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While I understand your Vegan concerns, perhaps, gut is a natural substance and nylon is synthesized from oil. The sheep from whence comes the gut are already slaughtered for food, I should think, so you are utilizing a resource that would otherwise be wasted. Also, they are covered with a synthetic varnish, so you don’t touch the actual gut itself at all. No reason not to use nylon instead, though.
It would be so nice to hear about this when it is first announced, to have a couple of years to really prepare the repertoire, not several months.
You should ask Esmeralda Camilleri, she lives there. There’s not much opportunity, one or two teachers at most, I suspect.
I think the woman in charge of renting instruements for tour ended up deciding just to rent a harp that we can bring with us the whole week we are in Texas. She must have thought that would just be easier, because then we would only have to worry about one harp and we could just bring it with us to each city we visit. Thanks so much for your offer, though!
My first harp was a Brittany which I bought after checking with most of you people and following your kind advice not to buy any Pakistani harps off of Ebay. I live the little Brittany but the lady who sold it to me warned me that, if I had any liking for it, I would soon feel the string shortage. She was right, and whilst I have the little Brittany (and love it) I was lucky to find an old Troubadour which I really love (except the levers).
Evangeline, you have my sympathies over the dollar store recorders. Ugh! hee hee. They are unplayable. I was so lucky that way, when I leanrt recorder back in the stone age my Father took me to this super neat old music strore in these Dickensian buildings (just like the stores in the Alistair Simms Christmas Carol. We lived in England, my homeland, at that time) and bought me a really good recorder made by the Dolmetsch Co. When I was an adult and my puppy chewed it I was so upset that I had to go and find an identical one on (the then very new) Ebay.
Oddest one to date was the couple that rung me and requested the “wedding thing” – when I asked them to hum the “wedding thing” they hummed the…funeral march.
I told them, no you do not want that one, its the funeral march. But they were very sure. I then dragged the harp near the phone and played them the usual processional and recessions, and they finally agreed on the Wagner.
Sure enough, on the day, I played and the Wagner and all seemed to go really well. Then at the reception, the mother of the bride came up to me and said that they had paid for the “wedding thing” and that they did not hear me play it. I shuffled through my music and played her a snippet of the Wagner, and she insisted that this was not the “wedding thing”.
I got a sinking feeling at this point and asked her to hum what she thought it was…and sure enough she hummed..the funeral march. I explained again that this was the funeral march, and if I had played this, and the guests recognised it, it would not have shed a good light on the wedding! She kept arguing with me that they had paid for the wedding thing and not got it and did not want to pay me.
Hi Chris,
No you are not weak! It is surprising when manoevering stairs, just how tricky it can be. I’ve had that problem with what you are describing, the lip on the edge of the stairs. I suppose that the wheel is just catching under the lip and making it more of a “pull” to get it up.
Is sounds like your trolley one wheel each side, and not the triple wheel “stair climbing” type? If your trolley is single wheel, that would be very hard going! The triple wheel is much much easier for getting up stairs, the roll of the triple wheel gives a bit of momentum and there is less resistance. But similarly, the lip on the stair would still make it tricky, but not anywhere near as difficult.
Welllll…… Harps must be heavier eh? My Salvi seems to want to kill me…. It’s so heavy! I didn’t think 60 pounds or so would be this difficult to move… but it is!
So it seems I can’t /really/ carry it anywhere. I have a cart with 10 inch wheels with two straps holding the harp on(just got this cart), and now I can move it down the steps simply! but I can’t /really/ bring it back up…….. There seems to be these little “lip” ends on the steps, which makes it hard to roll the wheels over it.
I don’t really have all that much might to pull it over these humps…. but at the same time, lifting it a whole step is REALLY difficult.
Am I just weak? Or do other people have these same problems….
Hi Christopher,
Congats on your new harp, how exciting for you! I went a bit beserk myself when I finally got a harp that was right for me, so I know what you are feeling!
Thanks for mentioning the your Daphne projecting a little more than the 85 – as they all vary so much don’t they – and often the opposite is what one expects. It’s good to keep up with all the variety of experiences out there.
For blisters, I use micropore tape that you get from the pharmacy – its a thin surgical tape that breaths, and does not give a harsh sound like a bandage. It might be called something else in your “neck of the woods” but the pharmacy should be able to advise on it. I also use it when a blister begins to form when I’m practising.
Hope this helps.
Cheers.
PS. I like the crazy glue tip..have not heard that one before.
Thanks Barbara for those finger tips!
I think we saw the same girl Dwyn. I believe it was Maryanne…. She was so helpful! She really had a great personality! I’m so lucky that a VHC was opened here in New jersey. I tried a few harps there, but I settled on that daphne. Everything pointed to it!
To tell you the truth, I admire those little wheels at the front of the harp! It’s very nifty for moving the harp around the house without really lifting it! So many good things. I’m in love with my harp.
However, I keep having nightmares about the harp and stairs…… I have about 15 stairs to get to my apartment. It makes me very nervous carrying the harp while on steps. I keep dreaming I’m going to drop it and see it fall. O_O It’s quite frightening… but i’m sure harpist use steps regularly, not by choice!
I guess I’ll be fine, I’ll just hold onto it for dear life…. hahaMy brother and I have had cracking finger tips for the past 4 or 5 years – since turning 50.&NBS; We did not have this problem at anytime in our lives before.
Hey Fairy,
What are the warranties really good for? Most of the time they build these instruments to last… like what? 80 years? At VHC I saw a L&H from 1915? I believe. It was beautifulllll!
Um… the blister is going to form… on my right index finger…. it’s just red at this time, and a bit sore…. no blister has formed, but i’m expecting it to. This stinks.
It’s such an important finger!!As far as the pedal harp goes…. I wake up and still can’t believe I got one! Also, I’ve been playing music I thought I’d never play…. The pedals I find are easy to operate and remember where they are at! I’m in love with it. A salvi Daphne 40 in Mahogany….. It’s true love. =)
