Epic Harp from MusicMaker

[Eileen Korby]

Here is a video by MusicMaker of the Epic harp.

https://youtu.be/l5OgJ0O0Pfo

[Naomi Lacken]

Isn’t that first tune gorgeous? The Beautiful Goldfinch. I learned it a few years ago but have forgotten it. Might suggest it for learning 🙂 Beautiful sound from that harp and very impressive looking.

[Victoria Johnson]

I interviewed the owner of Musicmakers harp after I purchased my Cheyenne harp kit: https://youtu.be/QOYZf9zk-xw Hearing Jacob and his team’s approach towards harp making has really helped me understand their offerings. I would say that MusicMakers harps are designed to optimize playing comfort, and their harps are generally have smaller string spacing compare to other harps I’ve played (which would make the harp more compact and easier for people with small hands to play).

The Cheyenne harp kit has a square back so that a reasonable person with some woodworking skills and tools can put it together at home without the specialized equipment that a harp maker would have. The top is pretty tapered and it leans against my shoulder comfortably. I am pretty sure there is some math involved with how the shape of the soundbox affects resonances. Overall though I don’t think a round back or a square back is going to make or break the resonance factor. Jacob talks about the design of the Epic in the interview. The bigger size at the bottom portion of the soundbox really helps with giving the harp a big sound. My Cheyenne is similar in that soundbox at the bass is quite a bigger than the top, and the Cheyenne has a big sound and the bass really sings out.

Each harp marker tends to have their own “sound”. The Dusty Strings sound has some very distinct Dusty Strings characteristics, and I would say the same would go for MusicMakers based on my experience with the Cheyenne and hearing the sound clips from them. Camac has a very bright sound; some people absolutely love it and some people prefer a warmer, deeper sound. It is a very personal choice, and at the end of the day you have to love the sound of the harp so it doesn’t really matter what everyone else think about the sound.

MusicMakers as a company is exceptional to deal with. They are very responsive with my questions throughout the harp building experience. Dusty Strings also have very helpful folks. Both companies provide a lot of useful information on their websites to inform their customers, and ultimately lead me to purchase their harps because I value that transparency and their high level of customer service.

I have only ever purchased a kit harp from MusicMakers so I can’t speak to the quality of their ready built harp. I have to say though, that if my kit harp is working out quite well, I can only imagine that the harps that their markers put together (who have way more experience with putting harps together) are even better in terms of finishes and what not. I like my Cheyenne and it is getting a lot of play time in the family.

[Harriet Henderson]

I was looking at the Cheyenne harp kit. How hard was it to put together for you?

[Victoria Johnson]

It wasn’t that bad for me because my husband was the one who built it ha ha!! I talked about the built in this video: https://youtu.be/xgO_THXPwP8 It is doable if you have some woodworking background and have the space to do it.

[Jennifer Jamieson]

Thanks Victoria, great instructional. Lovely sound, and very pretty instrument. I just completed a Music Makers Shepherd harp from the plans, and yes, the house was wood from one end to the other. I get it- something rewarding about the extra dust around the house- more like gold, chuckle. I was considering the plans for one of their larger harps, so I appreciate your assessment. The process was both enjoyable and challenging; I made a lot of mistakes, but happy to have completed the instrument. The Shepherd is the smallest of their plans with 22 strings. I’m not pleased with the sound yet, especially the middle register, but I could at least get started with the proper lessons. I ordered the wire strings from Music Makers to try out instead of the nylon. Maybe this will warm up the tone a bit. The range of the Shepherd is G-G and just doesn’t allow for most of the music for our lessons-the ones I want to play anyways. Although happy to start with this little guy, more range is necessary to advance. ( at least an octave below middle C) – for this beginner anyways.

[Jennifer Jamieson]

Just a quick little update about the little Shepherd harp. I should have been more patient and let the instrument wake up a bit- and the strings to stop stretching. It’s actually a pretty sound. I took it to the hospital and showed my 93 year old Dad. He played on it quite awhile- and a couple of nurses came down for a look see, as the sound echoed through the hall. Harp sounds are like a magnet, even with us just picking on the strings. Most enjoyable.

[Annais Ryder]

A bit of a late response, I built a Voyageur with my hubby – the most difficult (meaning nerve wrecking) part was drilling the holes in the soundboard. There is a Voyageur build video on youtube and I must say mine actualy had less work required – I think my kit was more finished than the one shown – I wondered if the vid was old and they updated their kits a bit. We built it on our sitting room floor and I varnished it in the bathroom.

I think Cheyenne kit is now discontinued, alas, I was hoping one day to build another harp!