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I have a lap harp, and I have a leather guitar strap and knee bones attached to it. This helps ALOT for securing and proper positioning. With a guitar strap, you can also walk around with the harp.
I don’t think musical instruments should be considered either more for a girl or more for a boy. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, they got an unspoken label put on them. Brandon, I advise you to follow your musical path, and forget all the labels. If you are drawn to the harp, then play it. Flutes are also considered more for girls, but one of the greatest flute players in the world is James Galway, who started playing flute as a teenager.The most famous Irish harper Turlough O’Carolan also started at a young age. You may become one of the next great male harpers if you allow yourself to see beyond the limitations of the labels others have placed on the harp. Best of luck to you!
Blessings,
Karen
Cynthy-
I have all of Pamela’s books, and I love them. Were you referring to Midsummer Meadow? That one has quite a few beautiful original pieces. I had no idea you helped her with the first two teaching books. I refer to them often with my student. I know what you mean about inverting some chords. I started out on a lap harp teaching myself with the Sylvia Woods book and had to transpose quite a bit, to the point where I wrote “Aaaargghhh! I need a bigger harp for this music!” by the time I got to The Ash Grove. Quite frustrating at times, even though I laugh at my notations now.
Karen
I certainly think you can teach yourself- I did, and started out on lap harp. However, be very certain you are using the correct hand position, or you won’t be able to coax that ethereal tone out of your harp. I recommend the Pamela Bruner Play the Harp Beautifully! instructional books & DVD. She is really thorough, especially in regards to hand position. If you have previous experience with pedal harp though this may not be such an issue.
As far as Stoney End Harps go, I don’t have an opinion since I’ve never played one. Best thing would be to test-drive a few different models and see what fits you best. I can’t recommend the Loveland levers though. I’ve had them break on me before (the plastic part). I prefer Truitts. See if they have a replacement policy at your music store should this happen to you.
Stumbled across this website- could this be your harp?
http://www.concertcruises.com/handverks.html
look at the 22 string Irish-Celtic Lap Harp
Karen
Depends on your experience level, in my opinion. Also on what kind of venue you are playing. For a wedding I charge upwards of $200 for my services, depending on whether I’m using songs already in my repertoire or have to learn something special for the dedication. I consider myself a intermediate player according to the level I can play efficiently in sheet music (as labeled). For non-profit organizations that are free to the public, I usually donate my services, but I limit the amount of these types of engagements, and make sure the organization knows how much of a value they are getting in my donation. For non-profits that have events that charge admission, I ask for a percentage (usually 20%) of the house take. It really depends on what you are comfortable asking. One thing I can tell you is that donating my services helped open up avenues-paying it forward works in my experience. But, alternatively, those strings on your harp don’t pay for themselves, so you need to balance freebies with paid gigs. I usually commit to only a couple freebies a year, just for PR reasons.
Blessings,
Karen
First of all, get some nice professional business cards made up. Then, check out events in your local community. The historical society and chamber of commerce
Audrey,
Did you bead the glue on rather thick? If it is a thick layer of glue that is showing up, you may want to resort to a wood filler to blend in the edge with the rest of the soundbox/board, if it is recessed and you can’t sand it away.
I had this problem when I was installing my levers. Here is what I suggest: If the levers are tight to the neck and the buzzing occurs when they are engaged on the string, then try to screw in the bridge pins, a little at a time. Pluck the string after each tightening and see if it still buzzes. The string may not be snug within the lever when it is engaged and that may be the reason for the buzzing. A way to test this is to put a finger against the string between the engaged lever and the bridge pin. If this stops the buzzing, then that is your problem.
Good Luck!
Karen
I have a student with the same soft tone production. One thing I noticed in our first lesson was she was not holding the thumb up as high or closing her fingers all the way into her palm. I know this is really basic, but I think her playing this way before she took a lesson did not develop her muscles correctly. She has the same model lever harp as I do and I showed her just how big a voice it had. Perhaps some muscle exercises? Have her practice the “baby wave” or knead some play-doh. Sounds silly but it really does work to strengthen hand muscles. I just teach the basics of lever harp, being rather new to this myself, so take my advice for what it is worth to you…
Blessings,
Karen
I also memorize my pieces, Mel. For ensemble work, I condense my accompaniment into chords for easier “memory triggering”. Sometimes I do this with the left hand too. Learning your basic chords is a fundamental, I believe the earlier the better. Reading through the strings? I can do it, but then I also can sight read the melody line and not have to look at the strings (for the most part). My fingers are just used to the strings, that’s all.
Sanding really is the “bear” of the whole process, in my opinion. I actually finished off my Voyageur with 500 grit (used for metal) sandpaper and it literally polished the wood. Maybe the scratches he is uncovering might be from an earlier coarse grit? I’m no expert wordworker, but I did discover that little scratches disappear when the finish is applied. If you can catch your fingernail in it, though, you’re going to want to sand those out.
Karen
Is he sanding with the grain of the wood? What grade sandpaper is he on now? I had trouble with this too, especially with the Limerick, which is walnut. Lots of swirly knots in this wood made it hard to sand with the grain.
Karen
Audrey,
Don’t mean to jump in, but when I built my Limerick I rounded off both sides of the soundboard. Easier on the arms when playing, hard square edges tend to chafe…On a side note, are you set on using brass strings? Mine are steel and not only are they stronger, they have a beautiful tone. In my opinion they are a nice alternative.
Good luck, can’t wait to see it finished!
Karen
