Which lever harp for a rich sound?

[jaydg]

At the moment I play a pedal harp in orchestra, and a lever harp with our local folk group.

My current lever harp is a Camac Korrigan, it was my first ever harp. I love its rich sound for a lever harp, but it’s a bit on the heavy side – 15kg. Obviously not compared to the pedal harp, but I’d like a lever harp I could just carry, without using a trolley, for playing in pubs, cafes etc.

Is the richness of sound related to size?

Because I play a pedal harp, lever harps can sound a bit thin in comparison. So I’m looking for a lighter lever harp (with at least 32 strings), with the richest sound possible. ‘Bright’ isn’t what I’m looking for.

Any recommendations – it also needs to be available in Europe. Thanks.

[Gregg Bailey]

Hi, JAYDG,

I’m eager to see what harp models others will recommend, but I thought I would chime in, as five of my floor harps weigh less than the Korrigan, which, according to the Camac website, weighs 15 kg/33 lbs. They are:

-Salvi Gaia (38 strings, pedal gut, 24.5 lbs/11.1kg)

-Dusty Strings Boulevard (34 strings, pedal gut, 24 lbs/10.8kg with base, 21 lbs/9.5 kg without base)

-Dusty Strings Ravenna 34 (folk tension, same weight as Boulevard; I have mine strung in the optional lever gut from 4G up)

-Rees Brilliant Harpsicle (34 strings, nylon, folk tension, 15 lbs/6.8 kg)

-Rees Grand Harpsicle (33 strings, nylon, very light tension, narrow spacing, 12 lbs/5.4kg)

I should mention that MusicMakers has a Jolie Hybrid model which has 33 strings, nylon, high tension, concert spacing, is made of a combination of wood and carbon fiber, and only weighs 13 lbs/5.9 kg.

My Gaia is so nice in that it has 38 strings down to 6A and has pedal tension yet only weighs 24.5 lbs/11.1kg. The negatives about it that I’ve found are that the tone is quite dry, the tone of the low strings isn’t so great, and the pitch of the bass wires deflects quite a bit when plucked strongly, as they start much sharper on the attack before settling into their true pitch. The levers are also a bit noisy with a “clack” when disengaging and, to a certain extent, when engaging.

I absolutely love my Dusty Boulevard and Ravenna 34; two similar-looking harps with very different characters, as one has pedal gut and the other is in folk tension, but they both have a beautiful ring in the sound.

My Rees Brilliant Harpsicle 34 is astonishingly lightweight (15 lbs/6.8 kg) for being made of solid wood and having 34 strings of medium tension and spacing. It’s warmer-sounding than my Ravenna 34, thought the bass end isn’t as strong.

My Grand Harpsicle 33 is ultra-lightweight at only 12 lbs/5.4kg, but you would have to adjust to the low tension, narrow spacing, and small sound. However, it and the Brilliant come with a built-in pickup by default, and they sound fantastic through a proper amplifier (particularly the Brilliant). The Grand Harpsicle has the added advantage of being designed to be playable wearing a strap and strolling around, and its base is detachable.

I’m sure Balfour will chime in about his wonderful Dusty Strings FH36S which can weigh as little as 25 lbs/11.3 kg depending on the wood chosen.

I hope this helps!

-Gregg

[Gregg Bailey]

Of course, I meant “though,” not “thought” in my last message. In summary, if you’re wanting something comparable to the Camac Korrigan as far as having pedal gut strings but just lighter in weight, I would suggest the Salvi Gaia or the Dusty Boulevard. Sound-wise, between the two, I prefer the Boulevard, but if you’d prefer the extra strings in the top and bottom, the Gaia definitely has a larger range, and the bass wires are true pedal wires, whereas the bass wires on the Boulevard are lighter and are actually identical to the bass wires on their Ravenna 34 folk harp.

-Gregg

[Gregg Bailey]

As far as other lighter-weight pedal-tension harp models, there’s also the Lyon and Healy Ogden, which has 34 strings, pedal gut, and weighs 28 lbs/12.7 kg. There may be other models I’m not thinking of which fit those parameters.

-Gregg

[jaydg]

Hi Greg, thank you! This is really helpful 👍🏽😊

[wil-weten]

A Camac Korrigan with 38 strings weighs 15 kilo. A L&H Ogden with 34 strings weighs 12.7 kilo. Both harps are strung with pedal gut.

[Gregg Bailey]

Hi again, JayDG,

I was just thinking, since the Salvi Gaia and Camac Korrigan both have 38 strings and pedal gut, the Salvi Gaia would be the most like what you’re used to in the Korrigan as far as note range, string tension, etc, but in a MUCH lighter weight (about 11 kg). If you can try a Gaia, you could see if you were ok with the relatively dry sound and the way the bass wires and levers behave.

-Gregg

[jaydg]

Thanks Greg and Will.

So it seems the question might also be, ‘which lever harps are gut strung’?

I’ll start a list, please add to it.

Camac Korrigan
L&H Ogden
Salvi Gaia
Pilgrim Clarsach
All Starfish harps
Dusty Strings Boulevard

[Gregg Bailey]

Hi, JayDG,

All of the following are strung in pedal gut but are even larger and HEAVIER than your Korrigan:

L&H Troubadour VI (36 strings)
L&H Prelude 40 (I own one)
Salvi Ana 40 (available in both pedal and lever gut)
Camac Madamoiselle 40

Are you specifically asking about pedal gut? I don’t know who all offers lever gut, but, as I mentioned, I opted for the optional lever gut on my Dusty Strings Ravenna 34 instead of the default nylon.

I don’t know whether Pratt harps are available in Europe, but all of his models feature pedal gut strings and concert spacing. However, he has been indisposed for some time now, so I don’t know if he’s even taking new orders.

-Gregg

[Gregg Bailey]

Honestly, the terms “pedal gut” and “lever gut” are a little silly to me, since lever harps can be designed for either. I suppose “classical gut” and “folk gut” might be better terms!

-Gregg

[Gregg Bailey]

I meant to mention that Dusty Strings therefore offers folk gut as an optional stringing on all of their folk harps from 4G up to 2C.

-Gregg

[Molly]

I was just about to suggest the L&H Ogden as well. When I rented one, I had a carrying case with a shoulder strap that was pretty easy to tote around.

[balfour-knight]

I agree–standard gut and lighter gut would be my choice of terms, along with Gregg’s classical gut and folk gut! Actually the two are not too very different, being only about 3 string gauges different from each other. I had “lever gut” strings in the Baritone section of my Musicmakers’ Large Gothic 36 string harp, and that harp felt very much like a pedal harp in regard to tension. The main difference to me is that the lever gauge gut strings feel thinner to my fingers, which they are, but they still have plenty of tension.

I will “chime in about my Cherie,” ha, ha! She is my favorite lever harp of all time, a Dusty FH36S in figured cherry. She has a deep, warm but bright tone, unique to cherry. I never cared for this particular model in maple or bubinga–too bright! In walnut, the tone is also very pleasing to me, but the Cherry is perfection, in my humble opinion! If you desire a less-bright tone, you could get it strung in lever gut, like the Boulevard harp. On my scales, she weighs 26 lbs. with Camac levers. I find her to be very light, but I am still in good shape for lifting weights, ha, ha!

Hope this helps. You folks have a great day!
Harp Hugs,
Balfour

• This reply was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by balfour-knight.

[Gregg Bailey]

Thanks, Balfour!

Just to clarify, all of Dusty Strings’ models (except the Boulevard) are normally strung in folk/lever-gauge nylon, but “lever” gut is also an option, whereas the Boulevard is strung in pedal gut as the only option, as it’s their version of a pre-pedal harp (basically their version of an Ogden).

-Gregg

[Gregg Bailey]

Also, I’ve been amazed at just how much thinner the lever gut strings on my DS Ravenna 34 are than on my Boulevard or any of my other pre-pedal harps! If lever gut strings are, indeed, only about 3 notes thinner, it’s still quite noticeable to my fingers!

-Gregg

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