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Hi Carl,
Yes, I am working with a teacher. In order to learn to play well, I think it’s important to get the technique right from the very beginning. My teacher is a professional harpist, and she says I’ve made more progress in one month than any other student of hers. And I think that’s the problem. I have been too eager and practiced too much, my hands have got an overdose of completely new repetitive finger movements. That’s my diagnosis.
But I’ll leave the real diagnosis up to a medical specialist. This morning it had gotten worse and it’s both hands now. So I have scheduled a doctor’s appointment for later today. Better safe than sorry…
Thank you! 🙂
– Lily
Hi Balfour, you sensitive soul…
I can see that you really get me! Since a couple of weeks, I use exactly that picture of the white Daphne as background picture for my phone… It’s my dream harp! 😀
But as you said, for now my Ravenna34 is perfect for me! I love her sound, I have no problems with my skin, and I’m learning some really delicious things right now – pieces with glissandos, beautiful chords and all that “harpy” stuff <3
– Lily
Hi Balfour,
I hope you didn’t bet on it yet?! 😉
You mentioned Clio once earlier and I immediately checked it out. It got my approval 😀 and I asked Camac. They would NOT make it in white for me, because it’s a student pedal harp, not a professional one. I have to admit I was a little disappointed… For me it would be a “Forever Harp”, so it would have to be white.
I’m just playing with the thought at this point, but the idea of having a pedal harp is very attractive to me. Just think about all the beautiful Puccini compositions I could play! I’m a huge fun of Giacomo Puccini! So I asked Salvi and they were immediately ready to make a white Daphne for me, which is a beautiful student pedal harp. And I BET Puccini would prefer an Italian harp… 😉
HHH 🙂
– Lily
My dear Balfour,
I just love your posts! They always make me smile and feel good.
Your pedal harp can “purr softly like a kitten”? Awww…
I happen to ADORE cats! – and small kittens make my heart melt… <3Interesting what you said about the Excalibur!
Thank you and Huge Harp Hugs to you and Carol Lynn!
– Lily
Hi Wil-Weten,
Actually I really mean a harp painted white. BRIGHT WHITE! 😀
I know they used to make the Brilliant harpsicle in white, but not anymore. Not even if you pay them extra (I asked). They make the Grand harpsicle in white, but it’s not the right model for me.
Salvi is willing to make me a white harp for an extra cost (I asked them too). Camac as well (I have tortured everybody with my question 😀 ), but only when it comes to the professional models. Not the student ones (not even student pedal harps). Rusty doesn’t make any model white.
So it leaves me with a Salvi harp. Or a Camac non-student harp, of which the only possible model could be Excalibur, I think. But I think Excalibur could be a little “loud” in an apartment building, if I have understood correctly. The other option is to forget about the white colour, but I’m not there yet. And I doubt I never will…
I have now played my black rental Ravenna 34 and my skin can take it surprisingly well. I practice for one hour a day now, without any problems at all! And I LOVE playing it!!! I could just go on and on… So I might be able to handle heavier string tension than I originally thought. YAY! 🙂
– Lily
Hi @WIL-WETEN,
WOW!!! That was extremely interesting! I have been looking a lot at Camac, Salvi and Dysty Strings harps, but the kind of information you gave me, I hadn’t found anywhere. THANK YOU! 🙂
It’s very hard to listen to the sound of harps only on the computer. They have been registered in different circumstances, so you can’t compare them. And a registration isn’t the same as hearing it live. However, so far I have liked the sound of Salvi Gaia, the Camac Classical Isolde and Korrigan. The strange thing is that I have liked Celtic Isolde as well, I haven’t noticed a big difference in the sound, but this must be due to my ignorance and the registrations. There has to be a difference, the names Classical and Celtic Isolde tell two different stories… The sound of Celtic Isolde is a question mark for me.
I have been looking at Excalibur and Ulysse as well. Ulysse is so light and durable, and both of them look nice in my opinion (simple lines). Ulysse is expensive though, and not high enough for me. I have listened SO many times to Excalibur, it could be perfect for me – simple lines and I could get it in white – but the recordings give me a pretty strong and dark sound, a “masculine” sound, if that makes any sense. In comparison with Isolde Classic and Gaia for example. I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong.My dream is a white harp. Salvi would make me a white harp. Camac does’t make student harps in white, so that leaves Excalibur (and Ulysse). Dysty Strings doesn’t make any harp in white. My second choice would probably be a harp in walnut, which would give me more options. But I haven’t given up on a white one yet…
My skin issue is a mix of not being used to playing the harp, and a skin condition I have, that makes the skin very delicate. I can now practice on my Ravenna only for about 15 minutes a day because of the skin. Time will tell if can play more when I get used to it. But “heavy strings” certainly aren’t for me. Which leaves Celtic Isolde (?), maybe Excalibur and Ulysse. Or maybe a larger Dusty harp. You also mentioned Salvi Ana / Hermes and Camac Mademoiselle. I hadn’t thought of those, thank you! They are heavy though, 20-22 kg, which is not a plus for a lever harp. But I will have to make a compromise somewhere.
As you said, now I’ll practice with my Ravenna and see how it goes. But at the same time it’s interesting to look and listen to different harps, read about harps, get to know this world. This way it get’s clearer to you what you want as well.
Thanks a million Wil-Weten!
– Lily
Hi Balfour,
Thank you for the beautiful picture!
We have had a lot of snow this year, the snow picture below is taken about a month ago. I live a stone’s throw from the sea, now covered by ice, as you can see from the sunset picture, taken a couple of days ago.
We have a lot of nature here too, but by tram I’m in the center of Helsinki in 15 minutes.
Yesterday I picked up Mademoiselle Mélanie, so she’s home now… <3
I concentrate on learning the right technique from the very beginning, guided by my teacher, the importance of which @CHARLES-NIX pointed out earlier (thank you Charles! 🙂 ). Last night I played some simple melodies – what a satifaction! YAY!!! : 😀I’m sure I’m going to torture you guys again with some new questions – very soon… – so be prepared! 😉
Harp hugs back at you Balfour,
Lily and Mélanie
Thank you Billooms!
In an ideal world, I would like something very natural, that doesn’t need chemicals, electricity or similar. But the nature of the climate in my country isn’t healthy for a harp, so I need to protect mine.
That said, your method speaks to me. No steam, and I would choose to leave out the anti-bacterial. This choice has its pros and cons, but I’m one of those who avoid using chemicals.
If I may ask one more thing, would it be possible for you to send a link for your humidifier, please? Or for one like it. I would be very grateful.
I’m also very grateful for the information in each and everyone of the answers I’ve got. Different views and different ways to do this, so much knowledge and wisdom. Thanks to everybody! 🙂
– Lily
Well Balfour, your dad must have been an artist. What you wrote is very special, I love it! I love nature. I wish you still have your first little harp and the other instruments you and your dad built… <3
And yes, for me it is very special that my Mélanie is made of wood from my country. It’s not very ecological though, to transport the wood from Finland to the US, then to Amsterdam to a harp store (that is a big old church, btw 🙂 ), and then back to Finland. But the circle is completed. And my Mélanie is a very international little lady, so a French name fits her perfectly! 🙂– Lily
Oh, that’s so sweet of you Charles! I don’t feel very confident speaking English, I don’t have that solid foundation to fall back on that I mentioned earlier. So thank you, it really means a lot! 🙂
I come from a small country, I’m bilingual (Swedish and Finnish), languages that aren’t spoken out there in the “big world”. So for people like me it’s quite natural to want to learn other languages. Your first language is spoken all over the world, there’s a difference…
However, as a language freak 😀 , I still warmly recommend studying foreign languages to everybody. It’s very rewarding, and fun! You don’t only learn a language, you learn about another culture, another way of thinking and living. And you easily get “addicted”, when I listen to a language I haven’t studied I get SO curious…I got sidetracked again… Thank you once more Charles! 🙂
Thank you Balfour for your kind words! And thank you for complimenting me on my English! 😀
The truth is that I’m a language freak, I have studied a lot of languages. Most of all I love the Latin ones – exactly like you! – Italian, French, Spanish… But I have studied English only in school, so I have no solid foundation, I just play it by ear. I would like to study English properly, it’s the language “everybody speaks”, but you can’t do everything. And I’m learning a lot in this forum! A nice bonus! 🙂– Lily
Thank you Billooms! Interesting!
I have a lot of questions, if you don’t mind…
– Do you use distilled water or tap water?
– Does it heat the water?
– Can you see the steam?
– Do you clean it properly every time before you fill it up? (microbes…)
– Are there chemicals involved (e.g. to avoid mold)? Personally I prefer not to use chemicals…Sorry for all the questions. I have a tendency to complicate things for myself and others… 😀
– Lily
Hi Gregg,
Yes, it’s exactly like that. I pay a monthly rent, an affordable one! And if one day I want to buy her, I get half of what I have paid in rent off the price. I hope that makes sense, my English…
We will meet with the owner on Friday and sign a contract on all of this. And I can take Mademoiselle Mélanie home with me when I leave. I’m so exited, I have been dreaming of playing the harp for such a long time…
If everything goes well, I might buy her one day. And later, when I have grown and know what I need and want, maybe buy a larger harp – a white one! A big sister to Mélanie. Maybe even a pedal harp…
See what you guys have done to me in just a few days?!! 🙂
Thank you!
– Lily
PS. I have tried to tag your name a couple of times, without success. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong…
I’ll do exactly that! 🙂
Thank you Balfour and everyone else who has responded, it has been very helpful!
– Lily
Hello Balfour,
Thank you for welcoming me to the forums! I’m afraid I can’t be of any help, I’m just asking questions… I hope I can give back some day!
What a wonderful story, building your first little harp with your dad… <3
I love it that you call your Dusty “Cherie”! I haven’t seen my Ravenna yet, but the owner sent a picture of her to me. She is brand new and all black (I’m dreaming of a white harp 😀 )
But when I saw her picture, I found her so beautiful, my first harp… And it just came to me: her name had to be “Mélanie”. In French. My mother tongue is Swedish and we pronounce and spell the name like the French. The name has ancient Greek origins and means “black”. Mademoiselle Mélanie…
I didn’t plan on giving her a name, and I certainly wasn’t going to tell anyone she has a name, and here I go… 🙂Thank you Balfour!
– Lily
