Specialty shop in handpans and world instruments has become international success
It sounds like a fairy tale: you fall madly in love with a musical instrument, decide to change your life and in ten years grow into the largest handpan specialist in the Netherlands and even Europe. It happened to Henk-Jan Pelle, owner of HandPanShop, whose clientele now includes internationally renowned artists. Pelle started from home in 2014, but soon had to rent shop premises. The success of both his webshop and physical shop continued and, due to lack of space, he recently moved to larger premises in Driebergen. Pelle: “Like many, I was diréctly sold when I first heard the handpan. When you consider that anyone can play it and it sounds enchanting from the very first minute, it is actually logical that this instrument is so immensely popular.”
“Moreover, the sounds have an incredibly calming effect. And in these stressful times, everyone is looking for a moment of relaxation.”
Handpan
The Handpan It is made from two metal bowls and is played with the fingers. It is an intuitive instrument. This means that it sounds wonderful even when you play purely by feel, without sheet music or any knowledge of music. In fact, it’s virtually impossible to play out of tune. What’s more, it’s easy to learn techniques that allow you to adopt different playing styles or reproduce well-known songs. The HandPanShop’s range is enormous. You can choose from different makers, types of metal, diameters and keys. Even second-hand frying pans and bespoke options are available.
Soundhealing
Another reason for the handpan’s popularity is that it offers an accessible way to express yourself. That is why many therapists use this instrument for ‘sound healing’, and the handpan is often used in meditation, yoga and mindfulness. As part of this sound healing practice, the HandPanShop recently expanded its collection to include so-called world instruments, including thumb pianos, rainsticks, tambourines, singing bowls and tongue drums.
Famous artists
The HandPanShop owes its success to its high quality and wide range of handpans. Moreover, all employees are passionate and experienced handpan players. “Among others, we have a conservatoire musician, a mindfulness coach and a musician on our team,” says Mr. K.. People take extensive time to find the perfect handpan for each customer. This approach leads to the fact that Marcel van Cleef, Femke Krone and Boudine van Slobbe (known from Slagerij van Kampen), but also foreign artists like Loris Lombardo and Marko Bandera know how to find the HandPanShop.
Workshop
Those who have become curious can book a workshop or listen to music clips on handpanshop.co.uk or Instagram (@handpanshop.co.uk). Shop opening hours: 11-17h on Wed, Thu and Sat. The other days are reserved for workshops and buying guidance.
