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Saul,
I don’t visit this site often and just saw your post. Yours is not a bad idea. I’ve been stuck with some harps in pretty bad condition during tours. Some were even delivered missing strings.
I do have a harp that I’ve rented in this way. The first time I was asked I agreed because it has been so difficult in the past to find harps when I’m out of town.
Alishia Joubert used to work with a trumpet. You could contact her for advice too: http://www.alishiaharp.com/
Look also at
http://wirestrungharp.com/
includes a library of great public domain resourceslook for Cynthia Cathcart’s teaching videos on YouTube
Look here for a great source for wire. Buying coils of wire and learning to knot your own strings saves a bundle: http://www.fortepiano.com/
If you subscribe to the Folk Harp Journal, look for the articles in there about wire harps, they’re very instructional.
I’ve run into this as well. There are, if I’m not mistaken, two versions of the Prelude in C. It’s the longer version, with that extra measure that Schubert used for the Ave Maria. It’s probably not an error in Yolanda’s, she just chose to use the “other version”.
If I’m not mistaken, the one that Schubert used was from “Book One”. There’s one version in the Well Tempered Clavier and another with a collection of preludes and fuges. They aren’t identical.
So it’s not enough to have a copy of the Prelude if it’s been used in another piece, you need to know which one. One is BWV 846, the other is BWV 846a (alternate version).
Ron Price (founder of Healing Harps) worked with many one handed harpists. There are several solutions for holding the harp and plenty of ways to get around music with only one hand. When you have a harp and need some music to get started, let me know. I’ll see if I still have notes from when I worked with Ron.
Let me clarify about the Classic gut strings. Vanderbilt Music reports that “The supplier for Vanderbilt Classic strings is going out of business” http://www.vanderbiltmusic.com/classicdiscontinued.php
Finding an different vendor marketing the strings under a different name won’t help. They are permanently discontinued.
Barbara, I appreciate the tip on moisturizer. I tried that when I was using Bow Brand with no success.
My problem seems to be reaction with the particular varnish that Bow uses, so all strings they make will be the same. It has never been a problem with Classic gut’s lacquer.
Pirastro became so expensive that I switched to the Classic. 5th octave alone is nearly $600.
I’ve made some local calls and am going to take time to play a harp strung with Valkyrie gut and one with the Camac gut to see if either is going to be a suitable alternative.
From the comments I’ve read here the carbon fiber strings don’t sound appealing.
Thank you all. I’ll check back in a few days in case there are more helpful comments.
Kate is correct. the Burgundy is the same varnish as Bow Brand.
It was a student at Indiana U. who was working at Vanderbilt who helped me figure out that it’s the coating on the strings that is the problem. It was years ago and I can’t remember her name. She said that she had one brand of string on her harp at home and there was another on the school harps. She noticed that she only had the squeaking problem on the Bow Brand strings. At her suggestion I switched strings and the problem was solved. Until now.
It’s sounding like the Camac strings might be a good solution.
I can order the Classic gut from Lyra? Vanderbilt and Virginia Harp Center say the company that makes them has gone out of business. I’m looking for a substitute that will be similar. The Bow Brand reacts badly with my skin and squeaks. Switching to the Classic gut had solved the problem.
I work from lead sheets exclusively for pop music. I just thought list would help you go through arrangements you already have and find more that Sinatra recorded. Learning to work from lead sheets really simplifies the pop music repertoire.
Yes, I knew Fly Me to the Moon has two meters. I like to pair them together. It makes it easier to lengthen the song with two versions.
Here’s a list of all the Sinatra tunes that I keep in my repertoire. They all work fairly easily. I put together a list of Sinatra tunes because I get asked so often which Sinatra tunes I know. Once I did the research I was surprized how many I had and didn’t know it. I hope this helps.
Greg,
I think I’d omit the part on your home page about how long you’ve been studying harp, or reword it. You want to sound like a professional and not a student. This sounds like you are still studying. Better to list how long you’ve worked professionally or semi-professionally. You covered your studies on the about page.
David,
Thanks! Knowing you performed your version with Fred Bock himself makes it a welcome alternate part for harpists. You’ve made life a lot easier for a lot of harpists this time of year.
Barbara
First, it was Meg that suggested the recording. I’ve never tried that, but it sounds like it might be acceptable to some people. I always have a small amp with me for outdoor events so I could make that loud enough. Most people don’t have any sound system set up for outdoor weddings so a simple iPod wouldn’t be enough of a system.
The bride was plenty gracious. I think it helped to remind her ahead of time instead of dealing with it the day of the wedding. It gave her time to get a plan ready and adjust her plans. I never take an outdoor event if the client doesn’t have a plan for bad weather in place. If there’s no backup plan, I decline the job.
