Veneer for harp soundbox.

[szczepan4069]

I have surely ventured into very unfamiliar territory here.....my daughter is dead keen on a harp as her weapon of choice for the school orchestra. she is playing the flute at the moment - however has suggested she wants to now play the harp.......

i have been studying hundreds of places on the web for harp construction etc. i have started to understand the subtle but very necessary requirements of constructing a typical harp...ie...sizes, lengths, andgles...and the harmonic curve including string lengths to determine tuning ranges etc...i have only scratched the surface of what will be required to succeed in this project..but i want to try.

To start with, I am looking at sourcing some veneers for the soundbox that will need to be constructed. at this stage it will be a staved soundbox. Does anyone here know of where I may be able to source either sitka spruce or cherry veneers in Brisbane? any assistance here would be greatly appreciated.

cheers
szczepan

[Lumber Bunker]

Lazaredies (sp)


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I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?15ia03

[tom42cook]

Sharps plywood were good to deal with when I made my harp. If this is a serious undertaking get the daughter along to a teacher before making any sawdust. This will be a lot easier in bris than where else in the state (for example there is only one teacher in all of CQ), also speak to the qld harp society about renting one - nothing beats actually getting your hands on one if you're interested in building.
When you come to sound boards consider recycling pianos. If you ask around you'd be surprised how many get dumped.

There are lots of potential pit falls so ask all the question you have (silly or otherwise)
Tom

[szczepan4069]

she is pretty musical...my daughter......so its not so much a question of whether or not she'll like it (if thats the jist of your enquiry?).....we know, and she knows she likes it...and she is up to the challenge....her school has very good music teachers and there is a reasonable abundance of teachers here in brisbane........i'm thinking of doing just that with the "getting the hands on a harp"...thing....so that will be half the struggle of getting my head arround the build.....many thanks ..would be keen to see some pictures....and of the details...including your specs if you would???

cheers

[tom42cook]

harpmakers : Harpmakers
This was a helpful forum.my harp has photos there under Silver Ash Harp.
If you haven't found it yet this is probaly the most helpful site on the net, I read and re-read it and can't recomend it enough.
Sligo Harp Shop - Home Page

About teachers, its not about trying it out to see if she likes it any one with ears will like it. It is just that harp is unlike every other instrument, violin and piano teachers won't know anything about technique, where to rent ( Home ), where to buy strings ( Home ) etc
A good teacher will probably benefit you too although they will all say to buy / rent a harp at the start. There are so many things that a long time player will know that will be useful to a builder. eg do these tuning pins rust? do these eyelets deform under stress? etc.

It can be a really satisfying project, so if you know you're up to it don't let anyone put you off.
I'm not too sure about the school orchestra though, not many school ensemble composers write for harp and despite what non harpists will tell you piano music is NOT the same, there are things like how many fingers you can use the makes a big difference to what you can play on harp or piano.
Tom

[Mike55]

Hi szczepan- I'm in a similar boat; my daughter wants a harp and she also plays the flute! Have you considered a rectangular/tapered sound box instead of a staved one? I don't know your skill level but as it's my first harp I thought I'd stick with a simpler body. I bought plans/hardware from the US and have just bought some black bean for the body/neck/pillar and celery top pine for the sound board.

If you want to go down the staved back route I would think hoop pine would be readily available in Qld. If you want spruce try the skyshop.com.au website.

Regards
Mike55

[whitewood]

I don't normally post on this subject because I know nothing about building musical instruments. What I do know is that Paulownia is considered to have a very good resonance and is suitable for guitars and other instruments. The restriction is that it is not always available in the sizes required. I have sold one order to a customer to build a medieval harp. Another to a professional guitar builder and smaal bit to other instrument makers. Once you have resolved the type of construction I may be able to help with the timber but not a true veneer mine would have to be at least 2.5 mm thick. I'm 2 hours from Mt Gravatt by car.

Whitewood

[szczepan4069]

thanks Mike55...

i have managed to find an interesting timber retailer on the Gold Coast - "WoodWorld". primary reason for ringing them was to sort out some Sitka Spruce for a bi-plane i will be building. then the harp requirements look also like being satisfied as the sitka will be perfect for the soundbox. i am trying to now make up my mind with timber for the main structure that will offset the sitka and also be both structurally sound and give the right type of character in sound quality i am after.

i have spent a bit of time trying to become familiar with commentries from other builders in terms of the qualities and characteristics of the sound generated by the different timbers.

i dont see the actually building of the harp as difficult - i am mostly interested in making sure that i have a better appreciation for "why" a certain material is used in each situation, as opposed to another material. another thing that i am trying to understand ...............as i see that every harp has a different curvature to the arrangement of bridge pins etc. i pressume that these pin arrangements generally follow the range within which a harmonic curve fits??....but whether builders follow a "science" in this area of just go with what is more aesthetic............still trying to figure that out....


again...Mike55......many thanks

[szczepan4069]

hi whitewood...

thanks for the comments.............Paulownia, is that a local timber?...and if so....is it known by another name?
i have heard a few mentions of this timber....but not researched it that much.


cheers

[whitewood]

hi whitewood...

thanks for the comments.............Paulownia, is that a local timber?...and if so....is it known by another name?
i have heard a few mentions of this timber....but not researched it that much.


cheers

Paulownia is of Chinese origin but my timber is grown in Australia. It ticks all the 'green' boxes. It is sometimes called Kirri or even white cedar. Have a look on the web and there is a lot of information. The Japanese pride it for very special furniture and some of their instruments.

Whitewood

[tom42cook]

Hi Szczepan4069
I might be missing something but why do you want veneer when you are thinking about a stave back? Sound boxes that are truly round are made with veneer, stave back are a series of flats aproximating a round cross section and well suited to using solid boards (think coopering). see this page for a good description of the three kinds of backs. http://www.sligoharps.com/3book.pdf.

I can't think of any harp I've seen that hasn't used some kind of hard wood for the box, every one seems to save the spruce for the sound board (quater sawn).

Have you decided how big to make it yet? If she wants to progress through AMEB I think the minimum would be a 34 string preferably with a full set of levers. Thats something to check with a teacher though.

Tom

[tom42cook]

I've dug out some of my files from when I was build my harp, reading all this makes me want to do it all again.
Anyway here are a few of the costs you might expect, prices are a couple of years old now (2009?) but it gives a starting point. Price ranges quite a bit across brands so you’ll get wildly differing figures comparing top of the range to the bottom. My bill worked out to be about $1200 for strings and hardware, that's without wood, glues (must be ZERO creep) finishes, special tools etc

34 tuning pins @3.50 = $119
1 tuning key to fit the above @ $27
34 bridge pins from 1.20 to 1.75 (depending on brand) = $40.80 - $59.50
34 semitone levers from 7.50 (plastic) to 18.00(best quality) = $255 - $612
Strings.
6th octave (lowest) cde (wire) 3 x $15 -$30(depending on brand)
5th octave fgab(wire) cde (gut) 4 x $15 -$30 + 3 x $30 - $44
4th octave fgabcde (gut) 7
3rd octave fgabcde (gut) 7 x $12 - $18
2nd octave fgabcde (nylon or gut) 7 x $3.50 - $13.50
1st octave (highest) fga (nylon or gut) 3 x $3.50 - $9.50
Well I hope that's of interest to some of you.
As for the harmonic curve of the neck I can tell you a little about that later if you're interested.
Tom

[Ball Peen]

Tom42cook thanks for the links. I'm not going to build a harp but am interested in all things with strings.

[szczepan4069]

Thanks tom42cook.....
Haven't had a chance to get on this forum for a couple days over Easter...but been keen to respond once I saw that you had spent a bit of time sifting through your old notes etc.
I must say my first steps in this venture have been confusing. You are correct - my intention is to build a sound box with a staved back. The veneer I am thinking is for the sound board. Seems however that it may not be a straight forward use of veneer for this particular application so I am spending more time researching the net for how to do the sound board.
The staved faces were going to be a another hardwood ...and yes solid timber boards for the staves.
I was looking at 36 strings with levers...yes.

[szczepan4069]

harmonic curve........absolutely interested to know more tom42cook!!!!