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Shirley,
The good news: When I purchased my Troubadour I (from the original owner), I took it immediately to Lyon & Healy. They had me leave it overnight, but called me to come in the next day for a “conference”. The only problem it had was that one string kept slipping, but they only needed to measure and tap the tuning peg into the right alignment, no charge. The troubadour has its original levers, which don’t work very well; some of the levers aren’t an exact half step. I’m told they would probably not be able to regulate these original levers. There were no cracks in the soundboard, though the neck was begining to curl a bit (as you mention). I asked in depth questions about this issue and was told that in an instrument this old, because of the nature of the wood itself, there is no avoiding this. They assured me that it would not impede my playing, and that I could enjoy this troubadour for as long as I owned it – the shift is VERY slight on my instrument and hardly noticable.The L&H technician who actually MAKES the harps was the only one to detect this! Despite the levers, another harper & harpist friend of mine played it in a duet with a flutist at church and it sounded beautiful! She was more experienced than I am!
Given this advice directly from L&H, so long as the curl isn’t substantial it should be okay to buy. Of course, it will continue to warp more over time so if it’s bad, you may really want to weigh this decision.
The bad news is that it looks like I am going to be shipping out of the continental US (military), and must leave my Troubadour behind for 3-4 years! ARG! I’ve been considering putting it up for sale since I can’t enjoy it and wanted to get something newer eventually anyhow. Let me know if there’s any interest if your sale falls through before I post it. The harp is ebony, in good condition, and fits in the back of my Honda Civic!
Re: Loophole…
The document which was emailed to be the eve before we met for the first time (to do the orientation) stated that students were “expected to sign up” for a lesson package at the conclusion of orientation. So, by “default”, it does seem there is an underlying requirement to sign up. Therein lies a large part of how this dilemma began.
That said, while I didn’t sign off on anything… I don’t believe this sort of obligation is ethical, or legal. I paid for the services I received, but was unsure if this was an industry policy that perhaps I was unfamiliar with. I really couldn’t find any supporting reasons for paying for services not received.
N.
Re: Loophole…
The document which was emailed to be the eve before we met for the first time (to do the orientation) stated that students were “expected to sign up” for a lesson package at the conclusion of orientation. So, by “default”, it does seem there is an underlying requirement to sign up. Therein lies a large part of how this dilemma began.
That said, while I didn’t sign off on anything… I don’t believe this sort of obligation is ethical, or legal. I paid for the services I received, but was unsure if this was an industry policy that perhaps I was unfamiliar with. I really couldn’t find any supporting reasons for paying for services not received.
N.
Re: Loophole…
The document which was emailed to be the eve before we met for the first time (to do the orientation) stated that students were “expected to sign up” for a lesson package at the conclusion of orientation. So, by “default”, it does seem there is an underlying requirement to sign up. Therein lies a large part of how this dilemma began.
That said, while I didn’t sign off on anything… I don’t believe this sort of obligation is ethical, or legal. I paid for the services I received, but was unsure if this was an industry policy that perhaps I was unfamiliar with. I really couldn’t find any supporting reasons for paying for services not received.
N.
Hi Saul,
I wanted to mention that the expectation for me to pay $50 in the event that I decided not to purchase a lesson package was not stated up front. The “policy” outlined a $50 fee for “cancellations/changes”. Also, along the way I made references to the fact that I would not be taking lessons right away. She never indicated a problem/concern in this. I certainly didn’t mind paying $75 for her time, but again I felt there was an exchange of value in that transaction. Also, there was good chemistry and I had no issues with making the stop (even though it was out of the way). I regret to say that I didn’t learn anything while there; it was mostly conversation directed at setting up future transactions, and exchanges of pleasantries. I mostly smiled and kept quiet.
As for the level of experience, it seems that performance is the focus rather than teaching (though many people can perfect both crafts) – I didn’t know this from the outset. Hopefully this provides some additional perspective?
Thanks,
N.Hi Saul,
I wanted to mention that the expectation for me to pay $50 in the event that I decided not to purchase a lesson package was not stated up front. The “policy” outlined a $50 fee for “cancellations/changes”. Also, along the way I made references to the fact that I would not be taking lessons right away. She never indicated a problem/concern in this. I certainly didn’t mind paying $75 for her time, but again I felt there was an exchange of value in that transaction. Also, there was good chemistry and I had no issues with making the stop (even though it was out of the way). I regret to say that I didn’t learn anything while there; it was mostly conversation directed at setting up future transactions, and exchanges of pleasantries. I mostly smiled and kept quiet.
As for the level of experience, it seems that performance is the focus rather than teaching (though many people can perfect both crafts) – I didn’t know this from the outset. Hopefully this provides some additional perspective?
Thanks,
N.Hi Saul,
I wanted to mention that the expectation for me to pay $50 in the event that I decided not to purchase a lesson package was not stated up front. The “policy” outlined a $50 fee for “cancellations/changes”. Also, along the way I made references to the fact that I would not be taking lessons right away. She never indicated a problem/concern in this. I certainly didn’t mind paying $75 for her time, but again I felt there was an exchange of value in that transaction. Also, there was good chemistry and I had no issues with making the stop (even though it was out of the way). I regret to say that I didn’t learn anything while there; it was mostly conversation directed at setting up future transactions, and exchanges of pleasantries. I mostly smiled and kept quiet.
As for the level of experience, it seems that performance is the focus rather than teaching (though many people can perfect both crafts) – I didn’t know this from the outset. Hopefully this provides some additional perspective?
Thanks,
N.I’ve decided that I cannot justify paying this fee; this goes against my sensibilities, but I wanted to gain some outside perspective on this. Instead, I’ve opted to write a letter explaining my position nicely. Thanks for your suggestions, and thoughts.
N.
I’ve decided that I cannot justify paying this fee; this goes against my sensibilities, but I wanted to gain some outside perspective on this. Instead, I’ve opted to write a letter explaining my position nicely. Thanks for your suggestions, and thoughts.
N.
I’ve decided that I cannot justify paying this fee; this goes against my sensibilities, but I wanted to gain some outside perspective on this. Instead, I’ve opted to write a letter explaining my position nicely. Thanks for your suggestions, and thoughts.
N.
Hi,
What about lever harps and humidity levels? Do the same requirements still stand? I heard that lever harps require less attention where humidity is concerned. That said, I’m a total newby and am unsure. I’ve been keeping my harp covered with the original quilted cover that came with the harp (which was build in the mid-70s). My living room is a loft, and totally open…it’s about a 30×30 space. Also, there’s a fireplace – not sure how close/far the harp should be kept from it. Also, the room is very sunny (facing water, so the sun shines directly on all the furniture in the room – not sure how this could affect the harp either). Thanks for any advice regarding lever harps.
Thanks,
N.
All,
Thanks for the responses (public and private). I do not have any problem paying for an introductory lesson, since there’s a transfer of value to both parties. Given that this situation goes against my sensibilities, I do not plan to pursue lessons in this particular situation. I’ve just been conflicted about how to proceed, especially in not knowing if this is a typical policy or not. From most of the responses I’ve recieved via email, and by public posting, it seems to be unique.
*In response to some inquiries, the teacher is not listed with the AHA.
Thank you,
N.
All,
Thanks for the responses (public and private). I do not have any problem paying for an introductory lesson, since there’s a transfer of value to both parties. Given that this situation goes against my sensibilities, I do not plan to pursue lessons in this particular situation. I’ve just been conflicted about how to proceed, especially in not knowing if this is a typical policy or not. From most of the responses I’ve recieved via email, and by public posting, it seems to be unique.
*In response to some inquiries, the teacher is not listed with the AHA.
Thank you,
N.
All,
Thanks for the responses (public and private). I do not have any problem paying for an introductory lesson, since there’s a transfer of value to both parties. Given that this situation goes against my sensibilities, I do not plan to pursue lessons in this particular situation. I’ve just been conflicted about how to proceed, especially in not knowing if this is a typical policy or not. From most of the responses I’ve recieved via email, and by public posting, it seems to be unique.
*In response to some inquiries, the teacher is not listed with the AHA.
Thank you,
N.
Karen,
We actually took a field trip to see a harp I was considering for purchase. It was about a 25 minute drive, so I figured this alone was probably worth $75? We did make a stop she requested on the way home to look at some harps she might be interested in renting for a different student. This stop ended up taking nearly two hours.
N.
