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I think I’ll definitely call Lyon and Healy to get their opinion. And I apologize for being unclear. I wouldn’t change my strings once I have moved until they need replacing again (1-2 years). I shamefully admit that the strings on it now are about 2.5 years old… But then again, I haven’t played much in the last year. I’ve been focusing on my main instrument (flute). Now that I’ve re-prioritized my life a bit, I’m finding time for harp again. 🙂
At the moment I think I will probably switch to nylon and then go back to gut when the next string change comes up (and a regulation at that point too). Being mostly a harp hobbyist (and the occasional wedding/gig that comes my way), I don’t *need* to change strings and have it regulated every year.
I agree. Include it in whatever fee you normally would quote. As for travel over a certain distance… I generally say upfront that I play weddings within a certain area for no extra fee. This area covers several cities within a close driving distance (I will drive about 1/2 hour-45 min for no extra charge). I just figure that I should charge my hourly rate for lessons if I have to drive a long distance. So, just throwing easy numbers out there, if I charged $25/hour and it would be a two hour round trip, I would tack on $50. Only once have I had someone request that I drive a really long distance for a wedding (2.5 hours one way) but it was because I was a relative of a distant friend of theirs.
Is that reasonable/unreasonable? I don’t know. But it works for me. I don’t get too many complaints about it because I am upfront about it. If it is a problem then I suggest someone closer to their wedding location. The way I do my fees is pretty simple compared to the other harpists in my area. One lady breaks hers down so much that sometimes she ends up playing for free because all of the other things that go into her fee. She does everything to keep the price under $300, and sometimes that means she plays for free. It’s really complicated and I don’t understand why she does that. I mean, why does the client need to know that travel is $30, and loading the van is $20, and cartage around the venue is $75, and playing outside is $50, and blahblahblah. Quote a price for the whole package, and keep it simple.
By the way, I was booking a gig yesterday for a wedding. They only expected to pay $75 total, and were a bit flabbergasted by the fee of a flute and piano duo for a wedding. I used the ‘highlight of your lift’ line, and it worked like a charm! They asked for some time to discuss it amongst themselves, and I got an email shortly thereafter saying they would pay the fee I quoted. They didn’t even try to barter with me.
I will DEFINITELY add that to my permanent arsenal of booking techniques!
Thanks for sharing that!
I checked a copy that has been scanned into the Petrucci Music Library, and it has a C#. This was only the harp part however. (I didn’t want to go through the score for the entire opera!).
Here is a link to the part: http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/2/28/IMSLP54206-PMLP03532-StraussR-7Veils.Harp.pdf
Here is a link where you can see the scores:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Salome,_Op.54_(Strauss,_Richard)#Full_Scores
And note, these are all online legally. These are parts and scores that have expired copyrights.
Oops. Missed part of the point of the original post…
I started playing, not because I fell in love with the sound, but because my mother nagged me. My dad went into a music store to get a new guitar stand. My mother went in with him and saw a little Paki 22 string harp. She came home and talked my ear off about it. “You have to learn to play it!” she pleaded.
After about a week, I conceded and rented the little Paki. I liked the sound, and I liked the feel. I didn’t fall in love with the harp until I tried playing a full size lever harp though. I went to the local harp circle meeting and someone had brought their Troubadour. After asking to try it out, I played a simple tune and fell in love with it. At that moment, it was the sound, but not the aural affect of it. I loved the way the vibrations made me feel. It FELT good, and all of the stress in my life just seemed to melt away.
So I then went from the little Paki to a 29 string harp made by Musicmaker’s and then finally a L&H Prelude 2 years ago. I already have my eye on a pedal harp, but I’m happy with my lever harp for the time being. Even after I get a pedal harp, I won’t sell this lever harp. The tone is absolutely beautiful (even for a Prelude).
I play the harp because it is my outlet. In high school I was extremely creative and was successful in the art, theatre, music, and creative writing programs. Now my life doesn’t have room for all of them. My primary instrument has become the source of my income. And because of that, it has lost some of its charm. I picked up harp in high school by accident, and it is now a way for me to unleash the extra creative energy that I have. I miss being a writer. I miss being a visual artist and a thespian. So, harp is my quick shot of therapy every evening.
It keeps me sane.
This is FANTASTIC wisdom, and is true across the music field. As I have said before that I am primarily a flutist (harp hobbyist). I can learn entire concerti in a few hours (or a few weeks depending on the level of difficulty), but they still take months to ‘gel’ and ‘ferment’ in order to become polished performances that are easily enjoyed. When my students get discouraged about learning a piece, I have to remind them that it’s OKAY to take your time learning a piece. In fact, it is to be expected if you are to learn and gain something from the process.
I myself use a different tactic to avoid the whole situation entirely (if possible). What I have learned from a course about booking and touring is to work the phone and the potential customer without making them feel like they are being played. Simply get as much information you can, without giving away too much information.
When they ask my fees, I always ask: “What is your budget? There is a standard price range in the area, and if I know your budget I can help you get the best deal.” (I also say this because often times they are considering several different instrumentations that I offer).
If they ask further questions about that policy I just explain that if I quote a price at the top end of the range it might turn them away whereas their budget might accommodate something lower priced. This helps them get what they want, and allows me to still book the event.
Now of course, if they have a large budget I won’t cheat them and charge a ridiculously high fee. I’ll just charge something in the upper end of the range that is appropriate/expected for harpists in my area without maxing out the limit.
In response to this exact comment at hand… I haven’t found anything great yet. I will definitely try the ‘highlight’ comment. It’s definitely better than ‘find a high school’ student… I’ve used that before unfortunately. It didn’t go well.
If you take your harp to a repair person, make sure that they are qualified and have experience working with harps. At the very least make sure that they are experienced luthiers. I wouldn’t dare take my harp to the local music store (they sell cheap band instruments and rock band gear). Their idea of repair is to bend the parts until they work again (when in fact screws or corks could be adjusted and no harm needed on the instrument itself).
O.O
I have a Prelude 38 and about a month ago it was breaking strings almost every day. I replaced two strings within a matter of minutes because one broke as I was replacing another.
My harp is a good weatherman. It ALWAYS tells me when a storm is coming and when the storm is over. :/
I think part of this may be due to the fact of cost here and distribution centers. I for example am a professional flutist (well… finishing my degree, but I’m competing a lot and taking a lot of gigs and auditions…), and the closest sheet music store that has a wide array of flute literature is a good 8-10 hour drive from here. And because America doesn’t really have a thorough transportation system (like the train system in Europe for example), you either drive a long way or pay for shipping (and that gets expensive very fast). Unless you live in a metropolitan area, there is very little public transportation that goes from city to city. Much less from state to state.
So when I want sheet music, I usually order a lot at once, and shipping costs can be very expensive. Furthermore, if I am importing something, the shipping time takes FOREVER, and it is outrageously expensive. I remember that I once paid almost $80 USD for ONE concerto. A foreign order I placed in Bolivia once took almost two months for delivery (and the item was IN STOCK).
So it’s not necessarily that things aren’t available here, but rather that the process of obtaining something may be complicated and expensive. (Also I seem to think that there are certain countries we can’t get things from… like Cuba **laws and embargos etc. preventing trade** but I may be mistaken).
I think part of this may be due to the fact of cost here and distribution centers. I for example am a professional flutist (well… finishing my degree, but I’m competing a lot and taking a lot of gigs and auditions…), and the closest sheet music store that has a wide array of flute literature is a good 8-10 hour drive from here. And because America doesn’t really have a thorough transportation system (like the train system in Europe for example), you either drive a long way or pay for shipping (and that gets expensive very fast). Unless you live in a metropolitan area, there is very little public transportation that goes from city to city. Much less from state to state.
So when I want sheet music, I usually order a lot at once, and shipping costs can be very expensive. Furthermore, if I am importing something, the shipping time takes FOREVER, and it is outrageously expensive. I remember that I once paid almost $80 USD for ONE concerto. A foreign order I placed in Bolivia once took almost two months for delivery (and the item was IN STOCK).
So it’s not necessarily that things aren’t available here, but rather that the process of obtaining something may be complicated and expensive. (Also I seem to think that there are certain countries we can’t get things from… like Cuba **laws and embargos etc. preventing trade** but I may be mistaken).
I think part of this may be due to the fact of cost here and distribution centers. I for example am a professional flutist (well… finishing my degree, but I’m competing a lot and taking a lot of gigs and auditions…), and the closest sheet music store that has a wide array of flute literature is a good 8-10 hour drive from here. And because America doesn’t really have a thorough transportation system (like the train system in Europe for example), you either drive a long way or pay for shipping (and that gets expensive very fast). Unless you live in a metropolitan area, there is very little public transportation that goes from city to city. Much less from state to state.
So when I want sheet music, I usually order a lot at once, and shipping costs can be very expensive. Furthermore, if I am importing something, the shipping time takes FOREVER, and it is outrageously expensive. I remember that I once paid almost $80 USD for ONE concerto. A foreign order I placed in Bolivia once took almost two months for delivery (and the item was IN STOCK).
So it’s not necessarily that things aren’t available here, but rather that the process of obtaining something may be complicated and expensive. (Also I seem to think that there are certain countries we can’t get things from… like Cuba **laws and embargos etc. preventing trade** but I may be mistaken).
In all of my theory courses I’ve just heard them referred to as “open fifths harmony.” (Or something similar). I mean… because of the lack of a 3rd or the lack of pitches higher up (making chords built on 4ths or 5ths), it can’t be classified as major/minor/diminished/quartal/quintal.
So I think this is sort of one of those things that has fallen into the cracks in terms of having a distinct name. It is also sometimes called “an empty fifth” or a “bare fifth.”
