Tune a Lap Harp
The lap harp, a small string Break in a New Instrument in concert pitch that is popular with young children, can be a wonderful first instrument to learn on, and is also a favorite of some more experienced student musicians. They do tend to need a lot of tuning, though, as regular play, occasional use, or even just sitting and collecting dust can cause the pegs to gradually unwind and pull the whole instrument out of tune. However, never fear... the lap harp is actually fairly easy to tune, with a little musical knowledge and a lot of patience.
Steps
- Find what you'll need to tune the harp. Most lap harp kits include a tuning key (small "L"-shaped silver instrument with a hole to fit over the tuning pegs on the side(s) of the instrument and a handle to turn it), a pick (which will make strumming and note quality easier and better), and most have music that you can insert below the strings, which marks the names of the notes on all the strings. Some kits may even have a separate sheet with all the notes marked and tuning instructions. Be sure to have something of this sort so that you'll know what notes each string is supposed to play. In addition to all of this, you will need a tuner, preferably a small electronic one.
- Set the tuner. You'll be tuning to a frequency of 440 Hz (hertz), sometimes displayed on the tuner as A = 440. Keep in mind that the lap harp is not a transposing instrument, so the note you see on the screen when you play a note will be in concert pitch.
- Strum a note, and watch the tuner screen. Is the note displayed even the note that this string is supposed to be playing? If it isn't, note how many half or whole steps it is away from the intended note. Also note which way the needle is pointing - if you're already on the correct note, is it flat or sharp?
- Place the tuning key on the peg attached to the string. To correct a note that has gone a little bit flat, ever so slightly tighten the string. Do the opposite to correct a sharp pitch. If you're on a completely different note, tighten the string to make the note higher, or loosen it to make it lower. Be very careful not to over tighten the strings!
- Continue this process with all the rest of the strings. This may be slow and tedious work, so take plenty of breaks. If you come across a particularly difficult string, you may wish to ask someone else for help, or get back to it later. Check your progress periodically by playing up and down through the strings you've tuned... you'll start to notice the instrument sounding a lot better.
- Play your tuned harp! It sounds a lot better now, doesn't it? It's only a matter of time before it'll need to be re-tuned, so enjoy it while it lasts!
Tips
- While most harps are in the key of C (concert pitch) and only play "natural" notes (no flats or sharps), if you're an experienced musician, you may wish to play around with some of the strings to purposely turn a note or two flat or sharp, which makes it possible to play a lot more music, instead of being limited only to music in the key of C.
- You'll notice that after you strum a note, as it's fading away, if you turn the tuning key, you'll hear the pitch difference in the sound. This can be a good guide as to how much you've changed the sound, and if you're going higher or lower.
- Keep in mind that some of the changes you make will be so small, you may not even have to feel the movement of the key (in fact, if you do, you may have gone too far). Some adjustments are very minuscule, so be careful not to turn the key so much that it goes totally out of whack.
- Most instrument repair shops will be able to tune a lap harp, if you're having so much trouble that you'd rather have it professionally done.
- You can also tune by ear, using a piano or a note playback feature on your tuner. However, especially when using the piano, you'll have to be sure that the piano is perfectly in tune, or the harp will be out of tune, too. Generally, tuning with the needle on a tuner is more accurate and easier to work with.
Warnings
- Don't let young children try this unsupervised. It's very likely that they'll over-tighten and break a string, which can be dangerous and upsetting, and harps and their accessories are also delicate and can present a choking hazard.
- Do not over-tighten the strings! It's very easy to break strings on a lap harp, and it can be a real pain to buy replacement strings.
Things You'll Need
- Lap harp
- Electronic tuner and/or good ear
- Tuning key
- Pick (opt.)
- Note sheet (included in some harp starter kits)
