I will admit it. I made a mistake and broke the golden rule of harp buying. Several years ago, I went to Dusty Strings in Seattle as I sometimes do and had fun trying their various harp models. At the time, they had just come out with a new model called the Boulevard, and I immediately liked it. Unlike other harps that Dusty Strings makes, this harp had a much harder tension, and as a pedal harpist, I liked it. I was used to a harder tension, but I also love the novelty and portability of a lever harp. After all, I started with a lever harp. I left Dusty Strings in-love with the harp but without the funds to purchase one. In 2018, some unexpected money came my way through an inheritance and a nice tax return. I saved that money and decided to treat myself to a very nice Christmas gift. Meet Chordelia, my Dusty Strings Boulevard harp. Isn't she adorable? She's cute, she's portable, and she's got a nice, stiff tension on her strings. Recently, I shared the harp with students at a local school by giving a talk/demonstration of the harp. While teaching them about the harp and how to purchase/rent one, I realized that I broke the cardinal rule of harp shopping: don't listen to your heart strings - listen to the harp strings. When you find a model of harp you like, play several different ones. Three harps of the same model will each have a unique tonal difference. Well, while I did try a few different harps the night I purchased Chordelia, they were different models, and I was more sold on the string tension and not so much paying attention to the sound. Rookie mistake to say the least. Given that she has pedal harp tension strings on a very small body, she has an amazing, responsive sound. However, I recently tried another lever harp by Camac, a French harp manufacturer, and the sound was amazing! It made me reconsider the desire to have a lever harp with pedal harp tension. Even so, I just like Chordelia, and I am too bonded with her to give her up. However, I hope you can learn from my mistake and remember to try multiple harps - of the same model - when looking to buy. It's worth the time.
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