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Those are nice looking Katerina….however, the question I have is….how do you change the strings? The access holes in the back of the soundboard are so small looking.
Briggs
Tonie, Tony’s instructions are great. A good site for storing pictures which makes it really really easy to post here is http://www.photobucket.com
Briggsie
Congratulations, Tony. Is it a brand new harp? It’s quite lovely!! I wish you many years maturing together. 🙂
Briggsie
Just as in any type of harp music, after each note, close in a relaxed manner and lift. Do not allow tension into your arm and shoulder. Make sure you are sitting at the proper height and distance to the harp. If you have to slow way down to make yourself close and lift and stay relaxed, then do so.
Mine used to be called the “great room” or “living room.” There used to be a tv/stereo, sofa, chairs, tables — you know…..like normal people have.
Then came the 7′ Pleyel piano…..so the sofa, tv, stereo and tables had to move out. Shortly thereafter, the first harp arrived. It went where the stereo/tv had been. Then the concert grand came and it moved the first harp out of it’s spot. It lives in the curve of the piano unless I’m playing it. Then came the Webster harp, which goes where the last remnant of the living room furniture sat…..the lazyboy was moved into a bedroom to make room for the Webster. The living room is now the music room….has 3 harps, a piano, a trumpet, and two flutes in it. The French horn is at the music store waiting to be sold.
Briggsie
My Camacs are “strong like bull.” I’m not sure why yours are breaking……very odd. I move my harp around a lot inside it’s padded case and never stored down on the lever side. I can’t even imagine one breaking.
And I played the same model harp as mine with Lovelands and found them almost impossible to get on the fly. The Camacs stand out ever so much more to my eyes.
Something for everyone…….I think the OP needs to try all these levers individually. Our input obviously conflicts.
Briggsie
I keep the stand close and as “in front” of me as I can so I don’t have to twist my head, and so it doesn’t get in the way of the pedals. I’ve always had lousy vision.. When I was wearing contact lenses, I could see better, but now that I’m getting to that “age close up thing” contacts drive me nuts — even monovision contacts. They are okay for driving or whatever, but going back and forth between music and the strings drives me nuts. So I went back to my glasses. I use a “pharmacy lamp” which is just perfect. It’s a floor lamp in brass and I put a Verilux bulb in it — so I can get as much natural daylight as possible into my brain during the dark Michigan winters. 🙂
Briggsie
Kay, if I put my stand out next to the column, I might as well memorize everything — including the stuff I haven’t learned yet. I can’t see well enough for that. I need my stand much closer. If it is distracting, well, it’s a lot less distracting than if I couldn’t see it and didn’t have it memorized.
I had hip pain for awhile, and my problem was mainly that I was on a swivel chair which was not stable enough. Once I switched to a fixed chair, the hip pain went away. I agree on the stretches and the advice given by the chiropractor. Also, I’ll second the suggestion to check the height of the chair.
Briggs
Jennifer,
I have to dispute your Camac review. The levers which were brittle and broke easily I believe were the early ones. The newer ones are very sturdy. They are not brittle and do not break easily. Additionally, mine DO line up with the strings, so I don’t know what harp you saw where they didn’t. Yes the lever is on an angle….so if that’s what you mean, okay, but I don’t just look at the tip of the lever anyway. I see the whole thing.
Briggs
Not familiar with Truitt, but the difference between Camac and Loveland are like night and day. The Camac are GREAT. They are easy to grab on the fly, and they are smooth. They do not compromise the sound. Perhaps the Lovelands don’t either, but they are harder to get hold of when I’m changing levers quickly, and I have read that they move around more than other levers….requiring adjustments and regulation more often.
Briggsie
First I was led through Charades by my teacher, and no I am going through Automates……yes the Sarabande is lovely, as is the Sicilienne. There are a lot of good little tunes in there to use for gigs too. I love the first one in the book. They are really good to use as etudes….I learn something new every time I work on one. I love his music.
Briggsie
