The Hidden Cost of Owning a Harp (aka – Horse vs. Harp)

[jillian-taylor]

I’m a new harp player, and I do have a small harp of my own, a Dusty Strings FH26. However, wouldn’t it be a good idea to let her get a taste of having a harp with a harpsicle? The cost for a base model is only $400, much less than any other lever harp that I’ve come across, and your 8 year old daughter can get an idea of whether she wants to play the harp or not?

[barbara-low]

Hello Jill 🙂 I know your harp vs horse was as an example only, but be glad your daughter wants to play the harp. It’s possible to lease or sponsor a horse while learning to ride, but should she get serious, the costs mount up very quickly and there is the fact that horseback riding is considered to be a vigorous and high risk sport. Despite what we harpists may think at times, harps don’t have a mind of their own. 😉 They do what we ask of them without much fussing.
As far as cost, both can be equally expensive depending on how high your daughter’s aspirations go.
P.S. I became a professional harpist, leased and rode horses in my 20’s till I had children, and now own a horse.

[lyn-boundy]

Just wanted to add to Jillian’s message that I started out with a Harpsicle and they are lovely instruments – my only objection being that they do not come complete with tuning tool, case etc so these things have to be purchased separately. After a year of lessons I’m now having a larger (34 string) Clarsach made to my own specifications but I certainly have no plan to let my Harpsicle go and I see no reason why someone couldn’t continue with one of these for as long as they wish. And one huge advantage in having a harp-playing daughter is that, unlike violins, it is almost impossible to make a horrible noise on a harp – they are very considerate of the ears and feelings of other family members.

Like most hobbies, you can make harping as cheap (after the initial purchase) or as expensive as you like. I have spent a small fortune on music books (eg) but so much music can be downloaded for free there’s really no excuse for that. If your daughter is so bitten by the bug that she can’t resist these things she can buy them herself as she progresses, with pocket money or get them as Xmas/birthday presents. I could have managed my first year of learning with just a harp, tuning tool, electronic tuner (both the latter are quite cheap), a good tutor and perhaps one good tutorial book (I would recommend Teach Yourself to Play the Folk Harp by Sylvia Woods) although the Harpsicle does come with its own instruction manual and a fair number of simple tunes to learn. A dust cover, if needed, can be created with an old sheet – it may not look great but it costs nothing. And strings can be purchased as and when you need them – most strings last for years (especially the lower ones) so unless you are a professional player it really isn’t the end of the world not to have a spare set to hand.

On the plus side, though, you will be giving your daughter a gift that lasts her whole life. I could not possibly put a price on the sheer enjoyment I have had from my harp. She may also decide to take up playing as a profession or simply as an additional way of adding to her earnings when she is older – lots of harpers earn a fair bit busking or doing weddings and other events even if it is not their full-time job.

Just one other point about the harp itself: lever harps, being smaller, are almost always cheaper and probably easier for a young person to handle but I think it is a mistake to think of a lever harp as the ‘entrance level’ to a pedal harp later. They are two different instruments and using the lever harp as a ‘gateway’ is a bit like buying a poodle but planning to move up to a Great Dane. If it’s a pedal harp she really wants then all I can really offer is my sympathy. Perhaps she could start earning her own money for some chores around the house?

If, having spent all that money, she eventually gives up on the hobby, you can also take some comfort from knowing that, provided she takes care of it and doesn’t write her name or the names of her favourite boys/celebs all over it (I’m remembering the guitar I had in my teens) then harps generally (here in the UK at least, I can’t speak for the US but I see no reason why it shold be all that different) tend to hold around 70-75% of their value so you will still have a saleable piece of equipment if the worst comes to the worst. You might also consider looking around for a second-hand model for your daughter – a good harp remains a good harp for a very long time.

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