[Harp-L] Re: Suzuki Pure Harp review (long)

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Spschndr@xxxxxxx wrote (regarding the Suzuki Pure Harp):

<Now, my 3 hole played way too tight initially, too tight to play out with 
<frankly; but a close look showed the 3D reed to be gapped way low, and one quick
<tweak got the 3 hole playing as well as the others.  

I bought a Fire Breath in C from Coast 2 Coast a couple of weeks ago and have played it frequently since.  My harp had the same issue with the 3D reed.  I also found the action initially to be a bit stiff.  I did my usual setup routine -- emboss the reed slots with a penny turned sideways, then gap the reeds -- and the result was a very playable instrument, though I find the 3D reed still to be a little soft.  I may re-gap at some point to get a little more volume out of the instrument.

I did a side by side comparison of the Fire Breath with a Lee Oskar C diatonic.  The Oskar seems to be a slightly louder instrument.  (Note that the Oskar has had the same setup treatment, i.e. embossing and gapping.) The Oskar's tone is brighter and "edgier" than the Fire Breath; the Fire Breath's tone is noticeably darker, although it has a lot more edge in it than I'm accustomed to hearing from wooden harps.  Whether this difference in tone is "better" or "worse" depends entirely on the player and the material.  I would describe the tone of both these harps as attractive, and the tuning scheme used in both is apparently the same (i.e. equal temperament, designed for single note playing above all).     

The Fire Breath overblows easily in the middle register -- more easily than any harp I've owned.  It also bends VERY deeply on every note where a bend is available -- down to within a few cents of the lower note in a given hole.  This might make absolute pitch control on bends more difficult, but it certainly makes for an expressive instrument.

I don't know yet whether the Fire Breath will be anything like as durable as an Oskar.  It's held up well so far under hard playing.  In particular, it's gratifying to see that the rosewood comb doesn't apparently swell at all.  A wooden comb that doesn't swell -- now that's better living through engineering, chemistry, or whatever technical arts were applied to the problem.  (Certainly not electronics...)

My next step will be to acquire a pair of these instruments in G and A, two keys where customized harps tend to rule, and see what they sound like.  I could see my case eventually holding a set of these to go with my Oskars -- it would certainly be nice to have those different tone colors.

Regards, Richard Hunter
hunterharp.com