[Harp-L] Is custom work worth it?

[laurentHarp@xxxxx]

Hello

I think it depends on your playing and on the level of customization.

As many people said, factory harps have improved a lot. Today a Marine  
Band, a Crossover, a Manji are generally very good out of the box.  
With a quick gapping, you can play overblows decently.  A  
customization is always a plus though, as your instrument would play  
good for sure (there still might be some problems with the mass  
producted harps), plus you would have an better playability.

If you don't play fully chromatically, a custom harp would probably  
not improve your playing a lot. No real need (apart from pleasure!) of  
a perfectly customized harp if you just throw a few overblows in a  
"traditional" playing.

Things change if you're into intensive chromatic playing, for example  
if you're into playing jazz with lots of modulations ("hey, let's  
modulate to Ebm and come back to Dm ...."). In that case, you need a  
very good fluidity, a good tone and a precise pitch for every note you  
play. This is where a very good custom can change what you can play.  
Really.

At least, this is my experience 😊

There are quite a few good customizers out there, and you need a very  
good one if you want an instrument really optimized for  
overblows/overdraws.

For example, the Brodur Sebastien Charlier custom harp is really,  
really excellent (see more at http://tinyurl.com/kypzm4l).

But your mileage may vary
Laurent
www.planetharmonica.com