Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
If you have harp insurance I’d double check to make sure your harp is covered when you rent it out, especially if someone else is coming and picking it up. When I applied for harp insurnace I had to state who was transporting the harp, whether it would ever be out overnight, and many other specifics on how I’d be moving and storing it. Besides that, you should think of making sure you know the conditions where it will be played and kept when not in use and a general agreement of what to do in the event of damage. You might also see if there are some sample clauses on the internet or in some self-help books in a library for provisions where she agrees to be responsible if your harp falls on a child who probably had it coming by trying to climb the column and think about whether you want reimbursement for broken strings, and I could probably go on. Not that you’d need to include every possible event in the contract, but you should at least think about what you’re willing to risk or pay for and what’s worth spelling out. You probably saw the other thread here about someone who had terrible luck renting their instrument out. And get paid ahead of time with a good check.
I took this to be a more general musical and thought “there are many musicians, including harpists, who obviously have never counted and never will, which explains a lot about their entrances”.
Strings? I don’t remember counting, but I’ve never needed to since I can see a harp’s top and bottom strings and know how many it has. I’d notice if any of the octaves didn’t have 7 notes since the C and F pattern would be off. Never had to count them.
I use an adjustable bench at home and at concerts with my pedal harp. For most rehearsals, I use a piano bench at the church where we meet. It’s not exactly the same height as where I keep my bench, but it lets me get everything I need into and out of the rental in one trip, which is especially useful useful since I can cart the harp to the ZipCar before the reservation begins instead of reserving at the next earlier time block (and paying more) to load and unload at my apartment.
I have the bench lower for my lever harp, and the chairs at the church where I usually play it are the same height, so I use one of their chairs when I play lever.
PS- I’m thinking of doing a post on the new site about moving a harp via ZipCar, if there are other urbanites without a permanent car.
If the new site were only forums, then a some other platform that resembles the current one would be the way to go, but there are a lot of features on this one, such as the Library and better ways to comment and share wisdom on pieces, that will be very nice.
What terrible experiences. Maybe you could try requiring full payment ahead of time plus a damage deposit equal to your deductible. Have it due a couple weeks ahead of time so that if the check ends up bad the harp is still in your hands.
In large ensemble, an attractive horn section helps during those moments when I don’t need to look at either strings or music. That or I watch the percussionists run around. As a last resort, I gaze up toward the discs, since that’s usually a flattering pose.
If your dog or cat doesn’t find it comfortable, toss! Actually toss either way or they might form some bad habits where the new cover is concerned. Toss!
Do you play pedal harp? He does play lower than I’m used to on my lever harp, but the pedal harp is the only one where it is higher than my shoulder. It also has more strings at the very top. I’d say the same notes are lining up at about the same place on both harps.
And the Berlioz trio is one where the flutists really love to run ahead. They play sustained notes and don’t care what the harpist is doing, which in my case was mostly
Maria,
Was your question about the need to look at the music while playing, or the need to look at the strings?
What about looking at the conductor? Just kidding!
Even though this got bumped by a spambot, I’ll chime in. I briefly played an Arianna a couple of years ago because I was in the home of an owner and had always thought it was a beautiful model with all of the inlay. It was wonderful.
When my lever harp got some white paint from hitting the corner of a white chair, the maker recommended gently using the finest steel wool available (there’s a scale on the back of most packages) to buff it off. It was actually what they use in finishing the harps to smooth it without scratching. It almost
I never noticed that before, but I just went back to your web site and indeed, the plate goes all the way up! Your harps are beautiful and show so much thought into harp playing and maintenance, if I find myself shopping for another harp someday I’ll certainly want to make a trip to Boston to meet you and play one of your harps.
