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So glad to hear that, Aria! My troubles may soon be over when I get my pedal harp regulated by a professional, too. Mine is just out of “temperament” (using piano-tuning language!) as there are no objectionable buzzes or anything. This means that the harp does not sound equally good in all keys, and this is most noticeable when I play with other musicians. The Keys of F Major and D minor are particularly bad (I love to play “Send In the Clowns” in F, and have had to change it to G since the temperament is so bad.)
Now you can enjoy playing your harp again! I am so happy for you.
Best thoughts,
BalfourBiagio,
I am so glad you figured out how to attach files, ha, ha! I enjoyed reading this old thread, and it very well supplements Mae’s other one about the double strung harp saga. These forums contain so much information–it is great to have these on Harp Column!
Best wishes,
BalfourWell, everyone, I will also put in my two cents, for what it is worth, Ha, ha! I love my Ravenna 34, and I don’t know if it is just this particular harp (I have not sampled any other Ravenna 34s, since mine was the only one at The Atlanta Harp Center at the time I purchased it). I have found that Dusty Strings is very consistent in workmanship and quality, but this Ravenna sounded better to us than other much more expensive Dusty harps that were there at the time. I had intended to use her primarily as a gigging harp, but ended up enjoying her so much that she is much more important to me than just a small harp I can take out easily!
So, CelticKnot, if price is important, try out a Ravenna 34 before you make your final decision, and have someone do a “blind” test for you–they would play several harps without you knowing which one, and then you would pick the one you like the sound of the best. Hope this helps!
All the best,
BalfourCarl,
Thanks so much for your response about how and why you wrote the book. I want you to know that I (and so many others) appreciate all the time and trouble you took to write such a helpful book–I could not do without it! All the small repairs and regulations I have done on my pedal harps through the years were done after carefully reading and studying your book so that I would know what I was doing. Everything so far has been successful, thanks to you!
By the way, did Cunard find a harpist for the QE2? I would love to do that sometime when I could plan it into my schedule!
My very best to you,
BalfourWow, Biagio, I wish I was close enough to Dusty Strings to just hop over and visit them! I do plan on seeing them in Asheville, NC in October for the Southeastern Harp Weekend!
Hi, Jilly!
Congratulations on starting the harp at age 60! I am also 60 but have played the harp for a long time, it seems like all my life, ha, ha! So glad you are enjoying Harp Column–I feel like there is nothing else in the world like the magazine and these forums! I too am so thankful I found it, and wish you the best of luck learning my favorite instrument. I still practice an hour or more per day on the harp, too!
Sincerely,
BalfourHello CelticKnot,
Yes, I have three Princess harps, ha, ha! The one in my photo is a Lyon & Healy 85GP, 44 string pedal harp. My wife and I named her “Eglantine.” Then I have the Ravenna 34, made by Dusty Strings, so that is her name. My MusicMakers Large Gothic 36 string harp is named “Bella” for “beautiful” since Jerry Brown made her in gorgeous walnut wood especially for me.
Bella and I did a concert last Sunday afternoon to a full house in Franklin, NC, then she and I have a wedding tomorrow, and next Monday we are doing a concert for the Jackson County Arts Council here. Bella has the most beautiful tone, volume and projection of my three harps, so I use her a lot, usually without amplification.
Ravenna is the most portable, comfortable, and the most fun to play of the three. Then Eglantine is the Concert harp, with pedals to play in all keys with “pedal glissandos” and to do the harp repertoire. I love all three of them, and it was so much fun to give them names! (Of course, I love Carol Lynn most of all!)
Wishing you all the best,
Balfour (and Carol Lynn)Saul, is the book called Affairs of the Harp, by Samuel Pratt? I have not read it, but with all due respect, it would have to be very good to equal Carl Swanson’s book, in my opinion.
Thanks, Biagio! My sweet wife keeps reminding my three harp “Princesses” that she is still the “Queen,” ha, ha! I do maintain a love affair with all of them!
Playing harp in the dark or by candle light is fun and good practice for me, but I’m still only a concert harpist in the daylight, ha, ha! I meant to tell you all that I too love “harperist” as a description of what we do, especially those of us who play both styles of harp and love it!
Hope you all have a great day,
BalfourCelticKnot,
Thanks for your reply! I can’t really add too much to Biagio’s thorough explanations. He’s great, isn’t he?
I would add, though, be sure to find out about Henriette Renie, the great female French harpist. She taught Grandjany her French method, and I feel that SHE is really responsible for giving it to the world. Grandjany just brought her method to the United States and promoted it! Harpo Marx also went to Paris to take lessons from Renie, as did the great Mildred Dilling. (And Susann McDonald)
I have a Dusty Strings Ravenna 34 that I really LOVE! I have written about this little harp on their website under Ravenna 34–testimonials, and on these forums in Harp Column. I love that she has the same string spacing and comparable tension as my Lyon & Healy pedal harp. (The tension is a little lighter on Ravenna, but still firm to the touch, as Biagio explained.) I also have the shoulder strap and the back-pack straps to help carry her when needed. I am 5’6″ and this harp does get heavy over a long distance using the back-pack straps. My sweet wife has to help get the harp on my back, also, since it is a little awkward–Ravenna has to be carried upside-down, can you believe it?
Well, I hope this helps. Thanks to all of you who have added to this thread!
Best regards,
BalfourCarl, good point about the “pedal-tension” lever harp vs. the lighter strung Celtic lever harp. I personally like both types, and I do prefer that the “Celtic” style harps have firm tension. Otherwise, I refer to the loose tension as playing on spaghetti strings or dental floss, ha, ha!
Also, knowing from my own experience, having a keyboard background did make it easier for me to learn the harp. Even after all these years of playing and mastering all three of my instruments, (harp, piano, and organ) I can play piano and organ totally in the dark, on a concert level, but have much trouble doing the same with the harp. Of course I can play the harp in the dark by anchoring fingers on certain strings, feeling string spacing, vibrations, etc., but I cannot play with any degree of confidence without seeing the strings. I also have perfect pitch, which lets me know immediately when I am not on the correct string, but alas, the wrong note has already been played!
So, CelticKnot, I wish you all the best with taking up the harp. I love this instrument the most, of the three I play, and understand that you do not want to waste time on the piano when you really want to be playing the harp!
My best wishes to all of you,
Balfour
