answer:I build harps. I started out of economic necessity, when my daughter took up the harp some years back. The monthly rentals were bleeding us dry, but new instruments are quite expensive, and used ones are few and far between. I had a basic understanding of woodworking, and I’m pretty good at figuring things out and getting the hang of fussy manual stuff. I looked carefully at several harps and studied their structure, then did as much research as I could (there really isn’t much helpful information out there). I knew it would be a big challenge, but I took a deep breath and dived in. There were a few disasters along the way, but an actual harp emerged 4 months later. It turned out better than I had hoped, and is still out there getting compliments. That was the first in a string of harps. They’re expensive even to build, and each one represents an enormous time commitment, so I haven’t been able to indulge in it as much as I’d like. It appeals to me on two different levels- technical and aesthetic. Harps are under huge stress; there is over half a ton of string tension in a little 34-string harp, all tied into a glued wooden structure that has to be as light as possible for good sound production. There are any number of ways a harp can fail, and bringing a new harp up to full tension for the first time is a gut-wrenching experience. Months of effort and hundreds of dollars can vanish in a second because of one ill-conceived joint. As crazy as it sounds, I kind of like that element of it my wife, not so much The aesthetic component is the most important to me. Harps, unlike violins, don’t have a fixed design. There’s still plenty of room for inventiveness and creativity in the making of a harp. And instrument making in general is one of the last refuges for meticulous craftsmanship in our age. As all the other objects in our lives get further and further removed from the hands of actual artisans, Musical instruments still represent the best of what the human hand can do with fine tools and materials.