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Congratulations! That is a piece I own the music for and really would love to be able to play someday! Glad you are mastering it (in your own way! How long have you been playing? (if you don’t mind me asking)
With all due respect, I disagree with your teacher. You (and everyone else) deserves to have a good instrument….the best your money can buy without stressing you at this moment in time. I don’t know why everyone thinks people should learn on anything other than a fantastic instrument. It is hard enough to learn everything without having to contend with a less than good/excellent instrument. Keep dreaming of course but also, make it happen if that is what you want.
Not sure which Karen you were asking since there seem to be quite a few of us!
My Dusty is nylon and my Pratt is concert spacing and concert(pedal) tension gut with Pirastro nylon in the upper octave. I actually quite like going between the two and don’t seem to have too much trouble with it. The sound and feel are so different and what it takes to play them feel different but that is part of the beauty of having two harps that are different!When I was ordering my Pratt Chamber Harp, I almost considered his “Empress” because it has 38 strings (the low A and low B) while the Chamber Harp stops at the C. I spoke with my harp teacher about my conundrum and with her 23+ years experience told me to forget the low A and B, that I would rarely need them or use them and that she never uses them other than when playing her pedal harp at which time of course, she has 47. This really helped me because I prefer the look and feel of the Chamber but found myself “string greedy” for a couple of days. I am not regretting that decision one bit. However, if you MUST have those two strings, check out the Pratt Empress.
I am a two harp girl as of last week! I have a Dusty Strings FH-32 in beautifully figured sapele wood. I LOVE my Dusty and have no plans to get rid of it but am REALLY loving my new Pratt Chamber Harp. Those extra 4 strings are pretty fabulous too! No plans to get a third but years from now, who knows?!
Currently, I play the Pratt because it is so new and I am so enamored with it!His dad, Samuel O. Pratt wrote the book and designed the original Troubador for Lyon and Healy. He also composed “The Little Fountain”—a great piece for lever harp that sounds VERY ‘harpy’.
John Pratt made my harp and he is the son of Samuel. He was born into the harp world because his mother, Louise was a professional harpist.
His brother, Carl at one time made harps also but from what I hear, they did not hold a candle to the harps that John Pratt makes.
Yes, I feel lucky to have my harp, to have had such a wonderful experience co-creating it because John was so open, willing and accommodating. It is truly a one-of-a-kind and I am blessed! I wish you could hear it and play it to understand how it sounds as beautiful as it looks!
Oh….I forgot to answer your projection question. The projection is quite significant…I imagine the extended soundboard contributes to that to some degree, the wood, the shape of the soundbox, etc. Clearly I am biased but it is an amazing musical instrument.
It has a beautiful, warm tone and the Pirastro nylons are warm and perfectly bright but not at all “tink-ly”.
Best way to check it out is to go to FaceBook and type in Pratt Harps and you can see the picks John Pratt posted and then you will see me listed under the list of ‘friends’ and can click on me to go to my photo album for more pics.
Hope that helps and thanks so much for your kind words and being interested.
My harp is Bubinga and Quilted Maple. The trim and inlays are also Bubinga and Quilted Maple. The soundboard is a one-of-a kind piece that John Pratt only had ever had 3 of and this was his last one and he was so generous to use it for my special harp. He spent a long time choosing the wood, book-matching the right and left sides, etc. It is incredibly well made and it truly sounds spectacular. Right now I am doing a lot of tuning as the strings stretch and settle in but even with that, the sound is simply exquisite. He has been in the harp world since he was a child and this man knows harps!
It is SO gorgeous! I can’t look at it without it taking my breath away and when I play it, I am touched, moved and inspired!
I could only figure out how to post one picture under Profile Picture and posted one picture of it but would love to post about 6 of them. Is there a way?
If you want to see more, let me know—they are posted on my Facebook page.
Thanks for your shared enthusiasm on my behalf!
Karen
Here is the link where you can order a new one for a Prelude from Elegance covers…..they are amazingly well made and lined with a thick, sheep-skin fabric…very rugged exterior fabric.
The link Barbara provided is helpful in hearing people opinions but not really any info from someone who has them. Also, the post originated over 2 years ago so perhaps someone might have something more useful and concrete to offer. I am having a custom Pratt Chamber harp built at this very moment and John Pratt uses Camac levers but I was intrigued by the delacours as a possibility. However, despite my research, I could not come up with much info. Thanks for posting your question…I look forward to some solid responses.
Pratt Harps just put launched their updated website with pictures, specs and prices on the Princessa, the Empress (that is the one with 38 strings that someone so shrewdly noticed in the pictures) and of course, the Chamber Harp which has been around for 16 years. Chamber Harp and Empress are about 48 lbs and between 63-64″ tall (to answer those questions from above.
check it out:
Kathy~
Do you come across a lot of music that requires the low B and A? Just wondering what prompted you to say you “wanted those two extra strings”. Seems like most music for lever harps goes to the low C and that is it. Would love to hear more from you.
Hi Deb L….I too have struggled with this quagmire. I’ve been a vegetarian for 24 years and while I am a live and let live person and don’t try to preach to anyone, there are certain things that I am just too sensitive to be able to withstand. ie people eating veal or lamb in front of me. I was driving through Wyoming one time and saw a veal farm and when it registered what I was looking at, I broke down and cried and to this day (7 years later, the sight still haunts me). That said, I know that my views alone are never going to change the world so people will continue to slaughter animals so I go with the native american approach which is to acknowledge respect for the animal and if they had to be killed because of other’s desires/needs, then at the very least, honor the poor animal by finding a way to use every bit of it. I do wear leather shoes and have gut strings but that is about as far as I go into the “using animals” world.
