• Victoria Johnson

    Member
    24 September, 2021 at 3:36 am

    My husband built harp with the Fireside Harp Kit by Background Music (https://www.backyardmusic.com/Harps.html). It is a pretty decent harp for the price. My only grumble is that we didn’t put levers on it so I cannily play it one key unless I retune it. Not getting levers was probably the right decision though since the levers are quite expensive relative to the price of the kit and we have a 34 strings fully lever harp. If the kit harp is going to be your only harp and you plan to use it for a while, I suggest getting partial or full set of levers to it is easier to play a wider range of music with it.

    • Camilla Prater

      Member
      24 September, 2021 at 3:47 am

      Thank you! I did notice that most of them had no levers and was a little disappointed. I’ll have to look into levers now and see how pricey they are.

  • Victoria Johnson

    Member
    24 September, 2021 at 5:38 pm

    The levers are on average US$15 apiece. A full set of levers for a 22 string harp would cost more than the kit itself, hence I decided to go with no levers for the Fireside. Some people go for partial lever (C & Fs) to begin with, so that could be an option if you would like to keep the cost down.

  • Victoria Johnson

    Member
    24 September, 2021 at 5:56 pm

    While we are on the topic of harp kits, let me share some other thoughts with you on my Fireside.

    Compare to my 34 strings floor harp, I actually found the smaller harp to be more awkward to hold. I don’t think that’s unique to kit harp; I imagine it would be pretty common for many smaller harps because I have heard it from other harpists before. The sound box needs to be at a certain size and you want to harp to be placed at a reasonable place for good ergonomics. And the soundbox on kid harp are quite big compare to something like a Harpsicle. A stand or a strap is usually recommended for lap harps or smaller harps, but there isn’t really a stand or strap option for a lot of the harp kits that I’ve seen. So you have to be creative if you would like one! I usually place the Fireside on a stool when I play it. And here is where the more expensive lap harps have an advantage over the harp kits. The Dusty Strings Ravenna 26, for example, has an option to add on a stand or a drop down leg. It is, of course, quite a bit more expensive than a harp kit. I would consider what is it that you want from a harp and think backward from there because there might be other options or paths you can take. 🙂

    • Lydia Gaertner

      Member
      4 October, 2021 at 5:44 pm

      I can confirm the difficulties with holding lap harps. I had a lap harp only (with 28 strings) for 10 years , and as long as I had no solution for a stable stand, holding it correctly took much of my energy and attention I otherwise could have put into playing technique.

      I added a guitar strap (which is quite easy), but it depends on the weight. My lap harp with brass levers has around 12 pounds, and that was too heavy for my back.

      I then (got) built a stand like the ones which are sold by harpsicle for it, but it was quite heavy and bulky to take with me – bus has a firm stand. One of these Double string ladies – I think it was Laura Riley – sells a nice harp stand for lap harps made from wood.

      By now I mostly play my 22-string fireside as lap harp, it is almost as big as my 28 string IONA, but has only 6 pounds. So it is easy to carry, I added a scarf as strap, which works quite well.

      I guess the harpsicle and wooden lap harp stands can also be used with harps which aren’t that small. My stand has an extra clamp to have the harp quite low on it. So with a bit of creativity there are many possibilities.

  • Kristen Barry

    Member
    30 September, 2021 at 7:05 am

    Over the years I have built 3 kits from Music Makers. I enjoyed all harps that I built from them. I currently still have their Limerick 26 string harp that I have in Wire strung version. I also built their shepherd harp and studio harp. I haven’t built any of their current models as the ones I built were back ages ago and they have changed the kits. But all of them are lovely. I also am building a fireside double strung kit. I really need to find my strings as that and levers are my last step but I moved. I got that one because I wanted to experiment with double strung without the huge investment. Dave is great to work with!

    • Camilla Prater

      Member
      30 September, 2021 at 7:26 am

      Did the levers come with your harp kits from Music Makers? Or did you purchase them separately? Thank you so much for responding!

      • Alyssa Cowell

        Member
        1 October, 2021 at 9:54 pm

        Music Makers sells their levers separately. I built their kit for a 26 string harp in 2019 – such a great experience!

      • Kristen Barry

        Member
        21 November, 2021 at 7:15 am

        Musicmakers does have levers available but you purchase them in addition to your kit. I put levers on my harps after the strings settle. For the harps I built, the Sheperd 22 string was a little too small for much of the music I wanted to play so I built the 29 string studio harp. That was a little awkward to lug around camping with me and it needed a stool to sit on because the height wasn’t right for sitting in a chair playing. The Limerick is awesome for a small harp with decent range of 26 strings and a lot more music can be adapted for it than for a 22 string. Still has limits of course. But I do love that one, sadly they don’t offer that kit now but the plans are available if you have someone who can cut the wood. I just finished building my Fireside 22 string double strung and I think I am going to love it lots. In fact, after fussing with it after stringing I am changing my Limerick over to nylon strings (after the Fireside settles so I have a harp that will hold tone). Pictures are my fireside double and my limerick.

    • Lydia Gaertner

      Member
      4 October, 2021 at 5:50 pm

      @kristen.barry does Backyard Music really sell double strung sets? 😍
      I couldn’t find one at their homepage. I only found the one of Waring Harps, and I don’t like the edgy triangle form of it without any curve. But I’d also like to try out a double strung which is affordable. And I really like the sound of my fireside❣

      • Kristen Barry

        Member
        17 November, 2021 at 10:03 am

        He does sell them. Just call or message him. Let me know if you need his email. I still have my back and forth when I was asking him to make one. Sorry for the delay- I don’t come online much!

  • Elizabeth Milward

    Member
    9 October, 2021 at 10:52 pm

    I built the Waring Cardboard Harp Kit, (19 string) 17 years ago. I still have and play the harp. Very light and portable, surprisingly durable. Nice tone, bit quiet, very lightly strung. The few strings make it hard to learn as a first harp because I couldn’t find music that would fit on the harp, so I was constantly having to transpose stuff. The lack of levers is awkward for playing with others. If I was doing over, I think I would go for a Fireside harp kit instead. Those extra 3 strings make a surprising difference in what music a harp can play. And levers would be really, really useful if you’re playing with others. My church music group’s favorite key is A.

    • Kristen Barry

      Member
      17 November, 2021 at 10:05 am

      Its why I wouldn’t buy the waring- Dave at fireside and I had a long phone conversation about it. I wanted levers. My fireside double was the first of its kind (and I still have to string it, sad, I know). I moved in the middle of everything. I finally found my strings!

  • Cynthia Vandenberg

    Member
    4 December, 2021 at 2:10 am

    Hi, I too have a Fireside Harp made from the kit. Was easy and fun to put together. It came with 22 strings, G to G. Most of the music seems to be C to C. Any reason, I could not restring it C to C?

    Thanks

    • Kristen Barry

      Member
      4 December, 2021 at 4:52 am

      Not sure it can hold tension if you restring for C-C. You might have a lot more strings break if you use the same strings that come with it. Or might need to go to a different type of string. C is a couple notes lower. If you can figure out how, it is worth a try. Let me know if you try it and it works!

      • Cynthia Vandenberg

        Member
        5 December, 2021 at 9:30 pm

        I reached out to Fireside Harps/Backyard Music. Their reply was “Well, its a possible experiment for the Fireside!” They indicated that it would be possible to move the middle C to sting #22 and go up from there, but to move the middle C up the frame to have an octave below middle C would not be possible.

        I have gone through the music in the “shop” and it appears that all the music that can be played on a 22 string harp requires C to C.

        Any reason not to restring C to C (lowest being middle C) and just playing everything an octave higher?

        • Helen Gosnell

          Member
          8 August, 2022 at 6:26 am

          It’s usually not possible to string a harp with significantly higher notes than what it’s built for. A higher note for the same string length would require a lot more tension to get up to pitch. When you add up the extra tension required to string the whole harp higher, the total tension on the harp may exceed what it’s built for and cause the neck to fail. You can lessen the tension of tuning higher a little by using smaller diameter strings, but I don’t know that there are strings that are small enough gauge to make up for the tension of raising the range a fifth.

          It’s usually possible to tune a medium/high tension harp down a couple of notes (with the same string diameters) but the overall string tension will be less. Since the Fireside is already a low tension harp, it might not be possible to get a good tone by tuning it lower (with the same diameter strings).

          You can lower the range of a harp without changing the overall tension by changing the strings out for bigger gauge strings (possibly requiring wound strings) and tuning the harp down. In my experience, you can usually lower the note range down two notes before you start having to use wound strings at middle C or above, but it depends on the vibrating string length as to what’s possible and what gauge strings are required.

          You can use Musicmaker’s string calculator Excel file to calculate a new string set to see what’s possible. You’ll need the current string chart and vibrating string lengths to do the calculations. https://www.harpkit.com/harp-string-analysis-spreadsheet.htmlhttps://www.harpkit.com/harp-string-analysis-spreadsheet.html

          I have the spreadsheet and some experience using it, but I’m not an expert. If you want to give me the vibrating string lengths (bridge pin to soundboard) for each string and a current string chart, I can probably give you an idea of what’s possible.

          One other issue in using wound strings on a harp that was designed for monofilament is that you have to make sure the eyelets are big enough for the wound string to pass through. A larger hole could be drilled to change to a larger eyelet if necessary, if that’s something you’re comfortable doing.

  • Kristen Barry

    Member
    5 December, 2021 at 10:33 pm

    Go ahead and try it and let us know how it goes? I prefer lower notes so it won’t be something I am interested in doing. However my fireside is a double strung which means I don’t have to worry as much since I can use the same notes in the same octave for chords and melody. I don’t have the same restrictions as a single strung. And I have a 26 string as well. I would probably try to restring if I couldn’t play the songs on it. I’ve had no problem with After the Rain. Scarborough Fair I do have to play the last section an octave lower since I do not have the range to go up that extra octave on the Fireside. I think I am only missing 1 note though on that one to go up an octave.

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