Composer and Harp Column Music artist Daniele Garella passed away on Nov. 12, 2024. Born in Florence, Garella graduated in composition and choral conducting and in counterpoint harmony and fugue from the Luigi Cherubini Conservatory in Florence. In addition to...
Canadian harpist and composer Kalen Smith is the winner of the 8th USA International Harp Competition (USAIHC) Ruth Inglefield Composition Contest with his composition Bioluminescence. According to a press release from the USAIHC, the jury also acknowledges and...
With her husband and children by her side, Ruth Anne Myers-Brown passed away on July 20, 2024, in Victoria, B.C., after a long illness. Growing up in a musical family, Ruth played piano and bassoon, then, while at summer music camp in 1969, she fell in love with the...
Harpist Amy Christine Ley McIntosh passed away peacefully at home on November 9, 2024, following a courageous two-year battle with breast cancer. Amy was a beloved member of the musical communities in both her home state of Michigan and her adopted province of...
The Phoenix Harp Center (PHC), which serves the harp community in the Southwest United States, will transition to new ownership, effective Jan. 1, 2025. According to a press release, PHC co-owners Stephen R. Hartman (a longtime harpist) and Willard E. White have...
The harp and electronica duo FitkinWall recently released its new album Uist on the NXN label. Now available on major streaming platforms, the recording features Scottish harpist Ruth Wall on concert, electro, and wire-strung harps, as well as composer Graham Fitkin’s...
The Boston Conservatory at Berklee has appointed Krysten Keches assistant professor of harp, effective fall 2024. “I’m thrilled to be working with Boston Conservatory’s harp students and am excited to support their diverse interests alongside fellow harp faculty...
The Kansas City Symphony, under Music Director Matthias Pintscher, announces principal harp auditions to be held March 31–April 1, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. This vacancy for principal harp is a tenure-track position, with an anticipated start date in September 2025....
The Hong Kong International Harp Competition has announced required repertoire for its ninth edition, to be held Oct. 1–7, 2025, in Y Square, Hong Kong. The competition consists of 12 divisions, categorized by age (as of Oct. 1, 2025) and type of harp (lever or...
The European Harp Symposium “Stellae Matutinae” has announced its next event, set to take place April 12–18, 2025. According to a press release, the Harp Symposium “celebrates the harp in all its aspects … and brings amateurs and professionals from all over Europe to...
Welsh jazz harpist Amanda Whiting is releasing her new album A Christmas Cwtch on First Word Records on Dec. 2. This 14-track collection takes on assorted classics by musicians such as Vince Guaraldi, Bill Evans, Gustav Holst, and Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky, and...
The 35th Soka-Nippon International Harp Competition has announced the winners of this year’s competition, held Nov. 10–17 in Soka City, Japan. Evelien Vaneysendeyk of Belgium, who studies with Sivan Magen in Berlin, is the first prize winner of the Professional...
Following the passing of harpist Deborah Fleisher on Sept. 29, the Peabody Post published the following tribute shared by her sister, Leah Fleisher. (Deborah Fleisher was an alumna of the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, earning her Artist’s Diploma...
Alina Bzhezhinska is the first harpist to be awarded the United Kingdom’s Parliamentary Jazz Award for Best Jazz Ensemble of the Year for her band HipHarpCollective. In a press release, Bzhezhinska says her music “brings a fresh, dynamic vision to the harp, honoring...
The Fort Collins Symphony, under Music Director Wes Kenney, announces principal harp auditions to be held Jan. 12, 2025, in Fort Collins, Colo. Applicants must submit a resume and refundable audition deposit by Dec. 29, 2024. For required repertoire and application...
The Hong Kong Philharmonic is seeking a principal harpist. This is a full-time position, with a 44-week performing season. Applicants must submit an unedited video recording of the audition repertoire no later than Dec. 31, 2024. Shortlisted candidates will be...
The 7th International Harp Competition in Szeged, Hungary, will be held Nov. 19–23, 2025, at the Reök Palace. The competition is open to harpists of all nationalities who were born on or after Nov. 24, 1999, and is divided into three age categories. Applications are...
Harpist Cecily Beer has released a new Christmas EP accompanied by the Chamber Orchestra of London. Carols of the Harp is available now on major streaming platforms, including Apple Music, YouTube, and Spotify. The three new arrangements by Thomas Hewitt Jones (who...
The Aspen Music Festival and School harp department is accepting applications for harp students in its Orchestra/Instrumental program, as well as for the Aspen Chamber Symphony (ACS) principal harp fellowship. According to its website, the Aspen Music Festival and...
The Belgian National Orchestra (BNO) has selected Italian harpist Virginia Pestugia as one of its new Orchestra Academy members for the 2024–2025 season. Students at Belgium’s eight conservatories and music schools audition at their conservatory; selected candidates...
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