The Wurlitzer harp is well known, but indeed rare. I've only seen two --
one at Harvey and Marion Roehl's home back in mid-70s (not yet restored),
and just last year a perfect working specimen near Chicago.
The tone is soft, but a bit brighter (more nasal and twangy) than a
hand-played harp. There is no expression, but the arrangement of "Claire
de Lune" that I heard was beautiful (it seemed to be an exact copy of
Debussy's piano score). This harp was coin-operated. It would be a
perfect instrument for a small home shared with a spouse who doesn't go
for ricky-tick, razz-ma-tazz, monkey music :-)
But they are scarce, and fitted with a pneumatic valve system that's
about 4 times more complex than necessary and reputedly the devil to
rebuild. No idea what one would sell for, but probably at least as much
as a Violano Virtuoso.
Yes, they were motor driven and made by a separate company (in Indiana
if I recall right) for Wurlitzer. They are as tall as a man but much
narrower than an orchestral harp, and take very little floor space. A
pity there aren't more of them to go around.
Mike Knudsen
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