What to do with an old Aoyama?

[j-miller]

I’m hoping for some professional advice… My daughter is a harpist and BC Music Therapist. She has her own concert grand, a Lyon & Healy, and another troub, a Salvi, that she uses for her work in Music Therapy. A while ago, when she was still in college, she was given an old Aoyama troubadour, specifically for use in the school system in which she was interning at the time. At the time she got it, the soundboard had a very small crack but was still playable for her purposes. However, after a few years of hauling it around and exposure to unsuitable climate conditions in the schools, the soundboard has cracked beyond repair and the harp is no longer playable. It will not hold a tune at all.
My question: what do we do with this harp? I hate to see it go out to the curb like any old piece of trash, but it’s taking up space in my *real small* family room, and I can’t see a reason to keep it. Do any of you have any advice? Other than taking the strings off of it to possibly use later (?) I don’t know of any use for it – or of anyone who could possibly do anything with it. What do you think? Should I just dispose of it, I mean, like in the garbage? Hoping for some input! Thanks in advance!

[Gretchen Cover]

I would have an artist turn it into a piece of art and enjoy it. You could also contact an Aoyama dealer to see if the harp could be used for parts or rehabbed.

[carl-swanson]

Where is the harp now? What country, state, city?

[Tacye]

Soundboards are replaceable and usually worth doing if the rest of the harp is fine – hopefully you can pass this gift on to someone who will renew its playable life.

[j-miller]

The harp is currently with us in northeast Ohio, USA.

[evolene_t]

Definitely don’t throw it in the garbage, it would be such a huge waste! (Although I have heard of someone who got her hands on a pedal harp this way…)

1) I’m sure someone would be willing to take it off your hands and have a try at repairing it. I know that before having enough money to start renting a harp, I would have done everything to have such an opportunity.
Unfortunatly, I live in Europe so it would cost more than the price of a few harps to do it in this case… But perhaps someone else will be willing too.

2) If not, perhaps a music school would like the gift. They might have a student who would want to repair it, or use it as decoration.

3) Perhaps the parts can be recycled : if Aoyama in the US won’t do it, some amateur harp-makers might want to take a look…

4) Like Gretchen said, it can perhaps be recycled as decoration.
Here is a Buch of example of guitar recycling :

And piano :

The only reason I can’t find the same kind of DIY projects for the harp is because they are rare and expensive!
I hope you find a good use to this harp 🙂

• This reply was modified 5 years, 11 months ago by evolene_t.

[emma-graham]

How about this?!

[img]https://i.ibb.co/vZPKhpV/0-E50-CC49-6790-439-B-90-FC-2-A09516454-B0.jpg[/img]

• This reply was modified 5 years, 11 months ago by emma-graham.

[emma-graham]

Aaaargh! Why is it soooo hard to post pics in this forum??? 😩
I give up.

[evolene_t]

Don’t give up, Emma! Here it is 🙂
Great example!

[Biagio]

If it is otherwise structurally sound, offer it for sale at a reasonable price and some enterprising harper will be happy to put on a new board.

Biagio

[emma-graham]

Evolène you are a star! Thankyou so much. 😃👍🏼

[Gretchen Cover]

After reading all the posts, I would contact harp makers about donating the harp for rehab. You may also want to contact harpist Patrice Fisher, who has a non-profit harp school in Guatemala. If she can use the harp, you would get a charitable donation letter for your tax return. http://www.patricefisher.com. I donate my used strings to her program.

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