Mideast Harps

[S M]

I differ (quite obviously), but not WILDLY; there’s absolutely no reason to get THAT adamant about something so insignificant, as I’m sure you realize.

I don’t think Mideast harps are the best thing that ever happened in the harp world, but they’re not trash for lowly beginners like myself, and they’re definitely not something worth hating so passionately. (Sorry if that’s a bit overstated…)

[unknown-user]

I have had a little experience with a Mideast Heather – the only one I actually own.

[Zen Sojourner]

Sally, DON’T DO IT!

An Ashley harp is list priced at $1350 on the Mid-East website.

[unknown-user]

Hi

I have to TOTALLY agree with ZEN.

[unknown-user]

of course zen is absolutely right, this isn’t even a debatable topic. the point is this: when there are real harp makers in the world, making REAL HARPS for almost the same price as a pakistani, why would anyone ever choose a pakistani?

you would have to be off your rocker completely.

my first harp was a pakistani heather harp. of course i thought it was fabulous. i had NO CLUE otherwise. i played it for almost three years! and yes i developed terrible habits that have taken me years to correct. of course i play real folk harps now, i have both a dusty strings, and a blevins…

truth is, had i known that blevins offers small harp “seconds” for almost the same price as the mideast paperweights, i would have had a quality instrument to learn on from the beginning! i WISH i would have had this forum to guide me then….

that said, i actually recorded an album with my now internationally acclaimed band on that pakistani! it’s funny but after i had played it for a couple of years, it developed it’s own sweet little voice. and since our music is original and not at all traditional, the songs i used it on turned out gorgeous. funny thing is, it doesn’t even really sound like a harp on the recordings (well, in my opinion, it barely is an actual harp) it sounded more like bells or something….

so of course, it’s not worthless. it’s what you make of it that defines it’s worth.

still, with quality harps being offered at comparable prices, there is no doubt these “harps” should be avoided if at all possible.

[unknown-user]

I would like to comment that I have had the pleasure of playing an R-Harp and I thought the sound was gorgeous. The workmanship was nice, and the price was right-on for a quality 35 string instrument, fully levered. Also, they are very light. You can hear a sound-clip at the R-Harp page: http://www.rharps.com/

When I first became interested in the harp I saw the Mid-East ones on eBay too. I decided that, for me, it was preferable to rent a top-quality instrument while saving the money to buy. As it happened, I bought from the same place I rented from, and was able to recoup my rental fees in savings on the instrument I purchased! (The rental fees were less expensive than it would have been to buy a Mid-East harp outright.)

Check around, because there are great deals to be had for those willing to look. Rent-to-own programs from harp dealers and makers are just one of the many offered.

[unknown-user]

I don’t have a lot of money and even less when I bought my first harp. In fact I didn’t even have a few hundred dollars at the time.

I think when $$ is an issue getting value for money is even more important. If you buy a dud with the limited funds you have it could mean you won’t be playing for even longer than you planned. If you can manage to scrape together $250 for a harp then it will only be a matter of a month of two to put another $250 together and you can get a harp that will be worth it’s price. It’s very telling that everyone says the mideast harps are not worth their retail price. Yet there are lots of affordable harps that are.

I also know that a lot of people say harp rental is a waste of money. But if it’s the difference between playing for 6 months or not then it is money well spent. With something as challenging as learning an instrument it really pays to learn on quality equipment. Otherwise you cannot be sure if the problem is your playing or just the instrument.

[unknown-user]

BTW I have also seen those cardboard harps being used by students and in ensembles and they sound consistent and pleasant. They may not look as pretty as a wooden carved one but they are dirt cheap and an

[Valerie Hawkes-Howat]

I have the Mideast Minstrel harp and it’s really not a bad instrument.

[Author]

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