I bought my harmonium a few years ago off-the-shelf from a music store in Bangalore. I was in a hurry, and selected my harmonium in a matter of 10 minutes. All I checked was whether the harmonium had a good finish, the wood looked good, the sound came out loud and clear, and the keys worked smoothly.
Later I realised that I had not checked the critical component of a harmonium - the brass reeds. The reeds in my harmonium were "Punjabi" reeds - and because they were of inferior quality, they started going off-tune quickly, and therefore required frequent tuning. Tuning harmonium reeds is a specialised skill, and done best by a skilled artisan using his ears as the guide (rather than any instrument) - so this became a problem to me as I had to lug my harmonium to India every time any of the reeds went off-tune.
I later found that the best quality reeds were made in Germany - but that German reeds are no longer available since a few decades as harmoniums have gone out of fashion in the West. To understand how German reeds sound like, and why German reeds are the best, read these posts Why every Harmonium sounds different - C Sharp Tuning and Custom-Made Triple Reed Harmonium.
Among Indian makes, the reeds made in Palitana - a small town in Gujarat - were supposed to be the best.
I wanted to replace the reeds with Palitana reeds - but the problem is that Palitana reeds are in limited supply, and there is a long waiting list. After a great deal of follow-ups (thanks to my dear wife) the reeds were finally procured from the MohanLal company and installed into my harmonium at the Bombay Harmonium Works, Mangalore.
To hear how my harmonium sounds like now, watch this
.
I am sure this harmonium now will serve me in good stead for a long time to come
Later I realised that I had not checked the critical component of a harmonium - the brass reeds. The reeds in my harmonium were "Punjabi" reeds - and because they were of inferior quality, they started going off-tune quickly, and therefore required frequent tuning. Tuning harmonium reeds is a specialised skill, and done best by a skilled artisan using his ears as the guide (rather than any instrument) - so this became a problem to me as I had to lug my harmonium to India every time any of the reeds went off-tune.
I later found that the best quality reeds were made in Germany - but that German reeds are no longer available since a few decades as harmoniums have gone out of fashion in the West. To understand how German reeds sound like, and why German reeds are the best, read these posts Why every Harmonium sounds different - C Sharp Tuning and Custom-Made Triple Reed Harmonium.
Among Indian makes, the reeds made in Palitana - a small town in Gujarat - were supposed to be the best.
I wanted to replace the reeds with Palitana reeds - but the problem is that Palitana reeds are in limited supply, and there is a long waiting list. After a great deal of follow-ups (thanks to my dear wife) the reeds were finally procured from the MohanLal company and installed into my harmonium at the Bombay Harmonium Works, Mangalore.The results are fantastic - the sound is much more mellow and beautiful, and it is a real pleasure playing it and listening to the sound. The sound will become even better over time as the new reeds gradually "open up" and lose their stiffness with the frequent playing of the instrument. And because the reeds are made of better quality material, hopefully the reeds will require less frequent tuning.
To hear how my harmonium sounds like now, watch this
.
I am sure this harmonium now will serve me in good stead for a long time to come
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