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From: SNaru~-online.de (Siegfried Naruhn)
Date: Sat, 31 Aug 96 03:24 +0100
Subject: Re: The.....versus the HOHNER Attitude!

When my compu failed "his" service a couple of days, I was of course angry to go
underground. But my unvoluntary disconnection from the list discussion was also
advantageous. Again on line, I could not only see Wim's report about his Hohner
experience but simultaneously the divided echo to his attack against the harp
monopoly.

I'm a little bit involved into the whole matter, because I could realize Wim's
idea of a wholetone-chromatic instead of Hohner. I called this prototyp simply
"Tonie" and achieved "him" (Tonie has his own personality) by modifying a Silver
CX 12. Tonie has 3 1/3 octaves on 10 holes and is now a CX 10.

When removing the spots of Tonie's starting point, I had a lot of time to
remember my own efforts to influence Hohner for developing a better harp finish.
Here, I have to interrupt for an idea I had when studying the "Hohner attitudes"
(BBB will surely understand my non-native English).

If someone says, he has ineffectively "talked with Hohner", he has certainly not
talked with the innovative part of the monopoly but unfortunately with the
commercially thinking executive. Also a factory for music instruments is mainly
profit-minded and only interested in good quality for competition purposes.

Concrete examples? Lots of. A couple of years ago, Hohner changed the straight
position of the chromatic reeds into the zig-zag or criss-cross position with
all the disadvantages most chromaticists are claiming. There is no single
advantage in the playing technic by this reed position and it must be allowed to
ask why Hohner has implemented this generally rejected changing. The reason is
unbelievable. This "invention" needs only half of the slide holes as before, a
mere cost factor! That's it why the chromaticists will surely claim this reed
position without success. Tim Moody seems to be a little blue-eyed when he
considered the respective "Hohner" answer to Wim's request as an invitation
for a cooperation.

Another example. As known, Hohner had to stop the production of the chromatic
Meisterklasse shortly after this model had "joined the market". The MKlasse is
basically one of the best chromatics Hohner ever had offered, however, the
homemade commercial fiasco is a very good reference of the discrepance between
planning, manufacturing and selling a good harp idea. In the same way I'm
convinced to have found the reasons for this desaster, I'm sure that "Hohner"
will not accept my offer to cooperate in the intended remanufacturing of the
MKlasse.

Years ago, I claimed the sharp edges of combs, plates, mouthpiece holes,
coverplates, and the sticking slides as a consequence of the almost
"hermetically" closed slide case (270 and all related constructions). The
monopoly's answer: if all these indisputable objections would be considered,
such a chromatic would become unsaleable. Instead of, Hohner introduced the
expensive gold-plated Super 64 X (of course crosspositioned) and "invented" new
harp boxes. Interesting that the boxes for the Super 64 and the considerably
smaller CX 12 have the same dimensions. A cost factor!

As it seems, the CX 12 is going to suffer the same fate as the MKlasse. The
system of an integrated, optimal gliding mouthpiece without any screws, the
spiral spring and the quick dismantling is excellent, but the finish ex factory
is just the contrary.

When Hunterha~ol.com (Richard Hunter himself?) wrote:

> I find that Mr. Dijkgraf's position towards Hohner concerning the company's
investment in and attitude towards instrument development is entirely
correct.>, I'm sad that I must underline his statement.

Whether Tonie is the ideal answer to the "two combined diatonics" is quite
another question. But I can't completely understand why Mic'l and other harp
friends "claim" that Tonie can produce only augmented chords. Has anyone heard
that the missing chords of wind instruments had been discussed?

Siegfried Naruhn