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I would be dubious about buying any harp that I or an experienced player had not tested personally. Not to be caustic, but the biggest mistakes we see beginners making are NOT being picky and prioritizing cost/number of strings over quality.
I am also rather dubious about the price of the Mikel: I’d think it very low for a good quality instrument and if someone is just beginning I think it is wiser to invest in a better quality harp than the $900 price of this suggests.
OK, it is made in Pakistan but that in itself is not a black mark. However, you would be wise to be selective about levers – which alone should be about $400 US or more if they are worth buying (and that’s just the cost to the maker, not what he would charge for installation). So I’m a bit suspicious given the advertised price.
It’s also unclear why having the last two strings are a major factor for you. Sure, that low A in particular is nice to have but seriously, how often would anyone have need of it, even if they are professional performers?
If you are looking for the most strings possible in a good budget harp I’d suggest taking a look at the Magical Strings Concert Oladion or possibly the Musicmakers Cheyenne.
Biagio
People were playing by ear and using the harp to accompany voice long before notation was invented. Furthermore, the harp techniques that are taught these days are probably quite different from those used by the bards of the middle ages. So don’t worry – if and when you want to go further, there are plenty of resources. At that point technique will be much more important.
That said, it would be useful to learn basic notation, technique and theory even if you never intend to play from a written score – it will make more tunes accessible. The books by Bruner and Woods that Wil mentioned are excellent and not at all difficult.
The Virtual Harp Circle was organized specifically for harp beginners; although we have by now many professionals and even a few harp makers that is still our focus.
There is also the fact that strings on a guitar, or other lute-like instrument are at considerably lower tension than on a harp.
If you are comfortable with your understanding, that’s excellent! I wish more players were – and more teachers for that matter. Carl and a few others I’ve known understand this stuff; most really don’t.
And why should they? If they have harps they like there is really no need to go beyond what those harps have.
Have fun in any case!
BiagioYes, I meant “shortened the time” id est it only took two days before it held tune, instead of four or more.
That’s a nice looking and small harp you have there; from your remarks thus far it does not seem to me that you’re doing anything that would harm it. But I hope that you understand string theory if you ever try a larger instrument. A harp’s physics is different from that of a guitar.
If you want to read a good discussion, see String Theory on the Sligo Harps website:
http://www.sligoharps.com/I very much agree with Carl in general – use what the harp maker intended unless you are sure that you know what you are doing. For instance, you wrote that you replaced a monofilament A string with a nylon core, nickel wound one, basing that on the diameter measurement. The replacement will be significantly higher tension.
It looks as though you have a high density laminate sound board which can probably take the added tension. My point however if that just going by diameter can be risky. Please read Rick Kemper’s discussion at Sligo if my comment is unclear.
Tanya, I rather think it depends on the type of string, the placement within the regime, and the intended tension overall. Nylon, and especially fluorocarbon often have to stretch in a great deal – I’ve been known to take FC in the lower mid up a full step on a high tension harp.
That definitely shortened the time for it to hold tune. On the other hand, you’re taking a chance on tightening too much with gut. And I’ll never do that in the treble, whatever the material.
In the lower range, you have several factors going on: not just stretching, but the knot, the belly, the effect on adjacent strings, and sometimes the neck flexing as well.
Caution seems the most reasonable approach if it’s a fairly new harp or if one is not very experienced, though, so I’m not disagreeing with you.
With a complete stringing on a brand new harp I can count on a couple of weeks, no matter what I might try to hasten it!
Biagio
Do you mean ‘what do zither pegs look like’ Alison? Here’s a page from Musicmakers – browse down to see tapered, and threaded-a-la Dusty:
https://www.harpkit.com/musical-hardware.html
B
I’ll often stretch in new strings a bit provided they are not metal core. I’m curious what model harp this is and why you are paying rent for it, if it is in such crummy shape that the owner doesn’t care what happens to it?
Wil, I agree in general. As you say they have their uses: most often for a fairly lightly tensioned harp of 3 1/2 octaves or so. I’d be particularly inclined to use them on on a small double where through pegs would make it pretty top heavy. It is also easier to space them on a double.
Disadvantages: you have to special-order (or drill) string holes for gauges over 0.040″; and they may eventually distort the peg hole and slip if the wood is softer than cherry. Like the Dusty threaded pegs, too, you have to back them out a few turns when changing a string.
Biagio
You might ask Triplett or Lewis Creek if they would do that for you. Another possible harp to consider: the Harps of Lorien Raphael. Since the Raphael is only made to order they might be more amenable. That is the therapy harp favored by Laurie Riley BTW.
Speaking of which, Laurie and some others prefer zither pegs for therapy harps to keep thee weight down.
Personally the type of tuning peg does not make much difference to me except a preference for only having to carry around one wrench size. Some #4 tapered pegs have the same head size as the Dusty threaded ones. Actually I prefer tapered, but up to you.
Just ask the makers on questions like this: most will be accommodating though they might charge a bit more than for their standard design.
Biagio
**wrt the musicmakers publications, I didnt see exactly one of the titles you mention – is it the “Wire Harp Collection”?
Yep, that’s the one.
Regarding idiom (I assume you mean Beth’s arrangements), her bass harmony is often essentially half note fifths – pretty typical for the wire strung. We don’t typically “do” arpeggios, thirds, glisses, etc, as the wire harp sustain would make the whole thing too muddy.
BTW, in the Science of Harp Making there is a hilarious classic – Mark Bolles on “The Great Wire Wars” – worth the price of the CD alone!
Only a few pieces from Rudiger Oppermann and Chris Caswell. I suppose the best way to get into that would be to listen to Nordic harp music by Beth, Erik Ask-Upmark, Harper Tasche and a few others. and think about how you would adapt it to the wire strung?
To help you get started here is a downloadable selection of 15 tunes:
https://www.harpcenter.com/product/midnight-sun-kolle-PDF/harp-music-books-scandinavian
Although Beth arranged these for lever harp you will notice that the harmony is very simply, readily adaptable to wire.
Have fun!
Biagio
You are welcome Randal, though I’m not sure if I was very helpful (grin). If you wish to really dig into this stuff (and it IS fascinating) in addition to the resources mentioned earlier I highly recommend two collections from the Folk Harp Journal archives: The Science of Harp Making and The Wire Strung Harp, available here:
https://www.harpkit.com/fhj-downloadable-collections.html
Best wishes,
BiagioRandal, I’m not an expert and can only speculate – although in fact so do all those who have studied these ancient harps. They just have more experience in speculation ha ha. What we do know is that a) there are very few extant harps from the 16th century b) they are low headed and c) by the 17th century high-headed harps begin to appear in Ireland, presumably due to exchanges of ideas with Scotland and the mainland. Make of that what you will; I’d suggest it comes down to fashion at the time. Here are two places to begin further research:
http://www.wirestrungharp.com/
and
http://www.irishharp.org/shop/harp.htm
Getting closer to your question: a number of people have studied the low headed Lamont Trinity and Queen Mary harps closely and determined that those string lengths suggest either a bass C, or if a G the string might have been silver or even gold They are too short to ring nicely with brass or bronze, at least to modern ears. That might also “explain” the evolution to high-heads like the Downhill. Some of he folks who have studied this question most closely besides David are Ann Heymann, Simon Chadwick, Karen Loomis, Siobhan Armstrong, Paul Dooley, David Kortier and Guy Flockhart. Most except David K perhaps have written extensively on this subject.
There is also some question about how they were tuned: purely diatonically, in C or G with doubled root notes in the mid (“na cawlee”) whether or not with a flatted 3rd, the exact spacing, if the penultimate note was the root and the ultimate a fifth (eg G and D)….
I realize that is a whole lot of words that do not really answer the question! All I can say for my own (a 26) is that I settled on diatonic tuning in G with 1.1cm spacing, with four silver strings and four red brass, the rest yellow brass or bronze. It can be tuned na cawlee as well; perhaps the ancient harpers did this sort of thing too. Who can say?
I did design a 30 string na cawlee with root G but decided that was too much work at my skill in playing (mediocre). Besides, cast string shoes would have been about $100 each…nah.
Whew!
Cheers,
B
