How to Grow Your Harp Teaching Studio Quickly with the Discovery 16 Education Bundle
Growing a harp teaching studio is rarely limited by demand. More often, the bottleneck is instruments.
You may have a school interested in whole-class music, a community group ready to try something new, or ten adults asking to attend a beginner course. If you only have one or two harps available, those opportunities are difficult to accept.
The Discovery 16 Education Bundle is designed to solve that problem. It gives you ten lightweight, Welsh-made harps and a ready-made set of teaching resources, allowing you to put an instrument into every student’s hands from the very first session.
Here is exactly how to use the bundle to grow your teaching studio.
What is included in the Discovery 16 Education Bundle?
The bundle includes:
- 10 handmade Discovery 16 harps, made in Wales
- A range from D1 to C16, including middle C
- A weight of approximately 1.96kg per harp
- Personalisation, with your project or course name engraved on the bottom of the soundboard
- The Discover The Harp course workbook as a PDF
- Discover The Harp at Christmas as a PDF
- Three Welsh Dance Tunes for the Discovery 16 as a PDF
- Two Discover The Harp videos
- A progression route from ISoM Step 1 to Grade 5, through the Ofqual-regulated International School of Musicians
- a 10 week scheme of work for a Harp Club
- a 3 term scheme of work for "silver strings" from nothing through step 1, step 2 and Grade 1 with ISoM
Check the Discovery 16 Education Bundle for current pricing and availability.
Straps, strap locks and pickups are available separately through the webshop.
Step 1: Start with the class, not the catalogue
The first question is not, “How many harps can I sell?” It is, “Who do I want to teach?”
Decide which audience best suits your experience, location and timetable:
- A primary or secondary school class
- An after-school or lunchtime club
- An adult beginners’ group
- A community music project
- A one-day workshop
- Birthday or hen party bookings
- A holiday or seasonal course
- A full-class music programme
The Discovery 16 bundle works because every participant can play at the same time. There is no waiting for a turn and no need to build a lesson around watching somebody else play.
What to do: Choose one audience and create one clear first offer. For example: “A three-hour Discover The Harp tm course for up to ten absolute beginners.”
Step 2: Run a three-hour taster before committing to a term
A taster session gives prospective students a complete, enjoyable experience before they enrol on longer-term tuition.
Use all ten harps for a single three-hour Discover The Harp-style session. This format is designed to take an absolute beginner from holding the instrument for the first time to playing real music.
A strong taster session should include:
- How to sit and position the harp
- Basic hand shape and finger technique
- Identifying the strings
- Simple rhythm and pulse work
- A first melody
- Playing together as an ensemble
- A short performance or shared finale
The aim is not to cover everything. The aim is to give students a tangible achievement and a clear sense of what they could do next.
What to do: Set a date, cap the group at ten participants and end the session with an invitation to your beginner term or follow-on programme.
Explore Discover The Harp workshops and course ideas.
Step 3: Package the journey simply
Avoid making prospective students choose between a confusing list of lesson options. Give them a straightforward route:
- Three-hour taster session: harps provided.
- Beginner term: weekly group tuition.
- ISoM Step 1 progression: a recognised first milestone.
- Continuation lessons or ensemble playing.
You can structure the programme in whichever way suits your local market, venue and teaching model. The important point is that each stage should lead naturally to the next.
Owning an instrument can also help students remain engaged. Once a learner buys their own Discovery 16, they have a harp to practise on, something to bring to each lesson and a stronger personal commitment to continuing.
All new students at Cambrian Harp School start on a Discovery 16. It is not treated as a disposable stepping stone: it is a complete introduction to playing the harp and can support graded examinations from Step 1 through Grade 5 with ISoM.
What to do: Write your offer in three lines: what happens first, what students learn next and how they progress afterwards.
Step 4: Use the included resources instead of writing a syllabus from scratch
One of the fastest ways to lose time as a teacher is to create every worksheet, arrangement and lesson plan yourself.
The included resources give you a cumulative starting point:
- The Discover The Harp workbook supports the first stages of learning.
- Three Welsh Dance Tunes for the Discovery 16 provides small harp arrangements with a strong Welsh character.
- Discover The Harp at Christmas is ideal for a seasonal term and can be taught immediately after a taster session.
- The two Discover The Harp videos provide additional support for learners between sessions.
- The resource library is always growing on our website at very affordable prices from just 99p
These materials are especially useful if you are working with a school, a new teaching assistant or another tutor who needs a consistent starting framework.
What to do: Map the workbook across your first term(you can use the included harp club and silver strings schemes of work or choose one or two pieces for a final performance, and use the Christmas material for an autumn or winter intake.
Step 5: Offer a genuine accreditation route
Beginners want enjoyment, but they also want to know where the journey leads.
The Discovery 16 can be used for graded examinations from ISoM Step 1 to Grade 5. ISoM is Ofqual-regulated, giving your students a formal progression route on the same small harp on which they began.
You can also explain the practical advantages:
- Step 1 assessment can follow a single introductory session where requirements are met.
- Examinations can be taken live online or by recorded submission.
- ISoM music is freely accessible.
- Students can progress without immediately needing to change instrument.
That is a powerful message for parents, schools and adult learners: this is not merely a novelty workshop. It is a structured way to learn harp online, in person or through a blended programme.
What to do: Add the ISoM progression route to every course description, information pack and school proposal.
Step 6: Reach audiences beyond individual lessons
Ten instruments allow you to offer formats that are impossible with a one-harp studio.
Consider adding:
- School whole-class music
- Community music days
- Introductory workshops
- Birthday parties
- Hen parties
- Holiday programmes
- Corporate or wellbeing sessions
- Harp ensemble projects
The Discovery 16 is comfortably portable, making it practical for teaching across different venues. Its compact size also helps you introduce the Welsh harp to audiences who may never have considered learning a full-sized instrument.
What to do: Contact five local schools, community centres or event organisers with one specific proposal and a clear maximum group size.
Step 7: Make the instruments recognisably yours
Personalisation is included in the bundle. You can have your project, school or course name engraved on the bottom of each soundboard.
This has three practical benefits:
- It gives the project a professional identity.
- It helps deter loss or accidental mixing with other instruments.
- It turns the harps into a recognisable, branded asset.
A school set engraved with the school name, or a community project set carrying the programme title, immediately looks organised and established.
What to do: Choose the exact wording before ordering and keep it short enough to remain clear and legible.
Step 8: Plan delivery and equipment carefully
Each Discovery 16 is handmade to order by harp maker Paul in Wales. Allow at least ten weeks for delivery.
This is particularly important if you are planning:
- A September school intake
- A Christmas course
- A funded community project
- A launch event
- A new academic-year timetable
You should also plan storage, transport and tuning. Straps and strap locks can make the harps more versatile for standing performances, while pickups are available separately if you intend to amplify performances or use the instruments in larger spaces.
What to do: Work backwards from your launch date, order at least ten weeks ahead and decide whether straps, strap locks or pickups are appropriate for your programme.
Step 9: Keep students once they have started
Growth is not only about enrolling new students. It is also about giving existing learners a reason to continue.
At the end of a taster or beginner term, signpost the next step:
- A Discover The Harp workshop
- Buying a personal Discovery 16
- A continuation group or ensemble
- The Silver Strings continuation programmes.
- Local one-to-one teaching pathways
- Further ISoM examinations
A student who can see the next destination is more likely to remain part of your studio.
What to do: Give every student a written progression plan before the end of their first course.
Step 10: Prove that the model works
You do not have to explain the potential of group harp teaching alone. Discovery 16 harps are already being used by:
- Royal Harpist Claire Jones for the Studio 47 project
- Merthyr County Council
- Powys County Council
- Neath Port Talbot Council
- City and County of Swansea
- Derwent Harp School
- Three Swans Harp Ensemble
- Causeway Harp School
- Gwynedd and Mon music service
- Ceredigion Music Service
- Veronica's Harp School USA
- plus conservatoires father afield in Switzerland and USA
They are being used for classroom music, Discover The Harp courses, harp clubs and ensemble work.
The educational model is also supported by qualified leadership. Helen-Elizabeth BA Hons, DipABRSM, CTABRSM, AISoM (Ed) is Musical Director of Cambrian Harp School, Head of Harp at ISoM and has more than 21 years’ teaching experience. Each Discovery 16 is handcrafted in Wales by Pau
Build your next class around ten harps
The quickest way to grow a harp teaching studio is to remove the instrument bottleneck, create one clear beginner journey and make progression visible from the first session.
With the Discovery 16 Education Bundle, you can introduce new students to the harp, run Discover The Harp workshops, deliver classroom music and offer an ISoM route from Step 1 to Grade 5 using the same Made in Wales instrument.
View the Discovery 16 Education Bundle, explore the Discover The Harp course collection, or visit discovertheharp.com to begin planning your next class.
The next ten students may already be waiting. You can also sell your harps on to your students at the full retail price creating enough profit to buy your next 10.