The most noticeable feature of all the Folc harps, what bids fair to be a
unique feature of these harps, is the curved soundboard. I am aware of
only one other line of harps with curved soundboards, Heartland Harps
of Zirconia NC. But in the case of Heartland harps the whole soundbox
is curved rather than just the soundboard.
unique feature of these harps, is the curved soundboard. I am aware of
only one other line of harps with curved soundboards, Heartland Harps
of Zirconia NC. But in the case of Heartland harps the whole soundbox
is curved rather than just the soundboard.
Having committed to designing a harp in which the tone and resonance
of the string was absolute with all other considerations being secondary,
I immediately ran into a dilemma. Building a harp with the stings of
ideal length required plotting the strings from the soundboard and then
designing the wooden neck to accommodate the placement of the tuning
pins no matter where they happened to come out. The resulting harps
had a neck that was so tightly curved, it was difficult to get one's right
hand in to play the treble-most strings.
of the string was absolute with all other considerations being secondary,
I immediately ran into a dilemma. Building a harp with the stings of
ideal length required plotting the strings from the soundboard and then
designing the wooden neck to accommodate the placement of the tuning
pins no matter where they happened to come out. The resulting harps
had a neck that was so tightly curved, it was difficult to get one's right
hand in to play the treble-most strings.
To the left is one of these experimental harps with a flat soundboard
Notice the narrow space in the treble-most octave. The length of the
strings and the angle of the strings to the soundboard are very
acoustically correct. This harp sounds great, was played in many a
gig, and is still in use these many years after it was made. But it is
damnably inconvenient to play!
Notice the narrow space in the treble-most octave. The length of the
strings and the angle of the strings to the soundboard are very
acoustically correct. This harp sounds great, was played in many a
gig, and is still in use these many years after it was made. But it is
damnably inconvenient to play!
A great many drawings and a number of harps later, the
inevitable conclusion was this: It is not possible to preserve the
ideal length of the strings and still have a neck with a gentle
enough curve to not interfere with the playing. All the harps
with flat sound boards, by my calculations, were compromising
the ideal string lengths in order to accommodate a flat
soundboard. And small wonder. Anything but a flat soundbox
is harder to make and nearly impossible to mass produce even
on a small scale.
inevitable conclusion was this: It is not possible to preserve the
ideal length of the strings and still have a neck with a gentle
enough curve to not interfere with the playing. All the harps
with flat sound boards, by my calculations, were compromising
the ideal string lengths in order to accommodate a flat
soundboard. And small wonder. Anything but a flat soundbox
is harder to make and nearly impossible to mass produce even
on a small scale.
The solution, of course, is to make the soundbox with a slight curve. Because the
angle of the strings to the soundboard is far more acute than the angle of the
strings to the neck, a very small bend in the soundboard moves the position of the
string a great distance on the neck.
angle of the strings to the soundboard is far more acute than the angle of the
strings to the neck, a very small bend in the soundboard moves the position of the
string a great distance on the neck.
Of course, I didn't come up with this idea out of whole cloth. I had a good line drawing to scale of the Trinity College Harp and I
was eager to match my notion of the ideal length of strings to the actual string band of that harp suspecting that the medieval harp
makers knew a thing or two. The string lengths matched up pretty well. The profile drawing of that harp showed the soundboard
having a definite bow to it.
was eager to match my notion of the ideal length of strings to the actual string band of that harp suspecting that the medieval harp
makers knew a thing or two. The string lengths matched up pretty well. The profile drawing of that harp showed the soundboard
having a definite bow to it.
Here from left to right are four examples of harps from antiquity: the Trinity College harp, the Queen Mary harp, the Otway
Castle harp, and Carolan's harp. Notice that in each case there is the same slight curve to the top of the soundbox. All the
modern reproductions of these harps that I've seen have flat topped soundboxes. Scholars have concluded that the harps
originally had flat soundboxes and the tension of the strings through years of use cause the bow in soundboard. I find
myself entirely doubting it. If we calculate the length of the strings based on a flat soundboard, the midrange strings are too
long and their sound would have been compromised. But if we calculate the length of the strings based on the soundbox as
it appears, the strings in the midrange are of just about ideal length. The soundbox of each of these harps is carved from a
single piece of wood. The harp maker would have had no more difficulty carving the arch top in the harp than a modern
luthier has in carving the arch top of a violin or mandolin.
Castle harp, and Carolan's harp. Notice that in each case there is the same slight curve to the top of the soundbox. All the
modern reproductions of these harps that I've seen have flat topped soundboxes. Scholars have concluded that the harps
originally had flat soundboxes and the tension of the strings through years of use cause the bow in soundboard. I find
myself entirely doubting it. If we calculate the length of the strings based on a flat soundboard, the midrange strings are too
long and their sound would have been compromised. But if we calculate the length of the strings based on the soundbox as
it appears, the strings in the midrange are of just about ideal length. The soundbox of each of these harps is carved from a
single piece of wood. The harp maker would have had no more difficulty carving the arch top in the harp than a modern
luthier has in carving the arch top of a violin or mandolin.
The curved soundboard also puts a bit more tension on all the wood of the harp body and so transmits the sound through
the wood more readily.
the wood more readily.
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