Impressed with the Sound of Your Autoharp

Dear Marc,

I was just on your website and was impressed with the sound of your autoharp. The tone is lovely and it seems to stay in tune well. I'm a professional pianist and koto player, who picked up an Oscar Schmidt (1979) autoharp a few years ago in a pawn shop in Toronto. It sounds okay but not as good as yours!!!

Would you mind directing me to the builder of your lovely hard: is there a website where they're sold?

Thanks for your beautiful music and (hopefully) the above info......

Ciao Carla,

Thank you. Glad you like my sound. My autoharps (yes, I have several) are all Oscar Schmidt 'harps about the same age. The 70s and 80s had some of the best sounding autoharps. However, not all of them sound as good as the others. Typically, when the autoharp sounds bad, the first thing I do is check the felts. If they are too worn, then it can cause some bad harmonics. Also sometimes when the strings are too old, the 'harp'll sound bad as well.

If you're playing acoustic, the autoharp typically sounds better. If you're playing electric, I use a nice OS pickup and an EQ pedal, but I haven't found a sound yet that I really love electric.

For recordings, I have my own unique recording style that I've not heard other autoharpers use. Basically, I record with one nice mic pointed at the narrow end of the autoharp facing out a wee bit so as not to pick up too much of the sound of picks against the strings. The other sound I use is the autoharp pickup with the 8-band EQ pedal smiling at me. Very minor smile -0.5db to about -4db. I also use a Natural Reverb, or depending on the song, something more. The sound is mostly autoharp pickup with the microphone adding a natural sounding ambiance.

That said, I'd start with your autoharp. Look it over, do some minor maintenance. Because more than likely you have a real gem. Hope that helps. Slainte!