Aoyama 36 string Irish or Troubadour lever Harp Model 140 N

Description

Aoyama 140 natural Irish or Troubador Harp Made in Fukui, Japan
36 strings: upper octaves mono filament nylon, low-mid octave of wound nylon middle strings and bottom 8 strings of wound metal.
Full set levers
Height at top of pillar: 55." (141 cm), Height at top of neck joint: 49" (125 cm), Depth from front of pillar to back of sound box: 30" (76 cm), Width at base: 19" (49 cm)
Includes spare strings & tuning wrench, and also
a canvas  cover for safe easy transport and storage.
Top-of-the line craftsmanship and sound on this harp
This is a harp of solid construction made of maple with a spruce soundboard and cherry or walnut trim with projection and sustain to fill a heart or a hall full of people. It is in very good structural and functional condition with some cosmetic flaws in surface one might expected in an older used instrument. I have owned it since the late eighties. The original owner was my neighbor and when I first heard hear playing it through her kitchen window I could not believe my ears. That was 1986 or so and she had bought it maybe a decade earlier. By then the Aoyama family had been making stringed musical instrument for around 100 years. They are now producing some of the finest Folk harps and Concert pedal harps available.
36 strings from low C up the
7 note
diatonic scale (do re mi fa...sound that we all know so well
) through 5 full octaves to a high c
This tuning evokes music from even the most innocent of musicians and professionals alike.
One could theoretically play in any key. Depending on the initial tuning, the levers can cancel flats or add sharps to the key signature enabling a player to easily change to six of the next scales in the circle of fifths.
For example, if the instrument is tuned with all levers down to the scale whose key signature contains three flats (Bb, Eb, Ab, in the tuning C D Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb...etc. that we think of as Eb major or C minor),
then by using the levers one can raise each string a half step from its original note. First the Ab's raised to A natural gives us an open tuned harp in Bb major/G minor. Raise the Eb's next to E naturals and we're in an open tuned F major/ D minor scale with one flat in the key signature. By following this pattern through and all seven notes and all the levers have been raised, we will have four sharps and be in the key of E major or C# minor.
About the Sharping Levers:
It was Masao Aoyama, the predecessor of Kenzo Aoyama who currently heads the operation, who put his heart and soul into the development of the Aoyama sharping lever.  Solid brass and plated with gold, these levers are smooth, tight-locking, and easy to flip up and down.  They will not scrape the strings and cause breakage, a common enough problem with other styles of sharping levers.  Many manufacturers in the world have now adopted the Aoyama style sharping levers, a tribute to Masao Aoyama's skill and originality.
Buyer can pick up or Delivery can be arranged in northern New Mexico / Southern Colorado
I am willing to ship further distances if buyer can make arrangements with me prior to buying for costs (incuding insurance) and we will use Taos Shipping and Crating to pack it safely and ship via fedex or ups
a sound clip of this model 140 N harp being played (not this exact instrument that i am selling): www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8Mpab469Mw
Model 140 (N)
Irish 36 strings with levers on all strings
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Material:
Maple with Spruce Soundboard
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Finish:
Semi-matte