[Krfinnegan]

Hi Harperkat,

I would like to answer you because I have played outside in public for several years at multiple Renaissance and other festivals. I also own and have used several harps to do so, including an Ogden.

I currently use a Cunningham 34 string with nylon strings and Camac levers for lengthy outdoor playing. I rarely use any of my gut or carbon fiber strung harps outside. If that is what you really want to do, remember how hard weather, conditions, and the public can be on you and your instrument. You need a tough, extremely sturdy harp that is not strung so tightly as to add unnecessary stress to the frame or soundboard, and so that you can play for hours on end and let children (of all ages:) touch it. But it needs to be tight enough to project and give a decent sound. Outdoors, gut strings break quite frequently, and often those harps are fairly high tension. My beautiful gut Salvi did not hold up well to weather. I also have an excellent carbon fiber Celtic harp that I use sometimes. It stays in tune well and doesn’t break strings often, but when it does, it will take at least 2-3 days to bring a new string up to pitch without more breakage. That is a problem in the middle of a work day.
Sound quality is only fairly important outside. You are not only competing with many other noises so being heard is difficult, but outdoor acoustics change the way sound is heard anyway. Playing a wire harp is completely different than playing a gut or nylon, the strings break easily and they are quiet. A good harp with nylon strings will last longer and sound quite good enough for the situation. I always amplify, which is another set of problems, but we live in a noisy world and harps are quiet. Also, round or stave backs are more comfortable than square for the many hours you will spend with the harp on your shoulder.
My advice is that you will love the harp that suits what you want to do with it because it will behave the way you need it to and respond properly to the situation you place it in. You won’t love it if it doesn’t. Look for a harp that will fit your needs and desires for it. Don’t fall in love with one that won’t work for you just because it struck you at a conference or shop. Do your homework before you buy.

Best wishes,
Kathleen

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