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Chubb via Merz-Huber. Excellent coverage and service, no problem getting a claim for my piano generously covered. I strongly recommend them. If you ask for Chubb, you don’t have to be an ASTA member.
It is not easy. It helps to have another skill to pay the bills with. Nursing seems like a good option because you can do it free-lance and part-time. Perhaps restaurants are more inclined now to have a harpist, or hotels, nothing like a steady gig. Even a funeral home can be a steady gig. Like any entrepreneurial occupation, it can take a long time to build up your flow of work. Finding an area where you are needed really helps. New Hampshire does sound tempting, and I never would have imagined there was a gap there. Unfortunately, the very information we need to know to make money in music is always the hardest to come by. I believe Harp Column did some kind of a census, sure the results had helpful information. I think being a reliable classical soloist is helpful, but it is also helpful to play alternative musics as well. Know a little about everything. It is hard to build up a classical or pedal harp book and a lever book at the same time, but all the better if you can. There is also way too much material available now to spend money on and wade through to find the good stuff.
Since you already got paid, why don’t you tell them you will re-record it, and they can play the recording when they walk the aisle.
I don’t recomment it. It doesn’t protect the neck, which is the vulnerable part of the harp. One time I moved my harp that way, and I had a terrible time tuning it after. I believe the bouncing and jiggling causes the neck to torque. I would only do it if the harp was fully braced or in a case or frame. If you can brace it securely with padding to the side of the van, that is okay. And the cover is not enough padding by itself.
The issue is who did the restoration work and the quality of their work, as well as the quality of the original instrument.
I played on an exceedingly dead square-back 30 while in school. The corners were awkward, and I could not use my knees to support it, so all the weight was on my shoulder. There were good ones, too, of course.
There are slight differences between models, but sometimes it is just the quality of the wood. I would recommend getting a natural finish instrument, not ebony. And if they will give you a glossy finish rather than matte, even if a special order, it is worth it.Placing is the cure for buzzing. Even finger action is the source of evenness. Take lessons more often. Talk to your teacher first and foremost. It is unfair to your teacher to go to all sorts of strangers for advice.
You can alternate fingers. You can use the 3d finger in much the same way as the second. Increasing the oil helps support the skin, so use something lanolin based like bag balm, just wash clean before playing. Don’t apply a lot of pressure with the fingers yet when playing. Your skin will get used to this. But stop if it reddens, you don’t want to get a blister.
One excellent teacher would be Faye Seeman in Chicago, and have you considered Danis Kelly in Milwaukee? Or Joan Holland in Michigan? I would be happy to meet with you when I am in Minneapolis.
Lyon & Healy once published a guide to the Troubador Harp that had an excellent graded repertoire list. I wish I could locate my copy. They should republish it.
