Re: [Harp-L] Cheap harps

[Timothy Kane <hawkeyekane@xxxxxxxxx>]

"Yes, harmonica players are notoriously frugal. Be nice to yourself, buy one good harmonica you believe you will really like, and practice on that one. You deserve it!"
 
Well....those are kind and well-wishing words. But the fact is that in a lot of harp players' cases, it's not so much a matter of acting out of a frugal nature. It's simply what they can or cannot afford. 
 
I bought a ton of Marine Bands & Special 20's back when I first started playing....and soon saw the steady increases in price. So, I switched to Blues Harps and Big Rivers, because at that time, it was far less costly to replace reedplates than to buy new harps. That soon changed when the MS plates began to cost more than a new Big River. And then Hohner started selling SP20 plates, which were slightly more economical, but it still adds up quickly. For someone on a 9 to 5 hourly income, buying a full set of Manjis or 1847's simply isn't in the cards a lot of the time.
 
Point I'm getting at here is that a harp player who is on a strict budget does not want to use their quality, hand-built, German or Japanese harps for practice. It means additional usage of those reeds, which equals a shorter life of the harp. Best to save the goods for a gig, cause that's when you're going to want your best tone available. Use the cheapies to practice on, and you'll appreciate your hero harps that much more at showtime.  

                          Hawkeye Kane
                                                                                                 hawkeyekane@xxxxxxxxx
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