Returning a chromatic?

[Winslow Yerxa <76450.3230@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

TO: internet:harp-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Steven Levine asks about returning a chromatic, after he was
given the wrong key in a music store.

If I were you, Steven, I'd try to return it. The key phrase here
is "that have already been played." I take it that you haven't
played it. You made it clear that you wanted a harmonica in C and
they did not deliver the correct merchandise.

Besides, if it was in the wrong box, maybe someone else had
already removed it and played it. How did it get there? Maybe
they're selling used merchandise (I know, this is unlikely, but
if they try to rebuff you, you'll need some ammunition).

I'd go back soon while the salesman still remembers you and the
conversation about specifically wanting a C.

ALWAYS CHECK A NEW HARP IN THE STORE. Never leave a store without
taking the harp out of the box, making sure it's the right model
and key, examining it for obvious physical defects, working the
slide if it has one, and putting it on a harmonica tester to make
sure that all the reeds play and that it's reasonably in tune.
This still can't tell you if the harp is leaky or some other
things that can't be detected without actually playing it, but it
still helps an awful lot.

At the music store, ask them to pull out their tester and put the
harp on it. It may actually be a C harp, and you haven't played
it, so you have no way of knowing. If it is a C, then you can
keep it.

Volunteering to do this shows two things: that you really haven't
played it, and that you are there in good faith. This may assist
you in overcoming any reluctance to consider the merits of your
case - some retailers may try to dismiss you out-of-hand, and you
may have to use positive and/or negative assertion to get past it
and induce a reasonable discussion.

Good Luck.