Harmonium is a keyboard instrument, also known as peti or baja. It's similar to a reed organ. Harmonium has a European origin but was widely adapted in India during the british rule. Harmonium is mainly accompanied by a dholak or tabla. It’s now very popular in Bollywood music as well as in South Asian religious, folk and classical music. In the west, Harmonium is very popular in the Kirtan Music.
Various parts of harmonium in brief are as follows: bank of brass reeds, a pumping equipment and a keyboard. Harmoniums generally consist of one (rarely), two, three or sometimes even four sets of reeds. When air is pumped through sets of reeds, sound is produced. Air is supplied with the help of bellows which can be controlled by hands.
This Harmonium is made in Delhi by BINA.
It comes with 2 sets of high-quality reeds, one male and one bass, to produce an amazing sound. This Professional quality harmonium has 3½ octaves, 7 stops, 42 keys, multifold bellows, organ tune, full cover, bright nickeled brass knobs, with wooden jaali on keys. It comes with a book & a padded-gig bag.
Buyers in all other countries, other than USA, may have to pay some import charges or taxes.
For some addresses in Canada & Australia, an additional remote area charge of $35 may apply. You can check your postcode with us.
THE A440 TUNING SAGA
How do we tune to A440?
We make sure that all this harmonium is tuned as close to A440 pitch standard as possible. Most importantly, we make sure that the harmonium is in tune with itself. We are very experinced with harmoniums and we know which reeds to use and how to fit them so that there natural tuning is very close to A440. Then we use a professional harmonium tuner (a person!) to tune the harmoniums perfectly to A440. We then let the harmonium sit for some time and recheck the tuning before shipping out.
Sometime, due to the changes in weather the pitch will change by 1 or 2 cents, but your harmonium is already set in such a way that it will stay in tune with itself.
Do you really need the exact A440 tuning?
If you are playing with fixed pitch instruments like a piano, metal flute or with players who refuse to tune to anythingelse or doing a professional recording with fixed pitch instruments, you will need an exact A440 instrument. Otherwise there is no reason to bother. Tuning can also change with the pumping speed or style.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS THAT THE HARONIUM SHOULD BE IN TUNE WITH ITSELF AND NOT TOO SHARP OR TOO LOW. ANYTHING BETWEEN A439 AND A442 IS CONSIDERED OKAY.
THE A440 TUNING SAGA
How do we tune to A440?
We make sure that all this harmonium is tuned as close to A440 pitch standard as possible. Most importantly, we make sure that the harmonium is in tune with itself. We are very experinced with harmoniums and we know which reeds to use and how to fit them so that there natural tuning is very close to A440. Then we use a professional harmonium tuner (a person!) to tune the harmoniums perfectly to A440. We then let the harmonium sit for some time and recheck the tuning before shipping out.
Sometime, due to the changes in weather the pitch will change by 1 or 2 cents, but your harmonium is already set in such a way that it will stay in tune with itself.
Do you really need the exact A440 tuning?
If you are playing with fixed pitch instruments like a piano, metal flute or with players who refuse to tune to anythingelse or doing a professional recording with fixed pitch instruments, you will need an exact A440 instrument. Otherwise there is no reason to bother. Tuning can also change with the pumping speed or style.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS THAT THE HARONIUM SHOULD BE IN TUNE WITH ITSELF AND NOT TOO SHARP OR TOO LOW. ANYTHING BETWEEN A439 AND A442 IS CONSIDERED OKAY.
COMMON HARMONIUM PROBLEMS
Harmoiums are inherently delicate instruments. It doesn't matter where your harmonium ships from - California (USA) or Delhi (India), problems can surface. In fact, these days, Harmoniums coming from Delhi (India), reach anywhere in the USA within 48 to 72 hours of air travel, if sent by express courier service. However, those coming from within the USA, travel a long distance on a truck for a few days. So these days, the Harmoniums coming from India are handled in a much better way and have lesser problems.
We pack our harmoniums very well - so well that over 95% are delivered without any issue. However, rarely, your harmonium may arrive with some small issues, which can easily be resolved with simple video instructions in no time. Beginers are not aware of these problems and think that their harmonium is faulty. This is not the case. With our expert videos, you can easily resolve these problems.
Also, these problem can happen in the future as well, when you are transporting the harmonium or just because the harmonium is not used for an extended period of time.
We provide FREE 3 years technical support by email for the harmoniums purchased from us. If you take good care of your harmonium, it can be yours for life. We have friends who have had harmoniums for over 30 years and these harmoniums are still in great shape.
Here is a list of common problems that you may face with your harmonium:
Rattling Sounds - This happens either a screw or glass cover of the harmonium is loose. A video to resolve this problem is available on request.
Sticking Keys - The keys of harmonium are made with wood and covered with plastic. Due to change in temperature and humidity, the keys can expand and stick with each other. A 5 minute video to resolve this problem is available on request.
Buzzing Reeds - Sometimes a specific key is creating a weird buzzing sound. This happens because a dust particle or something else is blocking the reed tongue. A 7 minute video to resolve this problem is available on request.
Air Leak - Sometimes the harmonium gives a very poor air sustain or there is an audible sound of air-leakage. A small video to resolve this problem is available on request.
Inconsistent finish - This is really a cosmetic issue. Harmoniums are made and finished by hand. No machines are used. Also wood is a natural product and can sometimes have inconsistent edges. You can always try and polish the harmonium with a piece of cloth or a sticker to hide any cosmetic feature which you don't like.