matched 😀

I think we were meant to be together.

[Sophie Liebregts]

Nothing of substance to add, but that last post just made me happy. Wishing you and Desi lots of happy harping!

[balfour-knight]

Us, too!
Harp Hugs,
Balfour and Carol Lynn

[Fiona Kidd]

I’m sure we will have many happy hours harping. Learned the right hand on one piece of music. Now have to learn the left hand. I’m taking great care to get the finger placements and technique right from the start.

My son is disappointed the G4M harp didn’t work out as he bought it for me but as he said last night, I’ve now got a much better harp and one I’d wanted for many years.

Still no documentation from G4M. I bet they haven’t even ordered the Courier. If nothing is forthcoming by 9am Monday morning, they are going to get a rocket lit under them.

Our Laws state that an item must be “fit for purpose”. This harp is not fit for purpose.

Looks like I might have to get tough with them. How their standards have slipped in 6 years.

[Biagio]

Hi Fiona,

I’m delighted that the Ravenna has worked out for you; it’s an excellent harp at the price even before the water damage which seems mostly cosmetic. So congratulations!

I’m afraid that sellers of these Pakistan-made harps have a reputation for recalcitrance when it comes to returns but if you beat them up enough eventually they cough it up.

Good luck and best wishes,
Biagio

[Fiona Kidd]

Hi Biagio.

Loving the Ravenna. I have a habit of playing late at night. I wear headphones when playing the piano so I don’t disturb my heighbours. The harp is a lot quieter. Last night son popped his head round the door to tell me it was 1.30am. I wondered why the notes on my tablet were beginning to blur. I’d been practicing for about 2 1/2 hours. Time passes really quickly when you’re enjoying yourself.

Pieces I’m learning are “Just for You” by Anne Crosby Gaudet. She has a YouTube video with concise instructions for the right hand. I bought the music which comes in 3 levels. I went straight to level 3 as I can already read music. That’s coming along nicely.

The other piece I’m concentrating on is In the Bleak Midwinter/First Noel, again Anne’s arrangement. It is a little more advanced and has low C and G played together. No buzz from the low C. To get the low C to buzz, you have to pull it really hard, as if you were about to fire an arrow from a bow!

Another carol I have is O Holy Night. It is mid intermediate but I’ve had a dabble with that too. It has a lever change. On the G4M harp, I would not be able to do that as you need two hands to move the levers because they are so stiff – cheap and nasty. Of course, on the Ravenna, nice and smooth, no problem.

Do I think I can learn to play the harp well? Yes. The Ravenna inspires me to play her. It’s just a shame I can’t get proper tuition as the nearest harp teacher is 100 miles away so will be self-taught with help from the YouTube videos.

I might book a Zoom lesson or two with Anne Crosby Gaudet at a later date. Her prices are very reasonable too.

As for G4M, let’s see what they have to say for themselves tomorrow.

[balfour-knight]

Hi Fiona,

We loved your post. I have a habit of playing the harp at night, too, and every night I do a personal “concert” for my wife. Sometimes I do them on the piano and organ, too! We got into this habit even before the pandemic, and it sure helped us get through all of that. So glad you found your Ravenna and love to play her so much. Me too!

Best wishes, and more harp hugs,
Balfour (and Carol Lynn)

[Fiona Kidd]

Hi Balfour and Carol Lynn

It is 2.53am here so you can see I’ve done it again.

That’s the good thing about being retired – I don’t have to worry about being late for work. I’ve always been a night owl anyway. Even when I was young I used to sneak a torch into my bedroom so I could read a book under the covers. I nearly got caught one night. My mother always used to check on us before she went to bed. This night I was so engrossed in my book I almost didn’t hear the door open. I flung myself on the torch and book (ouch) and stayed really still. I’m sure my Mum knew as she seemed to linger much longer than normal. Phew! Got away that time.

Years later we were talking about the things we got up to as kids and me reading under the covers came up. My Mum knew about it all the time LOL.

Best wishes and harp hugs to you both from

Fiona and Desi

[Molly]

Fiona, I am so pleased to hear your updates! The Ravenna is a great and reliable instrument and you will enjoy it for many years to come. I had the pleasure of trying one out a few weeks ago, and it has a beautiful sound! Good on you for returning the other harp, I am glad they were reasonable and acknowledged the clear defects in quality.

Have fun!!

[Fiona Kidd]

Hi Molly. Yes, the Ravenna has a wonderful sound and lovely to play even for a beginner like me. I find she inspires me to practice.

G4M didn’t send any documentation and hadn’t even booked the Courier to pick up the other harp today. Had to phone them again. This time it was a young man I spoke with. He didn’t know why nothing had happened but did go and speak with his manager for some reason. Said it was probably a bug in the system but why the need to speak to his manager? I wonder if the lady I dealt with on Friday perhaps walked out and left a lot of work not done? The young man also didn’t seem surprised that the harp was defective so I think they’ve had a lot of complaints.

The Courier is booked for Wednesday and this time they’ve sent me all the documentation for returning it.

One problem I do have is the harp arrived in a plywood and wooden box which was very large. We only have a small house so had to put it outside. Of course, the box is unusable due to rain and every insect in my garden taking up residence in it. The harp is in its carry case which is quite thick so we’re going to bubble wrap it then wrap it in plastic. There is a clause on the return form that says if the item is inadequately packaged and gets damaged in transit, they will deduct that cost from the refund.

We shall see what happens shortly.

[Molly]

Oh good grief, it’s always something isn’t it! These people sound terribly disorganized. I would just do the best you can to ship it, and maybe even try to find a new box for it. But, if they do try to deduct anything from your refund you could argue their negligence in getting this resolved in a timely manner, and also that the harp is defective anyhow and that is why it’s being returned. The manufacturer openly admitted this so it isn’t as if they can resell it. However these are the risks you run in a situation like this and it may be worth it to just take whatever refund you can, so you can be done with all of this hassle.

[Fiona Kidd]

Bit of a late update.

YAY! It’s gone!!! Courier collected it on Wednesday and it’s been received “in good condition” at G4M. I’ve taken screenshots of the Courier’s tracking just in case. Just waiting for them to refund my money now. They said 5 – 10 working days which is usually about right.

Been busy learning a couple of Christmas carols. One is Carol of the Bells. There’s a lady on YouTube who has a simple version (which actually sounds quite nice) but her instructions weren’t very clear in places so I wrote down A-A-B-B and so on then wrote the proper notation on Musescore. Took me 3 hours to get it right as I’ve only used Musescore a couple of times before.

I confess I have bought a piece of music that is way advanced for me at the moment but one I’ve loved since I was a little girl – Feed the Birds from Mary Poppins. There’s a lot of lever changes in it so one I’ll have to work on in the future.

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