Custom Laser Harps and Custom Laser Harp Installations


The Finest Custom Laser & Light Beam Harps in the world.

For Installation in your Science and Technology Center, or Children`s Museum.

 For Spectacular Performances on Stage with your Custom Laser Harp, or
'Infinite Beam', Laser Harp Controller.

               


For playing on stage as a midi performance instrument, your Laser Harp can be custom designed to fit your needs in just the size and configuration that you desire. I can also build you a harp with strings, that is also electro-acoustic, with lasers installed as well.

For installation in your Science or Children`s Museum, I can design a compact lap or floor sized laser harp that looks just like a harp. Or I can design for you a laser harp installation in a shape that is very sculptural and stream lined. For example in a large open "C" shape, or any other shape that you have in mind.

Or for a entirely different approach, your Laser Harp installation could be in the shape of a grand old Oak tree, carved from figured Maple or Myrtle wood, with the lasers shinning down from the branches, onto the sensors in the exposed tree roots !

Let me know all your ideas and design requirements, I look forward to bringing your special Laser Harp project to Life, for All your Educational, entertainment or stage performance needs.

The Laser Harp shown above on the left is a custom 28 Laser harp with both Red and Green Lasers. Shown with theatrical haze

The harp at right and at bottom,  is a custom carved laser harp, with 8 red lasers, created for the 'Strong National Children`s Museum of Play', in Rochester NY. It was created to be "The Giant`s Harp", from "Jack and the Beanstalk

I custom build very special Multi-media MIDI harps that have red or green laser beams instead of strings. I build two types of laser and light beam harps, 'framed' and 'infinite beam versions. I use low powered 5mw red and green lasers, which are referred to as Class II lasers, which are safe for public interaction with, when installed in a laser harp.

This is a Carved Myrtle wood Laser Harp with 8 green Lasers. It is currently for sale and available for $15,000, complete with software and all multimedia control equipment, ready to hook to a Laptop computer and sound system. This harp is about 38 inches tall, designed to be installed on a about a 4 for high cabinet.

Laser Harp shown here above.

This is a custom carved Laser Harp, made form Oregon Myrtle wood,  with 7 green lasers, designed, and carved for the "Jewish Children`s Museum", in Brooklyn New York.

 It is carved to resemble,  as if it is made from part of a living Olive tree, with olive leaves and fruit, and with gilded gold highlights to the carving..There are three buttons, with the active one lit up, that change the music played, form one traditional Jewish Melody to another. The laser beams are set sop that there music is played in the correct order, with the speed of play determined by how fast the laser beams are broken. The Hebrew inscription says, "King David, Blessed by G_d."

'Framed' Laser Harps

In this type of laser harps, the lasers shine onto optic sensors, located on the "sound board" of the harp. The lasers are located in the neck of the harp, shining down on the "string rib". The lasers are generally set about 2 to 3 inches apart, (the spacing can be customized, depending on how you wish to use the harp).

 A 'framed' laser harp can be designed and created in almost any shape or size that will allow a stable beginning and end point for the laser beam and it`s sensor. And that will allow you to break that laser beam, and thus trigger the midi event or sound you have programmed, with your hand or in any other way.

A room sized installation could be designed and custom built, with the lasers shining down from an elevated structure, down to sensors set on the floor, or from one wall to another.

I can build these harps in any style and size, and I can also create a carved and sculpted laser or light beam harp that has a 'look' or style like any of the many custom harps I have built over the last thirty years.

 These harps are usually designed and built to be in a harp-like shape, but almost any possible shape or style, size or configuration is possible. Let me know what design, or  concept you might have in mind! A room sized installation could be designed and custom built, with the lasers shining down from an elevated structure, down to sensors set on the floor, or from one wall to another.

 Custom Laser harp with 8 red lasers, created for the "Children`s Hospital of the King`s Daughters", in Virginia Beach Virginia, 2008.

'Infinite Beam' Low power laser, Laser  Beam Harps

I am working on some new designs for using  lasers beams in what is referred to as an infinite beam type laser beam harp. In this type of harp the lasers  beams are pointed up in a fan shaped pattern, fanning out away from each other, from a compact harp body. In this type harp the laser beams are reflected back to optic sensors set into the body of the harp. The number of sensors is only limited by the number of midi channels in the midi controller system hooked up to the harp. the usual is 8, 16 or 32 channels. the number of light or laser beams in this type of harp can be from 8 to 12. For a laser beam harp like this the most common choice is for a low powered, pulsed green laser

Micro Adjustable laser Mountings

 The most important thing with an Laser Harp, is that the frame or body of the harp, that supports the lasers and the optic sensors must be perfectly stable, in order to maintain the perfect aim of each laser to it`s optic sensor. I use micro adjustable aiming fixtures, to allow the lasers to be easily adjusted to be on target to the sensors.

I can custom design the height and size of your own Laser Harp, to fit your individual playing style and travel needs. Please inquire with me about your needs and ideas !

How Do They Work ?

In its simplest form, a Laser Beam Multi-media MIDI Harp, is a light controlled switch. When a beam is interrupted and broken, or reflected back to an optic sensors, in the 'infinite beam' type, a signal is created, which activates previously selected events.

 In the 'framed' type of harp, the laser beams are broken by your hand passing through them, a signal is sent to your computer (lap top or desk top computer running windows ), which serves as your controller unit. In this type harp, the software functions in 'inverse' mode, which means that the laser hitting the sensors makes a circuit that you break with your hand.

 The windows  software ( XP, but Windows 7 should be available soon), I supply is fully programmable to produce a wide variety of different sound and visual effects when you break or reflect  any of the laser beams with your finger or hand. This software has a fully programmable synthesizer and wave event editor built in to it. there is already loaded an extensive library of sampled wave file sounds and music, as well as an wide array of ready to load 'songs'. these songs are collection of wave file sound sand music, and/ or synthesizer produced sounds, all set to play on the your new Laser or light beam harp.

When used with the 'infinite beam' type of harp, the software is in normal mode, which has settings to take advantage of the variable 'analog effect' produced by reflecting the laser or light beam back toward the sensors on the harp body. By shifting the height of your hand when reflecting the beam to the sensors, you can change pitch or volume as you move up and down in the beam.


Here is a run down of the specs of the Mountain Glen Harps-OptiMusic MIDI multimedia controller system that I supply with each of my Laser Harps.



Cabinet for the "Children's Hospital of the King`s Daughter`s" custom laser harp, containing all the midi, stereo sound and computer equipment and controls needed to run the harp. It is all plugged into a AC/DC power supply in the floor.



This system is a simple 'plug & play' on a winxp PC or laptop. The software is also available for other windows software.

The Mountain Glen Harps- OptiMusic MIDI controller system consist of either a PC card and the OMPC1-AV software that you install in your WINXP PC computer, or a USB control cable/ box, with the OMPC1-AV software, that you connect to your WINXP laptop computer.

This beam interaction can trigger sound, lighting, visual images, video, special effects, smoke, pyrotechnics and other digital applications - all in real time. In practice, variations of this simple example are what give the Mountain Glen Harps-OptiMusic MIDI Multimedia controller system its power and versatility.

 All systems come with many presets and libraries to choose from that require little or no setting up and no special technical knowledge.

Remote Control

Mountain Glen Harps-OptiMusic  MIDI controller systems are supplied with a User Button Box, with four control buttons, to control and change settings, sounds etc. This box has a log cable that allows remote placement of the box.

Play Modes

* Trigger Mode In this mode, breaking a beam always triggers the event, sound (a sample, loop or MIDI note), image or video that that particular beam has been preset to trigger. Each beam will always trigger its own preset event when broken. e.g. If the blue beam is set to play a bass drum and the yellow beam a snare drum; then the blue will always play a bass drum and the yellow a snare.

* Sequence Mode In this mode, breaking any of the beams plays a preset melody or song one note at a time. Familiar tunes may be played by the breaking the beams in time with the song. Little or no musical ability is required to play a tune. Similarly, a sequence of images could be displayed or an image could be built up one part at a time.

* Event Mode When broken, a beam set to 'Event Mode' can change octaves, sounds, songs or programmed settings for any or all of the beams.

Switch Modes

* On-Off A sound will play only while a beam remains broken. The sound stops when the beam is unbroken.

* Play to end Once triggered, a sound will play to the end regardless of when the beam is unbroken.

* Toggle Mode Breaking a beam the first time triggers a sound which plays to the end (or loops) until the beam is broken a second time.

All beams do not have to be set to the same Play or Switch Mode - each beam may be set up differently. Beams can be set up to be secondary control beams, that can play events or sounds, as well as changing any aspect of the whole sequence programming.


The system can interface with most existing lighting control systems (via  MIDI inputs to your lighting board or controller.)

I build my laser harps in three basic sizes, with 8, 16, or 32 lasers.  Custom sizes are possible, please inquire.

They come standard with all Red Lasers, but all or some of the Red Lasers can be replaced with Green ones, at additional cost.


Laser Harp Prices

These are prices for basic harp-like configurations. Custom carving and shaping of your  laser harp may be more, and will be quoted on an individual bases.

These prices include:

One OptiMusic USB Data box module w/USB cable, (for the first set of 8 laser channels). This box can be daisy chained to 3 more boxes to control 32 beams. You connect this USB Data box to your laptop computer. ( There is also the option of a PC card for your PC computer) And we can also supply you with a Laptop computer set up with pre-installed software, at additional cost. Please inquire for more information about this option.

For the 16 and 32 laser beam models, an USB extender unit for each additional set of eight lasers is included.

A button Box for users to scroll through settings (4 Buttons).

And the OMPC-AV Version 4.0 software for Audio (Wav + MIDI) and Visuals (Pics and videos).

A  AC/DC power supply for each set of eight lasers.


For an Eight beam Laser Harp , with  Red or green Laser beams.................$13,000

Without Midi controller and software.........................................................$8,000

For an sixteen  beam Laser Harp, with Red or green Lasers........................$22,000

Without Midi controller and software.........................................................$14,000

For an Thirty two beam  Laser Harp, with Red or green Lasers....................$34,000

Without Midi controller and software.........................................................$26,000

Shipping, packing and handling are extra.

Payment can be made with Papal, check, money order, Visa or Master card, or Allegro Acceptance.

Warranty on Mountain Glen Laser Harps

The constructed and carved wood parts of  my Laser Harps, is warranted by Mountain Glen Harps LLC, for a period of Five years from the time of delivery. Warranty does not cover misuse, accidental damage, abuse, or exposure to weather or humidity extremes.

The AC/DC power supply are also warranted for Five years. Warranty does not cover damage due to, power surge, misuse, accidental damage or exposure to weather extremes.

The Lasers are warranted by Mountain Glen Harps LLC, for a period of One year from delivery. ( The normal life expectance of the laser diode modules is usually at least Five years, according to the manufacture.)  

 Here below are videos, showing my latest laser harp I just installed in Sept 2008, in the " Children`s Hospital of the King`s Daughter`s "in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

This video here below, shows the harp playing a 'jam session' programs that combines many of the possible ways to use and trigger wave files via breaking the laser beams. These are all real sampled sounds of real instruments, vibes, drums etc. The sound can be triggered instantly, and for a moment, as well as a play to end file, or as a start with first break, stop with next one, and then with a third touch, to change the file being played. there is also several loops being triggered in this sample, that give the back beat to the mix.

 
he video here above , shows the harp playing cascades of harp notes. When each laser beam is broken, it plays a cascade of three octaves of actual harp notes that then play to end. As more lasers are broken, each sequence of harp notes overlays the previously triggered cascades already playing. The resulting sound is like a whole series of harps all being played at the same time.



This video here above, shows the harp playing a jungle music program with three various background loops, that can be changed via the lowest laser beam being broken, plus all kinds of animal sound wave files, each played to end, over-lapping each other, as the other laser beams are played.

This harp above is playing various sampled Virtual DJ, James Brown samples and other vocals, with several different background loops, that can be changed by breaking the bottom beam repeatedly. This programming also has a "record scratching" type of effect, where every time you break some of the beams, the sound can repeat like when a DJ plays or "scratches" a record.

 

 

Thank you for coming to visit my Harp Pages, please let me know how I can bring your Dream Harp to Life !

Follow your Bliss, and live your Life in Joy!

Glenn J. Hill

Member: International Folk Harpers & Craftsmen Association Inc, Association of Science
and Technology Centers,
Siskiyou Woodcraft Guild.

Please follow this link to take a look at my new custom harp builder blog:  http://thecustomharpbuilder.blogspot.com/

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