What is the difference between a lever harp and a pedal harp?
Besides size and price the difference between the two types of harps is a technical one. Lever harps (with a full set of levers) have one lever on each string to raise and lower the pitch of the string by one half-step giving the harpist the ability to play in eight different key signatures without having to retune the harp. Pedal harps have seven pedals (D, C, B, E, F, G, A); so for example the D pedal controls the pitch of all the harp’s D strings and is capable of making the D strings sound as D-flats, D-naturals, or D-sharps. This allows pedal harps to play in all fifteen possible key signatures and to change between them very quickly. Because they are mechanically more complex pedal harps are usually larger, always heavier, and much more expensive than lever harps. Harpist Kari Gardner in the Chicago area answers this question in further detail here: http://harpinfo.blackandgoldharp.com/types.
