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Post script: Aha, I see that Brittany is based in Michigan – and hey, so is Jeff Lewis (Lewis Creek Instruments). Give Jeff a call:
http://lewiscreek.net/lc_about_us.htm
Biagio
Brittany, most harp makers are pretty friendly so depending on your location you might find one who would be happy to “look over you shoulder” for an hour or two while you mount a few. For a start, while not join the Yahoo! harpmakers forum and pose your question there? They’re very helpful folks and members include some very knowledgeable people. Tacye is a member, as are Rick Kemper (Maryland), Sharon Thormahlen and Glen Hill (Oregon), Betty Truitt (California) quite a few others.
First things though: think about on what kind of levers you want to use. Study some of the videos on Youtube – there are a couple showing lever placement and regulation. A brief search led me to Triplett (Camacs) and Musicmakers (Universals and Lovelands), and one on L&H Performance levers. The principles are the same for any type.
Rick also has a long and well written discussion on how he build his harps including mounting levers. See Building the Lever Harp items 12 and 12a (Camacs and Truitts):
http://www.sligoharps.com/btlh.html
Best wishes,
Biagio
These are all great questions Elletaria. Probably the best way to address them is to think about a harp’s design conceptually, so let’s start with an electric harp as the simplest concept .
Point 1: There is no sound box and no sound board to speak of; all you hear is the string’s vibrating against a piezo pickup. Those plug into an amplifier (with of course usually a modulator). With the Waring or any other harp the box is just the “amplifier” and the flexible sound board acts like a pickup. Conclusion: you can build the frame (neck, column, and board) separately and just tack on the amplifier part (the box). That’s the principle behind the Waring and indeed the Harpsicles.
Point 2: Strings can be anything that is strong enough to carry required tension without breaking but not so elastic as to sound like a rubber band. Conclusion: your string band design is very important, so start there; beg borrow or steal a good design with fairly light tension. For a harp this size I’d suggest 23 or fewer strings, starting at G below middle C. Write me off list for one such design, or look at the Harpsicle and Musicmakers’ Limerick for inspiration. Or turn to a string designer as you mentioned. Personally I don’t think it is worth spending the money on Nylgut vs. Tynex for this small size, but that is up to you.
Point 3: There is no such animal as “standard spacing” among small harps. Those who play with their finger pads prefer wider spacing than those who play with their nails. As a generality that might be respectively about 1.25cm and 0.9-1.1 cm. Now think abut the angle where the strings meet the board at the player’s end. That may be from about 25 to 40 degrees: a smaller angle means a taller harp and less volume than a larger angle. To compute the spacing at the board dig up your trigonometry. The spacing at the board will be Xtan(Z) where X is the chosen spacing and Z is 90 minus the string angle (in degrees, or use radians if you must). Then draft the harp’s profile with the chosen vibrating lengths.
Point 4: Volume depends on many things, largely on the thickness and width of the board (vibrating surface). Air must move in and out and you need some way to access the strings. Study the wire strungs like you Ardival: sound holes are in front and you access strings from the front. There is however no formula to dictate the holes’ sizes other than “less is more.” For a little 19 – 23 I’d put access holes in the back – in fact I might just use one long narrow one, say 5 cm wide.
Point 5 and last: The SB length will depend entirely upon your string spacing, and width at top and bottom somewhat arbitrary. A good size for a 19 might be 25.5 cm wide at the base and 11cm at the top. That is essentially the Kilcoy – if you choose wider string spacing than the Kilcoy the board may of course be longer (by perhaps 6-7 cm) depending on your chosen spacing and chosen string angle. Some wire harps (in fact most in the US) use wider spacing than a traditional clarsaech since makers assume their market is mostly gut/nylon harpers. There is no reason you should not go the other way: use let us say 1cm spacing and play nylon with nails.
Can’t help out with zither pegs and bridge pins in the UK, I’m afraid, but postage and customs would not cost too much if you order from Dusty Strings or Musicmakers for instance. Just be sure that the peg’s string holes are oversize if the string diameter is larger than 0.040″. Both often show up on eBay too. I have a bunch too (used) which you can have if you tell me how many and if you need a few oversize.
Have fun!
Biagio
Another thought….Blevins makes some nice doubles and there is a dealer in the Netherlands: De Troubadour Harpen:
http://www.detroubadourharpen.nl/The_Bards_Harps/Welcome.html
Blevins’ Cameo 52 (26 strings on each side) is a real hit here in the US, especially with therapy harpists.
Biagio
Ha ha Gretchen but nope, I’d charge for labor which would put the cost right back up there:-) But advice is free!
Seriously, some maintenance/repair work really is within the the ability of most players if they know how to do it. Lever replacement and regulation is not really difficult, just fiddly and time consuming.
If Brittany has the time and interest then, “Bravo, go for it!” After all, from her post it seems that these Troubs are pretty old and really could use some TLC. I doubt she could mess them up if she takes her time; and it would be a useful skill to add.
Happy New Year to all,
Biagio
Huh, nice to see that article has not disappeared entirely; the original *is* archived with the Folk Harp Journal. A few updates…Peter Brough has retired; the new Rees levers look like a cross between Truitts (same kind of action) and Lovelands (with an L bracket).
If one is mounting levers for the first time, those that press the string out (Truitts, Rees e.g.) are easiest since the pressure against the string will hold them in place while you mark for the holes. Here is a little guidance to get started (with Truitts as an example), once new strings are on and holding pitch well – after several weeks on a Troubadour, most likely:
-First, contact Betty Truitt at Dragonwhispers for guidance; she will tell you exactly what you need and provide both taps and drivers.
-Locate the approximate sharp point and mark it with a Magic Marker. Calculate that point by multiplying the measured vibrating length (from board to bridge pin) by 0.0555. You should measure the length and not rely on what is published: an old harp may have a bowed pillar and the belly will have increased.
-Set the lever and adjust using a tuner. Be sure that you have the right size (fret, bracket, and if wound stop for that size string) and that the string falls directly parallel through it.
-Mark the place for holes using an awl. Sometimes you can drill the holes without removing the lever but it is safest not – it is very easy to nick a string that way.
-Betty recommends a hand drill (egg beater type) but many of us use an electric drill. Personally I use an in-line Black and Decker battery operated screw driver fitted with a drill collet. Blow out the wood dust.
-Start the threads with the tap and be careful not to nick the strings. Again, Betty suggests a hand drill but I just fit the tap into a small eyeglass screw driver which is a lot easier. You only need two or three turns, just enough to get it started.
-Replace the lever, set the screws and tighten. Do not tighten all the way until you are sure that it is correctly placed.
-Other notes: You may find it necessary to damp the other strings; just place a strip of foam insulation across them. Many people prefer to lay the harp on it’s side; others find it easier to work with it upright. Finally, take your time and be careful.
Biagio
Charles has given excellent advice here, as usual. Of the various levers commonly available, Truitts are the easiest to mount but the last time I looked they cost $15 each. Rees levers (available from Robinson’s Harp Shop) cost a little less at $11 and are also fairly easy to mount.
The reliable Lovelands cost the least, at about $6 each, but are a real pain to mount for an amateur. Whatever lever one may choose, count on at least 2 days for the entire operation per harp – from filling holes and refinishing to mounting levers and re-stringing.
If you feel undeterred by these comments (and Bravo if so!) I would suggest starting on the oldest with Truitts or Rees and see how it goes. Before diving in however, please do purchase Trouble Shooting Your Lever Harp by David Kolacny, which discusses levers in some detail, including the older L&H ones.
Best wishes,
Biagio
There are as you observed a limited number of double strung harp makers. However, you may find European harp dealers who carry them, and some talented harp makers who will make one for you. A double is no harder to design than a single, and in some ways easier. For example, the designer does not have to worry about the torque on one side that he or she must compensate for with a single, smaller doubles (3 1/2 octaves or so) can use zither pegs which an equivalent single (5+ octaves) cannot.
I would suggest as a start that you contact Dusty Strings and Rees Harps and ask if they have dealers in Europe. Additionally, look through this list of harp makers world wide and see if any make doubles:
Sorry to be blunt, but your teacher’s statements are absurd. The maker does have to design for the greater tension, true, but that does not mean that the strings will be “loose.” Simply that the harp will weigh more than a single of the same size. Secondly, you can play any kind of music on one than you can on a single course lever harp – and a good deal more.
It is of course possible that your teacher was thinking of the Italian arpa doppia in which case I do apologize for the above remark. Those few that are still being made do have rather loose strings (three rows of them) and indeed Renaissance music is mostly suited for them. A modern double has two rows identically tuned (usually) and two full sets of levers. Tension is around that of many lever harps, averaging about 24 lbs. per string. By comparison, something like a Troubadour or other “pre-pedal” harp averages around 30+ lbs. So yes, “looser” than a pedal harp but not “floppy'”
Recognize that any good harp is a significant investment but starting our on a double should not be a problem in itself; the basic techniques are the same. I personally know of at least one person who started with a double right from the beginning.
Best wishes and good fortune!
Biagio
Well, I guess you have a choice Sidney. Go ahead with the cut down ones or plug the old holes with a hardwood dowel (or even just bamboo skewers and Titebond glue) and re-drill. Depends on how comfy you feel with the shorter shafts and how much work you want to go through:-)
Speaking for myself, as long as the strings are already off I’d go with “plug and re-drill”.
Have fun with your “new old harp”!
Biagio
“Sometimes you feel like a nut – sometimes you don’t” as the old ad says. I have only heard of a nut on guitars, violins, and similar. It goes with out saying that they are stationary.
This is what I mean by “threaded bridge pins.” I like the hex headed ones shown here from Dusty Strings; there are other types with different heads. The threads make it much easier to set the length than the older type with smooth shafts. The hex head lessens a chance of burring compared to slotted or Phillips heads.
http://manufacturing.dustystrings.com/harps/hardware/threaded-bridge-pins/
Biagio
I’d drill them deeper and while at it use threaded pins. Depends on the original hole of course but in any case I want at least half the pin length below the wood surface. Any shorter and there is a good chance of them getting pulled out of line.
Biagio
For what ever reason, American makers seem to me to be more adventurous in their designs than in Europe – for example, I have the impression that gut and higher tension is more common there than here. Personally, I like the resonant bass and sustain of a high headed harp like the Salvi Egan but also prefer a smaller and less expensive instrument and have no need to gliss all the way to high C as our friend Balfour enjoys.
I guess if pressed I would have to say that at our Society retreat, and most other gatherings there are more C-C 36s than any one other. Say in a gathering of 24 people, about half will be FH36s around here. There will also be just about everything else including usually two or three wire strungs and at least two doubles.
Can’t say if the prevalence of the 36 constitutes a standard though. Probably more a matter of pricing since a good 36 costs just a little more than a 34 so why not go for the full 5 octaves?
Under the influence of several artists in the US in fact, smaller harps are being increasingly explored. But they are not playing classical harp scores, unless those have been adapted.
Indeed, a good deal of Scottish pipe music has been used by clarsairs, and a good deal of Irish fiddle music too. Both need the long sustain that is not possible with gut or nylon; as a consequence an arrangement for one of those will usually have arpeggios to fill up the space that would otherwise be silent.
A couple of thoughts, my friend:
Ann Heymann’s Coupled Hands is also very worth acquiring although when one first peeks inside her notation looks a little daunting. It really isn’t in practice. Cynthia’s book assumes G tuning, Ann assumes C.
I’d be hard pressed to say that there is any “standard” size for lever harps in the US. Most would say that “floor size” is preferable to a lap harp – although you can do a lot with a lap sized double strung. A single course floor harp can range anywhere from 29 to 38 strings. Almost all established makers offer both a 36 and a 34 at least.
Quite a few floor harps can be strung with different ranges, the most common ending with either a C or an A in the bass. Usually you need to buy the entire string set; for example see the Rees Mariposa and Aberdeen. My own 34 is like that too.
It’s a great big wide wonderful world over here:-)
http://reesharps.com/Harps.html
Cheers,
Biagio
Ha ha, Carl me too – but how in the world to keep track of them all? They used to be sorted by harp but then get raided – sheesh, probably I’d best sort them out by type and gauge…nuts another winter project!
Biagio
Well that is unfortunate and I’d bet that several here (at least me and Gretchen) were having a warm fuzzy idea of her getting that Troubadour for Christmas.
On the other hand, I think it’s safe to say that few beginners have a clear idea of where they will go with the harp in general, at any age they begin. Many start with a lever harp thinking to move on to pedal; and while some do so, others find their way to very different instruments.
Or vice versa: one of the most admired teachers at AHS gatherings (Alfredo Ortiz) is also one of the most renowned artists on the South American harp. Very definitely a different instrument!
Another and a friend of mine was a concert pedalist before her husband made her a wire harp and now her love is given almost entirely to that. So be of good cheer!
And Balfour: a belated “Happy Birthday”!
Best to all,
Biagio
