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My daughter’s been telling me I need pedal extenders. That’s with a VW New Beetle, automatic. With stick shift I have an even harder time.
I have a Troubadour I and it’s having problems, but not with the basic structure. Someone from Melody in Texas told me, “Those harps are practically indestructible.”
Yes, you can, if they are actually songs, as in Irish folk songs. You will just need to simplify the arrangement, maybe change the key.
William Macdonald on the isle of Skye makes lap harps ranging from 22 to 29 strings, but they are clarsachs in the proper sense: metal-strung Gaelic harps with no sharping mechanism. The sound is silvery, like a zither.
I notice that no one mentioned those lap bar thingies that have become available and that prevent the lap harp from slithering all over your lap.
That would be a pretty safe assumption. Notice the emphasis on the 7 pedals: some of the Tyrolean harp makers (by which I mean makers of Tyrolean harps, not Tyrolean makers of harps) make their smallest harps, the ones intended for children, with only 5 pedals. Usually Tyrolean-style harps are pretty good value, 5,000 Euros or so.
Someone on YouTube showed a Celtic-themed wedding with “She Moved Through the Fair” used as the processional. Very pretty, but the second verse starts out “Last night my dead love came to me…” Fortunately, it was instrumental only.
I saw your ad, Anna, and was strongly tempted. But you said “must be picked up in person,” and you live quite a few states away from me. (VA/FL)
Well, I can see why you didn’t care for Triplett that much! Actually, I think that the Merlin has the strongest individual character of any of the harps I’m looking at.
Glad you did, I’m interested in the Merlin. Do the treble strings ever calm down? I love the sound of the Merlin except for those strident trebles.
Amalia, I would definitely recommend 34 strings. That will give you the low C. And of course, full levers.
The Meghan harp is I think one of those cheapo Pakistani harps. If so, it is junk. But correct me, anyone, if I’m wrong.
Celtic harp isn’t strictly the same as lever harp, but the term has come to be used that way. 2000 Euros is not expensive. If you check out Harplust List on the web, you will be able to see what a lot of different makers charge. The Ravenna is cheaper than other Dusty Strings models because it uses such materials as “Finnish birch” instead of solid woods. It is nevertheless a good choice for someone who doesn’t have a lot of money to play with, and it has a good sound. Another good choice along that line would be Heartland Harps’ Dreamweaver model, but it might be harder to obtain in Europe than a Ravenna.
Loreena McKennitt plays a lot of different harps. On several YouTube videos, she appears to be playing a Lyon & Healy Troubadour I, which is what I have. I can’t be sure, because she’s playing in the semi-dark. That’s the original, Gothic-style model. Mine has 33 strings and is ancient. Troubadour I has since been superseded by Troubadour II, III, IV, V and VI and runs about $4,000. (Some people say that the original Troubadour had a better sound, though.) Take a look at the YouTube video of her playing “She Moved Through the Fair” at the Alhambra. It would in any case not be the best choice for someone heavily into Celtic harp. It has standard harp string spacing and tension and was intended as a stepping stone to the pedal harp. Celtic harpers in general prefer a lighter tension and folksier sound and feel.
Consider a used harp, too, though nowadays they don’t seem to save you that much.
I’ve spent a fair amount of time in Greece, mostly in Crete and Santorini, and play some Greek music on my harp. Good luck!
The two smallest pedal harps I’ve seen are (1) the Pilgrim itself, which still weighs 50 lbs, and (2) an enchanting little Erard double-action in a musical instrument museum in Vienna, weight unknown (to me). Visit it if you get to Vienna. Sorry! Oh yes, and a single-action Tyrolean intended for kids, with only five pedals, not suited to your needs. Somebody should put his/her mind to inventing something of the kind you need, because surely there must be a call for it.
