In preparation for an upcoming workshop (renaissance dance
music with Margriet Tindemans), I've tuned my Spanish arpa
de dos ordenes down to A415. It sounds ... different. (And
the touch is _very_ different!) But the next weekend, there's
a folk harp workshop, so I'll be tuning back up to A440 on
Sunday afternoon. (Any bets on how many strings will
break?)
I can see that this will be an ongoing problem; right now, I'm
not sure how big a problem it will be, so I'm asking for other's
experiences:
Have any of you gone through a period when you frequently
alternated between pitch levels? How did the instrument
stand up to it?
Although the maker assured me that it would play well at
either A440 or A415, I can't help wondering if flip-flopping
the tension will somehow be bad for the harp. But maybe
the only casualty will be strings and patience. Any
experiences to share?
Thanks,
Bill McJohn
billmc@microsoft.com
(Who wasn't planning to get _another_ harp quite this soon,
but that would be one solution...)