Harpist and composer Renée Qin has been named to CBC Music’s 30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30, 2024 edition. Released by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the list is described in a press release as “a celebration of young Canadian talents shaping the future of classical music.”
Originally from Vancouver, Qin has performed at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Field Concert Hall at the Curtis Institute of Music, and the Orpheum Theatre in Vancouver. The 22-year-old harpist’s awards include first prizes at the 2018 Canadian Music Competition and the American Protégé International Romantic Music Competition, as well as a music scholarship she received from the West Coast Chapter of the American Harp Society in the same year. In 2019, she won first place at the Canadian International Music Competition Concerto Competition.
As a composer, Qin has produced projects that raise awareness for endangered species and the environment. Her composition “The Ternaround” is intended to express urgent attention needed for the endangered California least tern, familiarizing audiences with the bird’s habitat and encouraging ecological preservation. In 2023, Ensemble Kujoyama from Japan premiered Qin’s composition “Voice of the Planet,” an audiovisual project that she describes as a musical embodiment of the Earth’s cry for harmony and sustainability.
Qin credits the movie The Sound of Music with sparking her interest in her current career path. “Listening to its songs throughout my childhood, I was inspired to learn the piano at an early age and pursue music more seriously,” she says. “Music is a common language among humanity and an invitation to form deeper connections.”
Qin recently graduated from Stanford University in California, earning a bachelor of arts with honors in both music and economics. During the spring term, she also worked as a teaching assistant for Professor Paul Milgrom, a Nobel Prize laureate in economics. Qin studied harp under Elizabeth Volpé Bligh, retired principal harpist of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia, and continued her studies at Stanford with Dan Levitan. She also participated in the Curtis Institute of Music Summer Harp Colony in 2019 under the instruction of Elizabeth Hainen and Judy Loman. Qin is a current member of the Silicon Valley Chapter of the American Harp Society and performs regularly at its events.
For more information, visit CBC Music’s website.
