marialuisa - are you around, can you tell me about HARPS?

[ZZZenAgain]

If you see this Marialuisa, I seem to remember your little girl learnt quite a few instruments and one was the harp.

Dd has been asking if she could learn harp as second instrument and I don't know anything at all about it. I'd love to hear any advice you have on it and how your dd is finding it.

She is very sociable and loves playing violin in her orchestra but I don't think around here there is any option for playing the harp in a group setting, so might be a bit of a lonely experience.

Is it very difficult cf. violin?

She likes this kind of harp (no idea if there are different types)

harp

Huge post hasn't appeared will try again!

Most teachers will start kids on a lever harp www.pilgrimharps.co.uk/Skylark.htm. It's smaller, more portable (I can get DD's in the back of a normal estate) and suitable until grade 5 ABRSM. The disadvantage is that you have to move the levers to change key (no good for orchestral usually) and it has fewer strings so smaller range. This is the type most associated with folk music.

Depending on size/age/standard a pupil will gradually move to a pedal harp. These are huge and expensive. This is the smallest one www.pilgrimharps.co.uk/progress.htm but probably what most people think of when they think of a harp. We are fast approaching the point where DD should make the move and DH is resisting. Others who have made the switch have had to buy people carriers if the kids want to play in groups.....

DD loves the harp and it's much easier than the violin (just need to learn to read the bass clef which is easy enough). We'd like her to give up-because she has 3 instruments on the go and a pony and a massive commute so something should give and we're back at the need to buy a pedal harp.....She has played in groups and enjoyed it but dropped one recently because it was very competition focussed which isn't her thing. There's more opportunity to play in groups with harp than piano but it's a big drag for the parents-unlikely taking a violin on a bus!

One issue we've had is that teachers are few and far between and all know each other....So, not 100% happy with the teacher but nearest alternative is 1.5 hours away.

It's a beautiful instrument though and much more versatile than people imagine. This is DD's favourite harpist:www.youtube.com/watch?v=yODzkbxUHgQ

The pilgrim webiste has lots of info and I'll try and answer any questions you've got.

that lady can let it rip!

Thanks so much marialuisa, I hadn't really thought about transporting it by car. That might indeed be difficult, we just have a normal car, not a transporter type thing.

I have found 4 teachers nearish to us. Do-able. I can rent a harp initially it seems but I am not sure, depends what type. One of the teachers also has a children's harp ensemble but it is a good hour's drive from us whic is ok but as you say, need to be able to fit the harp in the car really. Hmm.

I was thinking might be best to see if that teacher would be able to teach dd, so she sees her twice a week if dd progresses and moves onto the ensemble at some point.

Find it quite confusing with all the different types, pedals, levers, sizes.

Does your dd get aching back or neck muscles after practising at all?

You know, easier than the violin - that bit is really appealing to me! Will try and get hold of a couple of the teachers if I can and see what hey say re costs and lessons venues etc. Dd seems quite keen.

Could you rent a big pedal harp? Could one of the other parents in that group help you with transportation if it doesn't fit in your car?

so the lever one is the Celtic harp and the pedal one is the classical orchestra instrument?

Harp types-yes, that's it!

DD doesn't get aching muscles-would indicate problems with posture or harp being too big and heavy for her is she did. You play it sort of balanced rather than supporting ts weight. She does get sore fingertips occasionally and one of her friends went to the NCO for a week and came back with blisters from practising so much!

We could break even in terms of rental vs purchase within about 3 years so not really worth it.

The teacher with the ensemble sounds like a good starting point, she must be used to children and be relatively tolerant to put on a group as well as teaching. Good luck-hope she gives it a go and enjoys it.

thanks very much marialuisa. I will see if I can get hold of that teacher and if she has any places. I see what you mean about renting not being worthwhile longer term.

ok I have my dd down on a waiting list now. At present no teachers available and I have the number of the teacher from that ensemble. She may be able to rent a Celtic harp from Christmas on. Atm not.

So I am getting somewhere with it. Man I spoke to today said he thought about 2-3 years practice would be necessary before joining this group. Dd more of a social animal really, might not be so happy ploughing on with it alone for 3 years. We'll see.

Transporting that big harp is a worry. I suppose for lessons she wouldn't needto, she would use the teacher's and just have her own at home to practice. We can open the car roof but in winter not very practical. Well, we'll see. Man I spoke to said it is quite a popular instrument (whihc I didn't really expect to hear tbh) but seemed to be encouraging about it working out

dd utterly thrilled

Hi Marialuisa, are you still around? (slight thread hijack here - sorry)

Curious to know why you feel your dd is fast approaching the stage at which you 'need' to switch to a pedal harp? - only because we're debating this too...

My year 5 dd, did her grade 3 last week on a lever harp. She's still physically a bit small for a pedal harp (sometimes plays her teachers) but there's general pressure to switch when she gets to secondary school...

But it was hearing a lever harp that inspired her to learn to play. She is interested in folk music, wants to play in folk groups, wants to accompany herself singing - she loves going to concerts by Catrin Finch and the like, but she's unlikely to be a professional musician, I would like her to keep playing the harp because she enjoys it, and her absolute favourite harpists are people like Maire Ni Chathasigh, who play lever harps. She can go through to grade 8 on the lever harp (although we'll need to get a better one than the entry level harp she has at the moment) and there is some lovely music in the higher grades specifically for the lever harp. Personally I would like her to play a pedal harp because I would like her to have the chance to play in an orchestra, but I'm wondering if that is just me being a little pushy and I should let her follow her heart?

ZZZenAgain, sorry to hijack your thread and thanks for the encouragement on this thread ... managed to persuade people there to let me organise tea and coffee after the service now so that is my first step in getting everyone to talk to eachother.

Because post g5 (which DD can take next school year if she wants) the repertoire becomes so much more limited, in terms of style. There's a lot of opportunity for orchestral work round here (and she loves doing group stuff with her other portable instruments. DD's definitely not a folky-type and we're already hitting problems finding music she wants to play that can be done on her lever harp. Teacher is definitely not keen on lever harp only which is a factor for us.....

Surprised you say your dD is too small for a pedal, there are so many different ones and some are surprisingly light. DD is an only slightly taller than average Y4 and has played pedal harps belonging to teacher in lessons and concerts for about 18 months.

good luck with it all.

I'ld be with your dd on the music - I can quite see why people want the flexibility of the pedal harp - I completely see where she is coming from if she prefers that sort of music. Its not me playing the instrument, and I do wonder if the blanket 'you must play pedal' from many teachers puts some children off.

Dd is very small for her age - somewhat smaller than the average year 4!

There's no reason for your DD to make the transition yet if she doesn't want to though, is there? She could decide to move across at any point if she found she wanted the versatility.

No, it?s just the general expectation creating pressure I think. The way you said you ?needed? to move to pedal made me think you might be under the same pressure, obviously different if the reason your dd ?needs? to move on is because she wants to.

I suspect dd will want to move on eventually, but I can see where she is coming from at the moment ? her experiences of junior school orchestras have consisted of having to count 8 bars or so and then play the occasional glissando or a few chords while the violins and woodwind get all the tunes, whereas when she has met local folk bands with lever harps she has been allowed to scramble up on the stage and play with them, which is much more her thing.