Joined HighSchool Orchestra need advice.

[unknown-user]

I joined my high school orchestra and this is the first year they will have a harp. I’m not looking forward to moving my harp back and forth between school and home

[unknown-user]

Although I havent been the harpist for my school’s orchestra for the past two years (will be this coming year as well as bassoonist – yikes!)

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

Get used to it. Playing anywhere involves a certain amount of hassle. Get good at moving the harp and it becomes less of a chore.

[Sara Kantor]

Sorry to say it–you’re gonna have to get used to it.

[Suzie Q]

This was good advice for me too. I joined a community youth orchestra, and am definitely getting used to lugging my semi-grand harp around, however my mom and I are getting better at it. The worst part is lifting it up the stage stairs….we need to work on that, or I need to get some better help (being only 5 ft myself).

[kimberly-rowe]

I also feel like you’re going to have to get used to it, but I also feel like a school orchestra presents special circumstances. If you can possibly get a harp there, I would try. Some schools are willing to buy/rent harps—I’ve seen people make this happen.

While in the professional world you do generally have to suck it up, you’re also getting paid cartage or a hefty fee most of the time and professionals are generally pretty careful around your harp. In a school, students are likely to be clumsy with chairs and stands around your harp, and the conductor isn’t paying you cartage so they might just expect the harp to be there all the time without thinking carefully about when they really need it. Or, maybe you’ll have a conductor who is so accommodating that they let you leave the harp home a lot because it’s a pain to bring, and then you’re just sitting there wasting time.

If you or the school can swing renting a harp to leave there, it’s probably going to make you happier in the long run. If not, then yes, get used to it .

KIM

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