Degemer Mat da, Bienvenue à, Welcome to
(Telenn Ar Menez means "Harp of the Mountain, or Mountain Harp", in Brezhoneg, the Breton language)
Celtic Folk Harps of Distinction (and Harp Repair)
Telenn Ar Menez - Mountain Harp
The folk harps of Telenn Ar Menez - Mountain Harp are for those searching for a truly fine folk harp. Two very important qualities of any harp are its overall tone and projection. Our nylon strung models are designed to provide a lively overall tone with very good projection and none of the "boxed in" sound that some harps possess. They are neither very dark nor very bright in their overall tone, the high octaves being fairly bright while the middle and low octaves are somewhat dark. Thus the entire tonal spectrum is appropriately represented.
We also repair harps if the needed repair is not too unlikely or too difficult to achieve. You can contact us and tell us what exactly is damaged or wrong on your harp. And sending a photo of the damaged area of the harp may be requested.
You can see larger pictures of all harp photos on all the various pages of this website by clicking on the harp pictures.
The soundboards are made of solid tonewood (mainly Engelmann Spruce). We do not use veneer on the soundboards. While the use of a veneer often provides a pleasing look to the soundboard, and can help even out the resonance and volume of different notes, it also reduces the liveliness and richness of a harp's sound.
We strive to design our harps for a near seamless transition between the octaves, and especially between the nylon core and metal core strings in the bass.
The overall look of these harps is designed to be both graceful and strong, appealing to both male and female players.
We constantly work to improve the design of our harps to further the goal of even better sound, playability, looks and comfort. View our "Harp Models" page to see our latest harp model.
Materials Utilized
Woods used include Cherry, Walnut or Maple for the structural frame of the harps. For the soundboards Engelmann Spruce is utilized, although Lutz Spruce (a hybrid of different spruce species), Western Red Cedar and other woods can be used upon request.
The roundback models utilize high quality/high strength bending plywood with a wood veneer for the rounded portion of the soundbox. Santos Mahogany and other colorful woods are utilized for the trim and string ribs.
Sharping Lever Options
We used to use Truitt sharping levers on all our harps. But the Dragon Whispers company no longer exits. We are now using Rees or Camac sharping levers. We are currently looking at adding other sharping lever options. If there is a particular brand of levers you would like just let us know and we will do our best to satifsy your request. Also, contact us to determine whether you want a partial or full set of levers, and to obtain the current pricing for these levers and their installation.
Design Features
The soundboards of our folk harps are triple compound tapered, increasing in thickness from the treble end down to approximately a quarter way up from the bass end, then reducing in thickness again along the bottom quarter of the soundboard, while also reducing in thickness from the center/string rib area out towards the sides. This design is not found on all harps, but the extra time and effort to achieve this compound tapering results in a much more responsive and beautiful sounding harp.
The soundboards utilize an asymmetric design where the side to the right of the stringband is wider than side to the left. This helps avoid/reduce the occurrence of some notes resonating profoundly while others resonate much less. We think it also gives just a little more "sweetness" to the sound.
The neck is composed of two, solid wood halves with a high quality, baltic birch plywood "spline" running along most of the length of the neck, but visible only from the bottom of the neck. In addition, carbon fiber is added on one side of this spline. This combination spline greatly helps the neck resist the bending and torsional stresses it experiences from string tension.
The pillar on our Al Labous model has a T-brace which helps it resist the stresses it experiences from string tension. In addition, this T-brace adds an aesthetically pleasing, traditional look to the harp.
The bottom of the pillar is not attached to the bottom of the soundboard but rather is attached to the baseplate, giving the bass notes greater volume and projection than found on some harp designs with pillar/soundboard joins. In addition, having a few inches of soundboard beneath the lowest string allows for greater bass note resonance and volume.
Future Design Features
At present all our harps are roundback models. We can make stave-back and square-back versions if truly desired by a purchaser. And in the future various La Tène inspired intarsia/onlay ornamentations might be available at an additional cost.
Warranty
All our harps are warrantied for five years against defective materials and workmanship, and structural failure from normal usage. This warranty does not extend to accidental damage or normal wear and tear. An information sheet is included with the harps detailing actions and modifications to the harp which void the warranty, as well as useful tips for maintaining and caring for your Telenn Ar Menez - Mountain Harp. See the "Warranty" link above for details.
Please contact us with inquiries. We are always glad to answer any questions you may have about our harps. Click on the "Contact Us" link at the top of the page for information on how to reach us.
(Telenn ar Menez is pronounced "tell in r May nez", the "May" being accented and somewhat nasalized with the lips widened so it is pronounced more at the back of the mouth. And the "nez" is pronounced like neck but with a z sound instead of a k sound).