money bugEveryone makes mistakes from time to time with small or sometimes large financial consequences. In this series, people talk about their monetary misstep. This week professional musician Sher Kaareman (37) from Nijmegen, who completely destroyed a harp worth 4000 euros.
Have you always made music?
,,From a young age I was interested in playing an instrument in addition to singing, but I thought it would stay with dreams. So I went ‘just’ to study history and also became a tour guide, a fantastic job.
In that capacity, one evening I came to a karaoke bar in Bulgaria where I met a producer. He walked up to me and said, “I want to make songs with you.” That definitely seemed like a good idea to me. Once back in the Netherlands he forwarded our files and I proudly showed them to everyone. People told me that I have real talent and that I should do something with it. That’s how I came to work in a live cafe in Nijmegen. The owner coached me musically.”
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Why did you buy a harp?
,,I wanted to accompany my singing with a harp. I’m a rock chick and if I were to play a song by, for example, Metallica on harp, I thought it would be great.
I bought one at a harp store. First I went to the bank for an extra loan so that I could pay 1000 euros right away. It was a hire purchase contract. The rest, 3000 euros, I would then pay off in monthly installments and at the end of the ride it would be mine. If I didn’t find it halfway through, I could return it and get some of the money back.”
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What went wrong?
“Despite my enthusiasm, he stood unemployed in the corner of my student room during those first weeks. I was busy with other things. It did come with a sleeve, but it’s such a beautiful instrument that I left it like that. Next to the heating. It was winter.
At one point I heard ‘ploink’, and I knew: this is wrong. The solid wood was torn. The people at the harp shop said you have to protect a harp, but I loved it so much. So stupid.”
Could anything be done about it?
“No, I have beaten the harp to the eternal hunting grounds. An instrument cannot withstand extreme temperatures, wood reacts to it. “That’s the end of your harp,” the people at the store said when I called. I then had to pay off for months for an instrument that was literally no longer worth a euro. Then you curse for a while.”
I chose a cheaper instrument. At a flea market I bought a cheap guitar, more practical than a harp
Did you give up on your dream of playing an instrument?
,,I opted for a cheaper instrument. At a flea market I bought a cheap guitar, more practical than a harp. I really liked that and I got the guitar bug. I now have my guitars in a separate room whose temperature is well regulated.”
Is your harp love over for good?
,, Secretly I look at harps on the website of the store, it keeps pulling. If I can play some concerts again, that will be my first investment.”
Besides the fact that you have to take good care of your instruments, have you learned anything from it?
,,I sometimes think that if that harp hadn’t been killed, I would never have discovered my love for guitar. The moment it happened I was of course disappointed, but now I am grateful that something went wrong with me and my harp.”
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