“Musicmakers” in Stillwater, Minnesota (https://www.harpkit.com) has been a source for musical instruments, kits, and supplies since 1978. Long ago I built (from scratch) a Celtic harp and an Autochord from their published blueprints and completed a couple of mountain dulcimer kits for owners who were unable to do so themselves. I have always appreciated the quality and innovation of Musicmakers’ work.
Several years ago they produced their version of an autoharp and called it an “Autochord”. It was a unique design that differed from the more conventional Chromaharps and Oscar Schmidts. Thirty-eight ball end guitar strings spanned from bridge pins to an anchor end bridge made from a section of brass tubing. The chromatic tuning was scheduled from F2 to A5. The fifteen chord bars rested upon 1/8 Delrin rods drilled directly into the soundboard. The body of the instrument consisted of a 1/4″ redwood soundboard with a bass bar, a 3/8″ plywood back, and a laminated frame with gaps at each end of the long rail.
This interesting instrument was offered as an easy to assemble kit for someone with basic DIY skills. Like all of Musicmakers kits, it would, with attention to detail, bring satisfying results. The result however, was a rather large, heavy, and somewhat unconventional autoharp.
Although the Autochord has been discontinued for several years it still has a unique presence in the autoharp community. Musicmakers offers the plans and assembly instructions as a free download and sells the collated non-wood components needed to make the instrument. The downloaded files can be enlarged to full sized prints at a retail copy store and used as a pattern. It is a good resource for someone wanting to design or make their first autoharp or get a few ideas.
This Autochord kit came to my workshop in the original shipping carton. It was purchased in 1995 and had only the soundboard and back glued to the frame. The current owner asked me to complete it and install fine tuners.
I made several modifications to the original design. The Daigle fine tuner system came with its own bridge so I deleted the kit’s brass tube. The wound bass strings supplied were standard guitar strings that had windings their entire length. Greg Schreiber made a custom set of wound strings that had windings only within the speaking length of the strings. I substituted threaded adjustable bridge pins so I could accurately level the strings for effective damping.
The design specified drilling the Delrin chord bar combs directly into the soundboard. Instead, I made separate Delrin bases that can be more easily adjusted for smoother chord bar movement.
With that in mind, I present my own iteration of a child size autoharp designed as a serious, good sounding, and well built instrument for the young learner. I believe that a quality, attractive, and stable instrument with standard string spacing, and a logical chord bar setup will make it easier to learn and to later grow into a standard autoharp. My aim is to produce a smaller scale instrument for fun as well as serious study and not a colorful toy of passing interest.
The high quality Schreiber custom string set is specially gauged for a string schedule tuned: G-C-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-A#-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-A#-B-C.
At this time the only option I can offer is the choice of woods for the side veneer, chord set, bridges, and end cover. This prototype is cherry but other choices include walnut, maple, and mahogany. In the future I plan to add greater customization and alternate chord setups with more chords in two or three rows.
With few exceptions, autoharps have been made of wood. Solid and laminated hardwood frames have been enclosed by hardwood, softwood, and plywood with the builder’s and player’s personal preferences guiding the combination. Decades of research and experimentation with natural materials have led to construction techniques for building good sounding and structurally stable instruments but swings in temperature and humidity persist in causing cracks, bulges, separations, tuning instability and even implosions. Temperature control, humidifiers in the winter, dehumidifiers in the summer, and fine tuners all help us avoid adverse environmental effects but, as careful as we are, there can be some disappointing surprises. Could there be a material that’s very stable and sounds good? Carbon fiber may be the answer.
Carbon fiber, a very strong and rigid composite material, has been used successfully to build musical instruments for many years. The first luthier to utilize this material in sheet form for autoharp construction was Pete Daigle of Daigle Autoharps in Seattle, Washington.
My recent interest in trying carbon fiber has taken the form of this new thirty-seven string chromatic. With my one piece laminated frame and back and a carbon fiber soundboard, I’m hoping that this buggy will never crash and the only maintenance necessary will be the occasional tune-up and maybe a couple of future brake jobs.
I ordered a 12″x24″x1/8″ blank sheet of carbon fiber from the DragonPlate company in Elbridge, NY. The purchase cost and machining labor was about five times greater than that of making a comparable wooden top. 
The 1/4″ side veneer, tailpiece, and chord bar holders are made of red oak with an interesting “bark intrusion”. The eighteen maple chord bars are lacquered black and the buttons have been randomly burnt with a mini torch to resemble the oak trim.
The standard chromatic tuning schedule includes a thirty-seventh string tuned to D6. The eighteen thin chord bars are carried by steel pins driven into Delrin bases. The three row setup favors the keys of C, G, and D and includes the Cdim7th, C#dim7th, and Ddim7th chords.
To access the chord bars for adjustment or change I made magnetic holder covers that can be easily popped open without removing screws. The caps are aligned with tiny pins at each end and held fast in the center by small rare earth magnets. Self adhesive felt strips on the underside of the caps quietly adjust the chord bars’ height for a low playing action.
So, how does this carbon fiber sound? For us, it is too soon to say anything other than “different”. Folks who play the Daigle carbon fiber harps report that they are loud, bright, and have a “crazy amount of sustain”. It does seem louder than our other instruments but we need a “breaking in” period before we can assess its tone, articulation, and presence. Almost as important is the expectation of greater structural stability and the attractive visual combination of carbon fiber and red oak.
“Ah, but I was so much older then
Our lives have changed a lot since then but there is still that old friend nostalgia. For me, it surfaces from time to time in the form of a rather whimsical creation like… this “Hippy ‘Harp”.
Apart from the paint job, it differs little from my standard instrument. It’s a thirty-six string chromatic with fifteen thin chord bars painted in a rainbow pattern ( it might be said that all of the chords are “color chords”). The quiet chord bars are carried on #6 steel bridge pins driven into Delrin bases. Structurely, it features a laminated pin block frame, birch ply back, and a solid poplar soundboard. A peace symbol rosette is inlaid in the sound hole and an there is an additional sound hole in the back that makes the sound more audible to the player’s left ear and is useful for handling the instrument. 
The latest autoharp to emerge from my workshop is this thirty-seven string diatonic beauty ordered only two months ago by an autoharp friend named Lori. She currently plays chromatic autoharps and was amazed at the richer tone and greater volume of a two key diatonic. She often plays in the key of D with a dulcimer group but also finds the keys of G, C, and A useful. This diatonic is primarily set up for the keys of D and G but with the addition of a single F string can play the F chord needed for the key of C. The key of A is also present with the chords A, D, and a partial E7.
Two of the fifteen chord bars are lockbars. They are fitted with small sliding Delrin locks on each end that slide under the chord bar holder caps. There is a G lockbar and a D lockbar. When locked down the bar mutes those notes not used in that key so they cannot be played accidentally.
Here is a new custom autoharp commissioned by a musician and performer from Ontario. He desired a bright white “dove of peace” shaped sound hole on an all black body. The dove shape that he chose was too delicate to cut into the soundboard so I inlayed it in a walnut veneer ring with a bright white plastic material.
Walnut was the choice for the bridges, chord bars, chord bar buttons, bar comb covers, and tailpiece. Along with the brass hardware it makes for a subtle contrast to the solid black body.
The thirty-seven strings are anchored at the tail end with a set of Daigle Flatline fine tuners. Each string can be fine tuned by turning its allen screw with a small wrench. This is especially useful with a diatonic autoharp that has several string pairs that need to be tuned in unison and beatless. Fine tuners are also helpful for tweaking the strings that go a little sharp or flat from day to day environmental changes in temperature and humidity.
I have recently completed a new left handed autoharp that I began last Fall. It was not a commission but built for general sale. It is a basic “A” style but differs from my previous builds as it features eighteen thinner chord bars carried on aluminium and steel combs instead of the traditional slotted chord bar holders. This makes for more chords, improved action, and less noise. I hope to include this feature on most of my future builds.
As a left handed autoharp, it is ideal for the left handed player wanting to play in an upright position or for playing on the lap by a right handed player ( read about left handed autoharps in the page on this site’s header).
Features
Fret Or Fret Not 
You must be logged in to post a comment.