Lap-Only Autoharps

Most of those instruments would be classified as zithers today. Rows of strings stretched over an irregularly-shaped box. Usually with sixteen or more strings for playing melodies and some feature that made it possible to play chords as well. (For more information on such instruments, check out our article "Autoharp Precursors and Competitors.")

All of these instruments, were meant to be played in the lap or on a table.

So were autoharps.

Sometime later, autoharp players who needed to move around began holding autoharps in the "upright" position that is most common today. Over the years, most Oscar Schmidt autoharps were gradually redesigned to make that easier.

But a small handful of autoharps were designed in such a way that they could never be played upright. They have to be played on the lap or on a table. These chiefly include:

• "Briefcase" autoharps, made for school music teachers who had to move from classroom to classroom easily, and

• "Caroler" autoharps, massive instruments with more chords and strings, meant for small churches or other groups that couldn't afford a piano.

I love them both.

Availability - Both classes of instruments were discontinued decades ago, but they still turn up on auction sites from time to time. Condition is always "questionable" but I've come up with both briefcase and Caroler autoharps that just needed cleaned up and tuned to play.

Briefcase Autoharps

15-chord Oscar Schmidt "Educator"	15-chord RBI Chromaharp "Portaharp"

They're amost always 15-chorders, with the standard 15-chord setup.

This setup enabled them to play fairly complex songs in Bb, F, and C. They could also play three-chord songs in G and D (sort-of). Since the music teacher was generally working from books written for piano, having Bb, F, and C available generally sufficed.

Ironically, the "Samsonite"-quality back may make them louder than standard 15-chrders, so great for classrooms and other circumstances where loudness is a virtue.

I have one of each, and there's very little difference in quality.

Much rarer are the 21-chord versions. Both of the ones I've seen came from Oscar Schmidt, the 21-chord Educator and the "Attache" (there should be an accent mark over the "e" in "Attache," but it comes out as garbage on some browsers).

The "Attaches" I've seen are physically identical to the 21-chord "Educator," but they tend to be black.

21-chord Oscar Schmidt "Educator"	21-chord Oscar Schmidt "Attache"

Both the 21-chord "Educator" and the "Attache" come with the standard Oscar Schmidt 21-chord setup, though the chords are easier to move around than on the 15-chorders, so you'll occasionally see one that is totally "off" (like the Attache in the photo above).

At least one autoharp teacher I know buys these whenever possible to have on hand for players who have physical issues that keep them from playing an autoharp in upright position, or from crossing hands if they play a standard autoharp in laptop position.

RBI Chromaharp "Caroler"

The "Mothership" of autoharps is the Chromaharp Caroler, with 27 chords and 43 strings.

It was designed in the 1970s for small churches, community choirs, and other groups that couldn't afford a piano. It includes the ability to play in keys that standard autoharps don't allow like Ab and E major. It also allows you to play in more minor keys.

Ironically, it's one of the few Chromaharp products that wasn't a close copy of an Oscar Schmidt instrument. That said, they didn't catch on as much as RBI hoped, and they went out of vogue when digital keyboards became available. But that works in your favor: many were retired early, and very few were dragged around or handled by children like standard autoharps. So they often come down to us in playable or restorable condition.

Because it retains a chromatic scale in the middle and top octaves, anyone used to playing melodies on a standard 15- or 21-chord autoharp should be able to adapt to this quickly.

That said, for most people, it's better (and louder) on a table or some sort of stand than it is on their laps.

Like the "Bowers" setup on autoharps like the OS "Americana," it puts the major chord buttons in the center row, in circle-of-fifths order.

Though the buttons for the minor and seventh chords seem to be reversed from Bowers setup, a person used to reaching around for those buttons should have little difficulty adapting to reaching across for them.

The blank button at the lower right is for deadening all the strings at once.

I love these, personally, but they have a couple potential minor downsides.

• Because the felts are very narrow, overtones may be more prominent on some chords, which may bother people who can still hear high frequencies.

• Also, replacing the felts is more complicated.

• Though some came with cardboard cases, those won't last long if you're taking your Caroler out much. If you decide to use it out of the house much, you may want to make or commission a custom gig bag or case.

• The little round buttons may seem to be a pain to find and push. RBI could have made them a little larger, or made them more concave.

• And most people aren't bothered by this, but if I'm actually going to play Christmas carols or traditional hymns, I will probably have more need of diminished, augmented, and suspended 4th chords than of, say, Bb minor. But because of the hard-to-find felt width, it would be a little more complicated ot tweak one of these than a standard autoharp.

If you come across one that is in good shape except for the strings, it is possible as of this writing to buy new string sets for them.

Conclusion

But it's far easier to play one of these models in lap position. Yes, they're all long discontinued, but as of this writing (August, 2025), they're still turning up on auction sites.

The lid on briefcase autoharps (Educator, Portaharp, and Attache) offers built-in protection, so they're less likely to be badly damaged

More articles are likely to come soon. In the meantime, I hope these articles help answer your questions about these under-rated instruments.

Whatever else you get out of our pages, I hope you come away with some great ideas for "sharing the joy."

And please stay in touch!

    - Paul Race

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