Pedal harps can cost $70,000 — far more than lever harps, which cost $2,000 to $9,000. At first glance, a pedal harp looks like a simple frame with a row of strings. But there are complicated mechanisms inside that musicians use to change notes. At Camac Harps in France, every harp is carved and assembled by hand. For musicians like the Grammy-nominated artist Brandee Younger, the pedal harp resonates with sonic potential.
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00:00 It takes 20 people to build this six foot tall instrument.
00:07 Across four months, artisans pull, screw, and twist together thousands of parts.
00:16 And buying a pedal harp is no minor decision.
00:20 Professional models can cost $70,000, over ten times what some smaller harps without pedal mechanisms cost.
00:29 There are finance options, just like you're buying a car.
00:33 Prying open a pedal harp reveals the complex mechanisms that enable its versatility.
00:40 So what can this massive pedal harp do that other harps can't?
00:45 And what makes it one of the most expensive instruments on stage?
00:55 We enlisted the help of Brandi Younger, a Grammy nominated artist, to explain the complexity of the pedal harp.
01:03 Right, the glissando. That's what harps are probably most known for.
01:13 But we're the only ones that can do that. So that makes us special.
01:17 When you watch a harpist, you probably notice their hands.
01:21 But you might not notice their feet.
01:24 Harpists change the pitch by stepping on these pedals, allowing them to play freely in any key.
01:32 On lever harps, mechanically simpler cousins of pedal harps, musicians must reach up to set the key by hand.
01:40 You do really need to be really quick with your hand so that you can continue to play, and then change the pitch in the middle of a song.
01:50 There's a lot of repertoire that you can only play on pedal harp and cannot play on lever harp.
01:56 But this convenience comes at a steep cost.
02:00 The fact that each harp is handmade is a big part of why they're so expensive.
02:06 Beginner models start at about $14,000, but prices can exceed $70,000.
02:14 And the expenses don't stop once you buy the harp.
02:18 Harp maintenance is a thing. And when you have three harps like me, it's a thing you cry about.
02:24 You have to buy a cover. We're talking $750, maybe $900 for the full cover.
02:31 And then a dolly. A lot of us have what they call the Rolls-Royce of harp dollies, and that's $1,000.
02:39 $500 for strings, $300 to $400 for a regulation, without anything wrong, right?
02:45 Just like a car. It's quite an expensive profession.
02:50 One of Brandy's harps was custom-made by Camac, a company that's been building harps in France for over 50 years.
03:00 And many of its artisans have worked here their whole career.
03:05 Inside, pedal harps are deceptively complex.
03:10 Artisans install about 2,000 parts by hand, making adjustments one millimeter at a time.
03:21 These metal arms are part of the mechanism.
03:29 Artisans build everything before tucking it all into the neck of the harp.
03:36 Each tiny component needs to move consistently without missing a beat.
03:42 When I move a pedal, these little parts will turn and shorten the string by this distance, which corresponds to a semitone.
03:54 Artisans attach the pedals to internal organs, which are the organs that make up the harp.
04:01 Artisans attach the pedals to internal rods connected to the neck.
04:08 When a harpist moves a pedal, the mechanism inside twists these forks, changing the length of all the strings of that note and the pitch.
04:24 So we have seven pedals for each note of the scale.
04:29 This is C natural. I move it down to make it sharp, and then I move it all the way up to make it flat.
04:39 When a harpist plucks a string, it vibrates off the massive soundboard.
04:45 Much of the wood on a pedal harp is ornamental, but the soundboard has specific requirements.
04:53 The main wood we use is not the most expensive part of the harp.
04:57 Not only the spruce, because this is the wood which will produce the tone of the harp.
05:01 So it comes from a very specific place in the Alps.
05:04 The grain of the soundboard must be absolutely parallel and perpendicular to the direction of the strings.
05:11 This is really the heart of the sound.
05:14 Because of minor differences in the wood, no two harps, even from the same company, sound exactly the same.
05:22 The sound of the harp is in fact connected to the quality of the wood of the soundboard.
05:29 But the volume of the harp is made by the sound box, which is this volume at the back of the soundboard, which will amplify the vibration.
05:39 We play with the harp leaned on our shoulders so we can feel the vibration.
05:48 I can really take a moment and just listen to the music and also physically feel the vibration through my body.
05:56 Now artisans get to work cutting, sculpting and sanding each piece.
06:14 Camacq makes about 300 pedal harps each year.
06:18 And while the tools are modern, Jacquez says harp making is largely the same as it was 200 years ago.
06:25 One of the most striking pieces is the column.
06:30 Artisans fill every inch with ornate carving.
06:35 But it'll take a week to finish this design.
06:41 I start by making a drawing.
06:45 Then I use my tools, which are gouges, to make the striking.
06:50 This is called striking, which means hitting.
06:53 Jean Berneur has been carving since he was 14.
06:58 Most designs he recreates from memory.
07:02 Every wood has its flaws and qualities.
07:07 Some are harder, some are softer.
07:11 I love them all.
07:13 At the other end of the workshop, artisans coil each of the 47 strings up to the neck.
07:34 The middle strings are made from animal gut, while the outer ones use nylon and steel.
07:40 Gut strings produce a warm sound, but are less durable than nylon.
07:46 Durability is important because a full set costs $500 to $800.
07:53 Typically, harps need a new set of strings once a year.
07:58 But making the individual parts is only half the battle.
08:03 Now it's time to put it all together.
08:06 After 23 years at Camac, Guillaume is an expert at visualizing a finished harp from the separate pieces.
08:17 And workers actually put it together twice.
08:30 First to fit all of the parts together, then again after workers varnish the wood.
08:37 We learn a lot here.
08:40 The assembly and adjustment is done on the spot.
08:45 Each harp has its own special adjustment.
08:53 If I took this piece back, it wouldn't go on another canopy.
08:58 Most of the artisans in our company have spent their whole lives here.
09:03 It's really in the hands of our workers.
09:10 Every time one worker leaves, we lose some knowledge.
09:15 Pedal harps are a very popular instrument in the world.
09:22 Pedal harps are much more expensive than their simpler cousins, lever harps, which cost $2,000 to $9,000.
09:34 Camac makes about 2,000 lever harps a year.
09:39 This type of harp is what new players usually learn on.
09:45 This I got from my very first teacher.
09:47 When a student is ready to move from a lever harp to a pedal harp, and I have to have a conversation with their parents,
09:54 because it doesn't mean just buying something that costs a car, it often means that they have to also buy a new car that can fit the harp inside of it.
10:03 They both come with their sets of challenges, and there are some incredible lever harpists out there.
10:10 But I have an easier time on the pedal harp.
10:14 For musicians, it's important to have a harp that represents them aesthetically as well as musically.
10:21 So this is one of my babies. I have three main babies.
10:26 This is a Camac, and the model is a big blue, but it is custom.
10:31 I call it Champagne. Champagne and ebony.
10:35 There's a pickup on every string.
10:37 And so I use this harp, especially when I'm performing with my trio or larger groups.
10:43 For acoustic performances, Brandy uses her Lion and Healy harp.
10:48 Growing up, I always wanted to play music that I heard on the radio.
10:58 Today, we see it most often in orchestras.
11:01 But I always did sort of go off the beaten path and had sort of a double life, maybe a triple life.
11:08 Part of the life was in orchestra, part of it was recording on hip-hop recording sessions,
11:13 and then part of it was playing at jazz clubs.
11:16 I think the harp shines in all genres,
11:20 because I really do think that there's sonically room for it in way more styles of music than people are used to hearing.
11:28 It's not only possible to play the instrument and to take ownership of the instrument,
11:34 but to take it outside of where it's completely respected and completely expected,
11:41 and to do something with it confidently and seriously.
11:45 [Music]