Watch this before buying a harp! Trying out a $150 harp from Amazon
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 มิ.ย. 2024
- I've been wanting to try this for a while... a genuine review of a harp bought from Amazon (bought with my own $$$, this is not sponsored!!). In this video, I'll speak on some things to consider when buying a harp, and also demo the same songs on each of my three harps so you can hear the differences (15-string Aklot harp, Salvi Delta C electric lever harp, Lyon & Healy 85CG pedal harp).
I knew of this brand as I've seen their instruments in gift shops before (thumb pianos among other instruments), and they have always seemed high quality and sleek, so aside from the reasons I mentioned in the video, that was why I chose this brand.
Considering my initial thoughts on this instrument, if you want to learn harp, as affordable as this harp is, I strongly suggest to begin by renting a high quality instrument or buying. This harp is great if you want to stick with short songs, all in one key, melodies with short register and limited accompaniment. If you're taking harp lessons, most teachers will recommend a harp that has levers and at least 27 strings. My personal favourite brands are Lyon & Healy or Salvi for:
- overall sound and built quality
- string quality (if strung with gut strings, they are more expensive and prone to breaking more often because they are made of natural material, but the sound the best and offer the most control of sound! The majority of pedal harps are strung with gut strings for their quality. Wires in the bass on a lever harp makes the harp ring amazing too!)
- strings staying in tune (no pegs slipping)
- levers will be accurate when engaged
- proper string spacing
- even tone production
- strings resting evenly on all pins
- easy to hold (larger harps are more ergonomic to hold)
- and a harp that will last a life time
00:00 Introduction
00:28 Why I chose this harp
01:30 Tuning for what seems like forever - general comments and possible items of concern
06:39 Aklot Harp: Canon in D
07:20 Aklot Harp: Skye Boat Song
07:28 Salvi Delta Electric Harp intro
07:41 Electric Lever Harp: Canon in D
07:53 Electric Lever Harp: Skye Boat Song
08:04 Pedal Harp: Canon in D
08:18 Pedal Harp: Skye Boat Song
08:28 Final Thoughts
---
If you're interested in supporting what I do, consider joining me on Patreon! By becoming a Patron, you’re helping me find more time to keep creating. Come be a part of the community where we can chat as I share exclusive patron-only content! / harpistkt
#aklot #leverharp #pedalharp #electricharp #amazon #music #harp #classicalmusic
➤ TikTok: / harpistkt
➤ Instagram: / harpistkt
➤ Facebook: / harpistkt
➤ Patreon: / harpistkt
➤ Buy Me a Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/harpistkt
➤ Recordings: harpistkt.bandcamp.com/
➤ All Sheet Music: www.musicnotes.com/sheet-musi...
➤ Website: www.harpistkt.com
➤ Harp Lessons: www.harpistkt.com/lessons
➤ Subscribe to my TH-cam: th-cam.com/users/harpistkt?sub_conf...
➤ All Links: beacons.ai/harpistkt
Thanks for watching! 💜
Let me know what you'd like to hear next in the comments below or just say hi! 😊 - เพลง
You seem the most at home with your floor harp. Your smile becomes bigger and it seems like you really get into whatever you're playing. 💚
Edit: you're not your
This was a fun unboxing and critique of the Aklot. A few years ago, I bought this harp for travel as well. It fits in the airplane overhead bin and is good-enough under the seat to be acceptable. (I added very bright tape, the words fragile and place it on top of other luggage). Changing the strings to better quality made a big difference (Vermont Harp Strings/Robinsons Harp Shop has the specs), plus it gave me the opportunity to fix the depth of some of the pegs. For $150 its a good take it anywhere. Sure I'd like more strings, who wouldn't!
Wow the pedal harp really does sound amazing…they are like as expensive as a car though so I’ll continue to admire from a distance haha
I started on a 19-string lap harp and I still think it was a good way to get used to the hand placement and play a few beginner's songs (it's also super easy to bring with you). I switched to a 36-string lever harp just over 6 months ago, and it felt a little bit like starting again since I had to learn how to properly sit at the harp from scratch (a bit of an adjustement!), but definitely worth the wider range of notes and therefore songs I can play!
I am a lifetime musician but brand new to playing the harp. My Rees Special Edition Fullsicle arrived 3 weeks ago. I found your video so helpful in general understanding about things I have never thought of. Like a wolf string... huh!
Teeny tiny suggestion... since I am new to listening to these sorts of odd notes, having the (beautiful) harp music in the background made it difficult to understand everything you were talking about because I couldn't hear it plainly. I mean, sort of, but not the way I was trying to really understand.
Thank you for making this video!❤
It took weeks of daily tuning to get my Aklot to settle, but it did. Now I can let it sit for weeks and it is almost in tune when I come back.
I have an Aklot. First, the strings were the wrong colors, so I re-strung them. Then, the pin-holes were too loose, so I did a lot of work on the holes to tighten them up. Now the harp works well and maintains its tuning well. I wish it had levers, but I love playing it. It’s so light and portable. I like the wide spacing of the strings. Very comfortable. For an extremely cheap harp, it’s very nice. It is absolutely not fair to compare an Alkot to expensive, well-crafted harps! I got mine for $100. Seriously!
I just got one of these. It’s my 5th instrument. I don’t expect fantastic quality, but it’s a chance for me to play with the instrument. The nylon strings definitely stretch a lot. So do the gut wound strings on my violin and the wire strings on my guitar and mandolin. The piano strings came with it. I expect strings to change when they’re new as well as when the weather changes
I have that same harp! It was the one that got me interested in playing. Now I’m actually renting a 34 string lever harp and doing lessons
This was an amazing video to watch. Neve had looked forward for a video as much as this one
Can you play "Romantic Flight" in it?
from a retired harp maker who wasted fifty years building over fifty harps realised a up against the giant masters so stick to playing in my older years i do own love and play a salvi Diana but own a small sing;le action pedal i built for traveling and play publicly regularly i wish the greats would produce a smaller harp with pedals ive done it so why cant they many of my students got out of there houses with a small lever harp performing until they bought a monstrous pedal harp no matter what the brand and became house bound just them there huge harp and no audience ha ha ps love youre playing cheers from us in Tasmania
I just got one of those , now the new joy of learning
Thanks for sharing. I considered the Aklot 15 string as a 'take it anywhere' harp - but I decided to build a Waring 15 string cardboard harp. IMHO the Waring sounds way better than the Aklot. I traveled with my Waring for 3 months with no problem.
I really like your infirmative videos. I have been looking at harps for years and i have a small lyre that i play around on sometimes.
The problem with bigger harps is theres not many people to give lessons around me which i personally feel id need to stick with it.
They're pretty great for a tiny cheap harp. They pretty much one handed instruments, given their range, but they're sooo portable. I do wish they made a decent model with levers, though - even if I had to re-regulate the levers myself
this was my first harp some years back too! had trouble with her staying in tune, people recommended hammering the pegs in but i just used her for hand practice
The tone of the big harp was Great!
This was so helpful! Thank you
My pleasure!
I really enjoy listening to the instrument you play❤
Thank you!
This was really neat ♥
I have this harp and I love it. My Hermine Camac is much better but this little harp is cute.
Informative and entertaining! Love your sense of humor!!
Haha, thanks!
why should harps not be sold intune?@@HarpistKT
LETS GO LETS GO LETS GO LETS GO I just had put a comment on your IG about your thoughts on this harp and then I hop on TH-cam to find out u did a review. Oh my god i love you so much
I hope it was helpful!! :)
The Aklot harp sounds like how cellists feel playing Canon in D
The mail order from amaz has a tinny tone. What do harps cost for a full size floor unit? Do you play studio or concerts for an orchestra? Your music is beautiful and well played.
This was very interesting! I’m so glad you tried out one of the little ones. You should name it Dan (Samson’s son…). 😂
I love how you keep looking across the room like a lovelorn woman to her beloved in the distance as you play your wonderful collection of beautiful Harps
Your floor harp has a beautiful sound! What is the make? Is that an Irish harp? I am just getting started but am spoiled by my Knabe grand piano and want a good sound even if I am a beginner!
nice people with kool melodies
Thank you. 😃
This is super helpful, thanks! I play pedal and lever harp but I'm looking to buy a small (22 string with levers ideally, gently used or new) harp and wondering if you know of any place I should start looking! thanks, love your videos.
I would start by contacting your local music store or harp center! Some harp centers will ship too. I've also seen used harps selling on kijiji, craigslist, and facebook marketplace.
I really like Sharpsicles as a starting model - you can always install more levers later on (the basic Harpsicle model isn't set up for that)
I bought that Aklot harp and the tuning pegs are loose so it won’t stay in tune. I bought actual harp strings for it and restrung it. But I don’t know how to fix it. It just sits and my other harps get played. It also looks like they have finally corrected the string colors which used to be mint green for C strings and red for F strings!
Right, how much for the pedal harp then?
using my laptop speakers the pedal harp made them tremble a little, haha. like, the sound resonated really well through the speakers. it's great.
You are so great and beautiful at Harp!🤘🏻🤘🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻👍🏻🌞❤️
Thank you
The wood they are made of makes a big difference Veneer sound boards especially on small harps give a homely bad sound If that harp had been solid spruce of cedar, there would have had even better sound.
In your opinion, where does an instrument go from 'toy' to musical instrument in dollars? This is a cute harp but I am looking for something a little 'more' but still at a decent price. Great video, I have subscribed already!
Buying new, I expect to spend at least $2000 on a good lever harp. Buying used is always a more affordable option!
Yeah lady, soon as I read Amazon, I thought "well this probably didn't turn out well".
Good experiment, but that's why I stick to Sweetwater. Your music is great as always, thanks for the entertainment madam.
...oh. I said before with your Invincible by Tool you convinced me to try out a harp. I suppose as a beginner I might get the one you just show cased here so guess I'm going against my usual and throw 150 at Amazon... so any advice where to start like for us guitarist it's scales?
What harp would you recommend for a beginner? I want to learn it as a hobby but have little to no musical background, used to play the bass. What would be a good starting point for the harp?
Here you go: th-cam.com/video/o4u_mqmvNNw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ChdxtxfQYl2J6f5F
Let's just say I have a brother that has wood working skills: Would I be able to buy hardware and install 'em on this harp later if I get too discouraged (with the limitations without levers)?
I've never built a harp myself, so am unsure of the requirements a leverless harp must have in order to place levers on it yourself. My first thought would be no, there most likely isn't space for proper levers to truly adjust the tuning by a full semitone, but it could be worth a shot! Let me know if it works out! I find the levers aren't the only thing that limits, but also the lack of strings. There are some songs that just aren't playable on it because of the range of notes.
Did the tuning improve with time?
kool for the stress
Whenever I see someone play the harp I immediately think they are Welsh, always throws me when they're not 😂😂
Edit
I realise it not a Welsh triple string harp, but still doesn't sound bad for an inferior instrument lol
Oh my! Such a beautiful harper! Think I'll skip the 150 dollar harp.
Do you have any harp recommendations but like cheap ones ???
I can only recommend brands that build harps with quality to last. I've had students find no-name lever harps for under $1000 and they just don't stay in tune and have other issues. Maybe someone else has a suggestion, but I can only recommend the ones I've had experience with: My favs: the Salvi Mia is BEAUTIFUL, the Salvi Juno is solid and portable but you may want more than 27 strings depending on the repertoire you want to play, and my first lever harp was a Stoney End Lorraine - but Lyon & Healy and Salvi are still my preferred lever harp brands. Buying used is a great way to save and still get a good instrument. Hope that helps!
How much does your harp that you always use cost?
Classical instruments are absolutely stupid money, I think this _electric_ (but fancy) harp is like $10k and a full sized pro pedal harp is like 50k _and up_
Whenever I think I'm silly for having 5 electric guitars and a bass, I think about how they still cost less in total than my sister's violin (though of course she doesn't have the problem of taking up a whole room)
I have a Salvi brand pedal harp which I purchased brand new for $16,000. Yes there are some incredibly fancy and high end pedal harps with lots of inlays and decorations which can be $30,000 to $50,000 but there are more reasonable pedal harps available too!
@@wynnriemusic8941 Woah, that's crazy!
I have to say that a full-blown pedal harp was rather overdoing it in comparison with a £150 job! If there wasn't more resonance from the Pleyel I'd be disappointed LOL!
Is that electric one made out of Carbon Fiber or I'm tripping?
Yes it is!
if you have a uke and it's out of tune down the neck it may not be intonated properly
please atleast try to play the great fairy fountain
That $150 harp seems like it would be a very good introduction to the harp.
Cant make out what your saying over the background music
I put the music at like 8% 😬 but if you can't make it out, I suggest turning on close captions!
@@HarpistKT I can hear you just fine! Thanks for uploading:)
What talent. I play guitar and am an armature for sure. I would actually buy a 150 dollar harp if it seemed worth it. Wish it was. Video was helpful. But the end was a treat after enduring to hear that poor chiner product. What beautifully creative skill.
Does anyone play lutes anymore and are they similar to harps?
Lute is a very different instrument to harp! I *think* it would be more similar to a guitar than harp, but it's still it's own instrument.
Please play *upward to the moon*
I'm literally begging to you
Plzzzzz🥺🥺
Would have been more helpful if you could have played a whole song on it after its tuning settled. And if you could stop the background music.
If you go to the end of this video, I play the same song on all three harps without background music. Let me know what you think!
Вы классная и очень симпатичная девушка), спасибо Вам за этот замечательный звук и мастерство)
Is it just my phone or is the editing really "jumpy", like the video has had segments removed but not smoothly. Not sure I can watch much more, maybe I'll just have to listen. (I've watched a few other videos today without any problems, so I think it's the editing. A crossfade would be smoother to watch than straight jump cuts.)
If this is your way of generously volunteering to edit my next video, be my guest! 😆 For a few reasons, this is just how the edits turned out. I know I'll get better at filming long-form videos, it will just take time, so thanks for your patience in the meantime! 🥰
I like the stark cuts - its a style!
Looks like you really wanted to hate it from the beginning.
Did it come with a harp strap? LOL. I think it sounds awful. LOL.
Oh that's terrible! But honestly, cheap instruments tend to be poor quality, more at 11 😅
That sounds like a waste of $150.
I bought a 19 string harp for $160. So, much the same. Just my opinion, but definitely not a waste of money for my first harp. I didn't want to spend alot, in case I failed. I love it. Of course it won't stay tuned at first, but after a week the strings stay tuned, only needs tuning before each playing session. Comparing it to the massive pillar harp is like comparing apples and oranges, chalk and cheese. Of course the pillar harp will sound much better, much larger body and sound board, probably solid mahogany not veneer, at least $3,000+ compared to $150. But to me, spending $3K for a first try is just crazy. If I become proficient, I will upgrade.