Heartland Starlight pedal harp

[Allison Stevick]

I don’t even play pedal harp and don’t intend to go that route in my playing, but I am still kind of excited about the idea of a 25-ish lb. semi-grand pedal harp. Heartland hopes to have their first one made by May! I guess I don’t have much else to say about it, except: Yay! Something new in the harp world!

[jessica-wolff]

Wow! Is it gonna be that non wooden whatchamacallit material?

[Allison Stevick]

Yep! Carbon fiber. 🙂

[jennifer-buehler]

Where did you hear about this? I want to know more! 🙂

[Angela Biggs]

Me too! I checked the Heartland website, but couldn’t find anything yet.

[tracey-kjonegaard]

What are the pros and cons about carbon fiber harps?

[Allison Stevick]

Tracey– I suggest searching “harp column carbon fiber” and “harp column heartland harps” to find some threads where people have weighed in.

My personal opinion: I **love** my carbon fiber harp. It is very portable and durable, it looks pretty classy, and most importantly it sounds great. I like to play outside, so it being impervious to weather conditions is very important to me. Also, I have small children, and I like knowing that *if* they were to somehow knock it down or something (not likely since I do keep it out of their reach and store it in a room they aren’t allowed to play in) it wouldn’t hurt them hardly at all, and the harp wouldn’t be damaged, either.
Some people compare the tone quality of carbon fiber to wood the way a solid-body electric guitar sounds compared to an acoustic. I think that’s pretty accurate. I actually preferred the sound of the Delight over a Dusty FH36 in bubinga, as it was less muddy in the bass, and just as pretty in the treble (and that’s not a knock on Dustys, they are great harps, too). Anyway, carbon fiber is the right harp for me, for some of the very same reasons that others don’t like it as much (extreme light weight, slight difference of tone, etc.)

[Angela Biggs]

My goodness, the Starlight is beautiful! I can’t wait to hear how it sounds. Signed up for the newsletter. Thanks for the information!

[kreig-kitts]

Very interesting. I don’t know if it would be a total replacement for my lovely wooden harp with its naturally antiqued (i.e., old but well-cared for) finish, but a harp I could carry up the stairs into a choir loft, where my pedal harp currently does not go, or quickly and easily load, would be nice. I’m absolutely curious how it will play and sound. The look isn’t everybody’s thing, but the smooth lines and obsidian aesthetic aren’t without merit.

[jennifer-buehler]

Allison pretty much hit the nail on the head with her list of pros and cons. I’d dearly love one because I do so much playing outside but they are a bit pricey. As you can see from the piccies on the blog, making a CF harp is pretty labor intensive and requires specialty equipment. Also, because they’re so lightweight, the type of strings, whether or not you choose a paint finish can have a lot more effect on the sound than a similar wood harp.

[Allison Stevick]

Kreig- I can relate to that, as I am a wooden-instrument-preferring person… except when it comes to my harp, apparently! haha
I was VERY hesitant at first to even consider carbon fiber because I play some other instruments that just sound *so much better* made of wood (especially African drums–the synthetic ones just sound bad…) But I was so pleasantly surprised by the tone of the CF harp that I changed my mind pretty quickly! I, too, am excited and curious to hear the Starlight, even though I don’t intend to get one. 🙂

[sherry-lenox]

Is everyone aware that there is a FaceBook page? Lots of interesting and useful information.

[Angela Biggs]

Sherry, I searched FB under Heartland Harps and Starlight Harp, and didn’t find a page. What is the title?

[sherry-lenox]

Angela I don’t do FB so I must have found the link somewhere in one of Dave Woodward’s websites, but I can’t find it now either.

[Janis Cortese]

Just found out about this — this harp may be the answers to my wishes. I truly hope this technology works out and is at least vaguely financially accessible for me. What a wonderful thing carbon fiber has been for musical instruments. The violas and cellos made of it from Luis & Clark have been stunning sounding.

A pedal harp like this can help the instrument become more accessible to many more types of people by making it easier to move and even a little less costly than the typical pedal harps.

[Author]

Posts