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Guzzie, even if I could afford the gold Iris, I believe I would still opt for the natural one! The beautiful, intricate, carvings in the maple wood really show up. I agree with you, I am quite taken with the blue flowers and gold design on the soundboard. This harp will not be heavy on the shoulder, since it balances so well. The new, larger design of the extended soundboard is like my Atlantide Prestige, and it sounds gorgeous, even profound.
I know you will love this harp!
Best wishes,
BalfourI just looked at photos of them on Salvi’s website. The natural ones with hand-painted soundboard art are just as beautiful as the gold version! I love the blue accents they work into the gold artwork.
Harp Hugs,
BalfourMolly, thanks for posting this. It is a great article! Wonder what that family is doing now, as the pandemic is winding down?
Best wishes,
BalfourHi, Guzzie,
Salvi harps in general are really good, and especially the Iris. Are you thinking the Gold version? One of my friends has one that is truly beautiful, and we have used it and my Atlantide (Camac) to perform together on. They complement each other brilliantly! The tone of the Iris is a little darker and more mellow, whereas my harp is brighter. Hope you hear from Gretchen, here on the forums, since she loves Salvi harps.
Best wishes,
BalfourHello again, everyone!
I looked up “Trianon” (TREE-uh-non) and found out that in French it means “a small elegant villa.” How nice that name fits, for what a beautiful harp design this is!
Enjoy playing your harps, my friends. The gigs are coming back–I just played for a nice lady’s 85th birthday celebration, and it was great to be “back in the game.”
Harp Hugs,
BalfourVery good points to make, Philippa. I also have had no trouble adapting to different size harps, even though a L&H 23 feels like a giant to me now, at this age. I am spoiled by the lighter weight and lower shoulder end of my Atlantide! Also, I get much more response with less effort out of a Camac, with their customary “brighter” sound.
Wishing you the best of luck getting your Trianon, Jujubee!
Harp Hugs,
BalfourHi, Philippa!
So good to see your post. If you meant me, I am 5′ 6″ and still pretty strong and healthy at 66 yrs. old, ha, ha! I agree with you, it would be really nice to have a Clio to gig with, when our 47 string Atlantides really are not necessary. I have played some very good ones at the harp centers and at conferences, especially those with extended soundboards. The new “look” of the Clios is also very nice, like miniature Atlantides. I have never played a Trianon in either size, so I am interested in what Catherine knows about them. I wonder if they are actually an Atlantide-quality harp with additional carvings for those who like that look. They are indeed very beautiful!
Thanks everyone. Harp Hugs,
BalfourCatherine, I would love to know how the Clio and Trianon 44 compare to each other, also. I know how my Atlantide Prestige and other folks’ Athena harps compare to each other, so it is an interesting subject.
Cheers,
BalfourHello Randy,
Perhaps I can help with your question. I play both the pedal harp and lever harp professionally. It would depend on the skill of the lever harpist and how comfortable she is with changing many levers. Whereas the pedal harpist can have instant pitch changes in all octaves with the mere use of a foot on a pedal, the lever harpist must change the pitch of each note individually, usually only with the left hand. Also, the pedal harp has a double action, which means that flats, naturals, and sharps are possible on all strings. Only the open string and one semitone higher are possible on each string of a lever harp.
In looking over this harp part, I personally would be able to play it on the lever harp if I simplified it a bit. Keeping the tempo of the piece, there would only be time to change one lever at a time, instead of the several that need to be changed at the same time, so some notes could just be omitted. Using synonyms (enharmonic notes) such as D# in place of E flat, for example, would make it work on a lever harp tuned in the Key of C. A lever harp tuned in E flat would require a lot of levers engaged to just play in the Key of D, as the piece is written in, not counting all the accidentals!
In general, this is why it is a pedal harp part, and not too practical on a lever harp as it is written. In your arrangement, with you knowing the limitations of the lever harp, maybe some of the difficult parts could be taken by other instruments in your ensemble. I would just present it to your harpist and see what she can come up with. Good luck with the performance this Fall!
Best wishes,
BalfourTacye,
What beautiful stands those harps are on! Thanks for the photos. It is good to see some vintage harps.
Best wishes,
BalfourVery interesting video about making these silk strings! He should have demonstrated how they sound after all that. I agree with Biagio, I would go with regular nylon wrapped over solid core nylon strings, or nylon over bronze core, both of these being what Dusty Strings makes and uses on their harps. In the vintage L&H catalog of 1899, p. 45, their silk harp strings were advertised as “American wound silk with steel wire centers.” I think that especially pedal harp tension strings would indeed need to have this type of solid core center.
Let us know what you decide!
Best wishes,
Balfour
