Thoughts? 44 string pedal not having low E, D, C

[karen]

Carl (and anyone else interested)…here is the reply from Camac:

The Clio is design to own 6 octave from Sol 00 to Fa 42, (G00 to F42).
Only F42 and G41 ( as well as G00) don’t have disk.
We are not planning to design a new mechanism , I’m sorry.
It’s always difficult to get a small size harp extend soundboard with a full size mechanism.

[Gretchen Cover]

Karen, you have a difficult decision to make. I will add to the thought process that you can always use the lower D# as an Eb so that could possibly help with the E dilemma. If you decide to go with the Camac, I would encourage you to spend the extra money for an extended soundboard.

Another thought is to contact the local harp society and/or harp tech in the area where you live and ask if there are any smaller size used harps for sale. Many harps are sold word of mouth. You may want to research the Lyon Healey models – there are a number of petite and semi grand models now discontinued that could work well for you.

[balfour-knight]

Hello, Karen and all!

Interesting thread, and I shall add my “two cents,” for what it is worth, ha, ha! I played the large 47 string harps for years until I finally landed upon my delightful L&H 85GP 44-string harp. This harp, which is not made anymore, has an ideal range, from Low D up to High E. Additionally, every string has disc mechanism except for the lowest and highest notes, that D and E. When I last played the 44-string Camac, it was lacking discs on the bottom THREE strings, and the top string, four strings without mechanism! That simply would not do for me! I even wish that my harp had discs on every string. But at least I have a fully chromatic range on mine, without having to retune too many notes without discs to fit my musical requirements.

Occasionally, I have tuned the Low D down to a D flat or C when the printed music requires it, but I have never needed any note above that High E. Some pedal harp literature glissandos do go up to the High G of the 47 string harps, but one can end the glissando on a logical note on my harp and it does not sound lacking. Other harpists may disagree, however! I can imagine that if one got used to the 47 strings, less strings just would not do! I certainly feel that way about the 36 strings on my lever harp, as mentioned in another thread just now, ha, ha! And, each string MUST have a lever, unlike some of the lever harps which are available.

Carl, didn’t you mean that the pedals are in the order DCB EFGA? I just noticed the reversal of the B and E. If one of you wonderful harp builders could put them in the “C” order for me, I would LOVE it! (CDE FGAB) That is one reason I am really beginning to PREFER lever harps! Of course, I am so used to the regular pedal order for all these many years that I really could not change over at my age, ha, ha!

Cheers to all of you,
Balfour

[duckspeaks]

Dear Karen,

Exactly in the same boat! been looking at clio 44. all camac features sound nice to excellent but but I can’t stand the fact that the lowest 3 strings are without disc. think of it, f, g and a without discs. also having e is better. f & g without disc are limiting even gor relatively simple keys. so the additional weight of a “smaller” 47 string is worth it, unless mobility is absolutely necessary, which is untrue for me. I would rather skip the new engineering features of the camac if I have to. that how much serious I am for the range of the instrument. done enough od buying a larger harp for the extra note. tired of that! I wont miss the high end. the daphne 44 and l&h 44 are discontined I believe.

[Gretchen Cover]

Karen, have you considered a Venus harp? http://www.venusharps.com

[carl-swanson]

Balfour- I wasn’t talking about the order of the pedals. I was talking about the order of the rods, which is D, C, E, B, F, G, and A. The E rod is between the C and B rods.

[balfour-knight]

Carl, how interesting that the rods are in a different order than the pedals are! I never knew that, so thanks for clearing that up.

[karen]

Thanks Gretchen. Definitely going with an extended soundboard regardless of which harp I choose. Even my pedal harp has a huge, extended soundboard (Pratt Chamber Harp). Thanks!

[karen]

Balfour…am I to understand that your L&H GP does not have disks on the lowest bass note and the highest octave note? So, disks on 42 out of 44 strings? Thank you. Still trying to understand it all.

[karen]

duckspeaks: Thanks for chiming in. After reading your post, I am unclear….are you saying that you want a petite pedal and are tired of having a large harp with all 47 strings? Are you leaning towards the Clio? I have gotten a great education through these answers. I had no idea that the Clio did not have disks on all 44 strings—that is a huge “game changer” for me!

[karen]

Gretchen–to answer your question, I have not considered Venus harps. I have nothing against them, but must admit (for no reason) that I am not drawn to them. Never say never though!

[Loonatik]

Have you considered Salvi Daphne as an alternative? It has all 47 strings, weighs a few pounds more, costs a little more, compared to the Clio.

[Alyson Webber]

Perhaps you should start with “what harp will fit in your car?” if that is the limiting factor. The Clio is significantly shorter at 66in, than the other harps that I’ve breezed through this morning (Salvi Arion, L&H 85GP, Chicago Concertino, Venus Semi-Grands) that all ring in at 70 inches. The only other things shorter are 40 string instruments, but you’d be worse off with string limits than the Clio….

Might I ask what kind of vehicle you want to fit a harp in? Some people may have feedback…Or do you have access to a variety of harp models (not all 70 inch harps are going to fit in the same vehicle. The base design determines whether a concert grand fits in my Prius or not…) If there is a harp store near you, or some sort of harp meeting…? That may be the best place to start. If nothing else fits, than the question of to Clio or not to Clio is moot.

Since you ask, I am a full-on grown-up. I started playing in my early thirties. Lever harp for a couple of years and decided to get a pedal harp before we had kids and I spent all of my extra money on them!

[carl-swanson]

Balfour- If you look into the bottom of the harp, the pedals are bundled together in two groups. One group is B, C, and D, and the other is E, F, G, and A. The pedal bars of the two groups cross each other over the hole in the lower end of the column where the rods go in, and as a result, the E rod is between the B and C rods.

For many years the order of the rods at the bottom end, which never changes, was not the same as the order of the linkage chains within the action, and as a result, rods had to cross each other within the column. But now most if not all companies have the linkage inside the action in the same order as the rods, so there are no longer any crossovers.

[karen]

Loonatik (I feel so rude addressing you that way!) I have considered the Daphne but they are sooo heavy. Also, not my favorite sound. I fear I am a bit of the Goldilocks here (this one is too hard, this one is too soft….looking for the one that is juuust right!) 😉

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