Out of curiosity, I asked the seller to send detailed photos. I
would be glad to send them to anyone who would like to see them -
just drop me a note.

Regards;
Doug


>
> I'm always one to have an opinion...
>
> This guy is clearly not connected to the modern nyckelharpa world.
He says
> that Dalarna is the center of nyckelharpa playing (it's really
Uppland) and
> that making has pretty much died out (it's going strong). But he
does say
> he's a guitar player/maker, not into nyckelharpa, so it's
reasonable for him
> to not know. The phrase "The tradition of making nyckelharpa is
desapering
> [sic]" is clearly a sales pitch.
>
> The harpa itself appears to be a typical course-harpa: probably
made by
> someone who took a year-long course offered through Vuxenskolan (my
Dad
> built my first harpa in 1976-77 that way). It has the hallmarks of
that
> era: the lack of sloping body near where the neck attaches (just
above your
> wrist, when playing), only 8 (not 12) of the sympathetic strings on
metal
> fine tuners (the other 4 on wooden pegs). It also has typical
details of
> course work: the odd decorations on the top of the keys, the round
pegs.
> Back then, everyone wanted to express their individuality and try to
> invent/improve the design, so you got a lot of decorations
and "innovations"
> -- I don't know how you'd get the wooden pegs to turn if they ever
seized
> up. If they're shaped like paddles, then you can get a good hold
or use a
> chunk of wood with a slot (that fits the paddle) to get some
mechanical
> advantage. This is a typical course design, something of the
Sahlström
> "57:an" look to it. If it really follows that design too much,
then the
> bass bar will be too thin when leads to sunken tops.
>
> Musical instruments get better when played, so having it sit in the
box has
> no benefit. You just miss out on the advances in design and
techniques that
> have happened in the last 25 years. New, top-quality harpas can be
had for
> $2000 to $2500, so why pay $1500 for this clearly inferior harpa?
>
> Without having heard it and played it, I can't be certain, but
based on the
> pictures and the history I'd say this harpa is worth $750.
Probably not
> worth shipping to America. Sorry.
>
> Bart
> --
> Bart Brashers
> 3039 NW 62nd St
> Seattle WA 98107
> 206-789-1120 Home
> 425-921-4020 Work
> 206-550-2606 Mobile
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>