One Harp World: Full Schedule

arrow_back View All Dates

09:00 EDT

Susann McDonald: The Virtuoso Harpist

Wednesday July 29, 2026 09:00 - 09:45 EDT

Grand East

Perspectives on Susann McDonald's influential performing and recording career.

Moderators

Isabel Moreton

Editor, World Harp Congress Review

Isabel Moretón studied harp at the internationally renown Schools of Music of Hanover (Germany) and Bloomington (Indiana University, USA).. She works as a professional harpist in Hanover, Germany, giving regular solo and chamber concerts and concerts for harp and orchestra, nationwide... Read More →

Presenters

Kirsten Agresta-Copely

Kirsten Agresta Copely is a two-time GRAMMY® nominated harpist and composer known for her distinctive blend of classical virtuosity and cinematic ambiance. She has appeared at major venues worldwide, including the White House, Carnegie Hall, and the Muziekgebouw while maintaining an active career as... Read More →

Cliona Doris

Tu Dublin Conservatoire

Clíona Doris is a Professor at TU Dublin Conservatoire where she lectures in harp, performance studies, and artistic research. She is a member of Ireland’s National Concert Hall Board and the WHC Board of Directors and Corporation. She was the Host Committee Chair when Ireland... Read More →

Elizabeth Hainen

USA International Harp Competition

Hailed by the Washington Post for her “unusual presence with silky transparency,” Elizabeth Hainen has thrilled audiences throughout the world as a virtuoso soloist and as Principal Harp of The Philadelphia Orchestra. Hainen is the Artistic Director for the USA International Harp... Read More →

Sirin Pancaroglu

The Turkish Harp

Praised by the Washington Post as a “major talent of international caliber”, Şirin Pancaroğlu is equallyactive in traditional Turkish music, improvisation and contemporary music, as she is in mainstreamharp. With concerts in over 35 countries and 14 recording releases, she... Read More →

Isabelle Perrin

Isabelle Perrin, former co-principal harpist with the Orchestre National de France, has performed recitals and concertos worldwide and recorded numerous CDs. A devoted teacher, she conducts masterclasses globally. Currently, she is a Professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music and... Read More →

Dan Yu

Dan Yu received the USA International Harp Competition Gold Medal in 2001, and was hailed by New York critics as “in a class of her own” following her debut recital in Alice Tully Hall in 2002. She has performed on broadcast television and radio stations in the USA, China, and... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 09:00 - 09:45 EDT
Grand East

Lecture, Panel Discussion

10:00 EDT

A Çeng Moment

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:00 - 10:30 EDT

Willow East

Come discover the Çeng, one of the oldest harps ever revived, through a presentation about its historical evolution. Listen to a short performance and have a lovely moment to try it yourself.

Presenters

Zeynep Duru Güleç

The Turkish Harp

Born in 2008, Zeynep Duru Güleç started harp education with Şirin Pancaroğlu. She received; 1st Prize and "Best Performed Obligated Piece" at 14th Italy Suoni d'Arpa International Harp Contest. Gold Medal and “Best Performed Obligated Composition” at 6th Slovenian International... Read More →

Sirin Pancaroglu

The Turkish Harp

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:00 - 10:30 EDT
Willow East

Lecture, History & Practice

10:00 EDT

Melina van Leeuwen: Carlos Salzedo’s theory of “New Harpism" presented by Katia Mestrovic

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:00 - 10:40 EDT

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church

Katia Mestrovic will deliver colleague Melina van Leeuwen's dissertation on Carlos Salzedo’s compositional theory of “New harpism.” The end result of his “complete renovation of the harp”, new harpism is the undiscovered key to understanding Salzedo’s entire oeuvre. The pre-concert lecture will include a discussion of Salzedo's works featured in Alice Giles' 11:00 solo recital.

Presenters

Katia Mestrovic

Katia hopes to show audiences the versatility and power of the harp through performing modern classical repertoire, her own compositions, commissions, and arrangements. Katia was mentored in Sydney (Australia) by virtuoso Alice Giles AM. Some accolades include, performing as a Semifinalist... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:00 - 10:40 EDT
St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church 73 Simcoe St, Toronto, ON M5J 1W9, Canada

Lecture, History & Practice

10:15 EDT

Resonanties: A Composer’s Accessible Approach to Writing for Harp 🍁

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:15 - 11:00 EDT

Birchwood Ballroom

A lecture-performance featuring Edward Top’s Resonanties and the Student Harp Ensemble of the Vancouver Academy of Music, showcasing accessible harp ensemble writing and collaborative composition. www.edwardtop.com/orchestra/six-pieces-for-harp-ensemble

Presenters

Edward Top

Dutch-Canadian composer Edward Top is Associate Professor & Division Chair of Composition at the Vancouver Academy of Music and Sessional Lecturer at the University of British Columbia. As its current mentor composer, Edward maintains a close relationship with the Vancouver Symphony... Read More →

Ensembles

Vancouver Academy of Music Student Harp Ensemble

Vancouver Academy of Music Student Harp Ensemble is a an ensemble for students age 8-18 in Vancouver,Canada. The ensemble has harp students at all levels for both lever harp and pedal harp. Directed by Rosanna Chiu and Joy Yeh, the ensemble performs regularly in celebrated events... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:15 - 11:00 EDT
Birchwood Ballroom

Lecture, Harp Ensemble, Composition, Lecture Recital

10:15 EDT

The Growth of a Harp Centred Community of Practise 🍁

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:15 - 11:00 EDT

Grand East

How the Huron Harp School has built an inclusive and thriving community for harp learners of all levels through group practices and performances.

Presenters

Sharon Johnston

Huron Harp School

Sharon Johnston is a well-established musician in midwestern Ontario, performing frequently on harp and piano. She runs a busy studio in Goderich, where she directs the Huron Harp School, which has over 35 members. She is a composer, arranger, and recording artist, the most recent... Read More →

Elysha Vorstenbosch

Huron Harp School, AHS Young Composers Project

Elysha Vorstenbosch is a harp player, composer, and improviser living in Perth County, Ontario. She has a Bachelor of Music degree from Wilfrid Laurier University where she studied lever harp, composition, and improvisation. Elysha performs frequently as a soloist all around Southern... Read More →

Margot Sippel

Huron Harp School

Margot Sippel is a Jungian Psychotherapist in private practice and works with clients across the globe. She is a Professor Emeritus having taught for decades, and started harp lessons despite not being able to read music and wearing two hearing aids. Now, profoundly deaf and with... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:15 - 11:00 EDT
Grand East

Lecture, Lecture Recital, Pedagogy

10:30 EDT

Inspiring Inclusivity, Connectivity, and Creativity through International Organizations – a Presentation-Panel

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:30 - 11:30 EDT

Willow

Ann Yeung and Isabel Moretón Achsel (past and current Editors of the World Harp Congress Review) moderate a presentation-panel to highlight the histories and importance of international harp organizations in nurturing the international harp community, culminating in the 2026 One Harp World event in Toronto.

Moderators

Isabel Moreton

Editor, World Harp Congress Review

Ann Yeung

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Known for her intrepid and multi-faceted career, Ann Yeung has premiered numerous compositions and is the author of articles published worldwide, particularly on the works of Henriette Renié. She is a Past President of the American Harp Society and former Editor of the World Harp... Read More →

Presenters

Mario Falcao

Portugal native Mario Falcao is Professor Emeritus of the State University of New York at Fredonia and Visiting Professor at the Escola Superior de Musica de Lisboa, Portugal. Mr. Falcao’s collaborations with composers over multiple decades has resulted in numerous solo, chamber... Read More →

Mieko Inoue

World Harp Congress

Mieko Inoue graduated from Toho Gakuen School of Music completing its advanced program studying with Josef Molnar. She studied at Indiana University earning the Performers Diploma with Susann McDonald. Mieko is Vice President for Asia of the World Harp Congress, currently a visiting... Read More →

Anabel Gutierrez Orraca

Cuban Harp Music Inc

Anabel Guitérrez Orraca founded the Asociación Latinoamericana del Arpa in 2021, to expand access to education for harpists across Latin America. She holds advanced degrees from McGill University in Montreal; the Bachelor of Music degree in Music Performance from the Indiana University... Read More →

Angela Schwarzkopf

Angela Schwarzkopf concertizes throughout North America as soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. She is the guest principal harpist of the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa, and principal harpist with the London, Ontario, Symphonia. Angela is the first harpist to earn the... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 10:30 - 11:30 EDT
Willow Willow West + Willow Centre

Lecture, Panel Discussion

14:00 EDT

Arranging, Adapting, and Transcribing: a masterful exploration

Wednesday July 29, 2026 14:00 - 14:50 EDT

Chestnut Ballroom

An interactive exploration of the nuances of adapting, arranging, and transcribing for the harp, through an analysis of contrasting approaches to the Recuerdos de la Alhambra by Francisco Tárrega.

Presenters

Emmanuel Padilla Holguín

Mexican harpist Emmanuel Padilla Holguín became the first Latin American harpist to win an international harp competition by receiving 1st prize and the Audience Award at the Dutch Harp Competition 2016. He is the first harpist to be part of the prestigious group of soloists “Concertistas... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 14:00 - 14:50 EDT
Chestnut Ballroom

Lecture, Lecture Recital

14:00 EDT

Exploring the Wonders of Bill Marx's Concerto for Two Harps and Orchestra

Wednesday July 29, 2026 14:00 - 14:50 EDT

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church

Bill Marx’s rediscovered double harp concerto, revived by Duo Shockoe, fuses jazz, Hollywood horror, and classical elements—bringing a lost masterpiece to life for modern global audiences.

Presenters

Colleen Thorburn

University of Central Arkansas

Dr. Colleen Potter Thorburn performs widely as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral harpist. She is establishing a harp studio and private teaching studio at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas, where she also teaches music theory. A past winner of the American... Read More →

Jaclyn Wappel

Jaclyn Wappel is a multifaceted harp performer, educator, and scholar recognized for her versatile performances and focus on South East and South Asian–inspired music. She holds the Doctor of Arts degree from Ball State University and serves on The American Harp Journal editorial... Read More →

Ensembles

Duo Shockoe

Duo Shockoe features harpists Dr. Colleen Thorburn and Dr. Jaclyn Wappel who share nearly a decade of musical camaraderie since forming in Richmond, Virginia. As Duo Shockoe they have performed extensively across the U.S. East Coast and, as soloists, across four continents, including... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 14:00 - 14:50 EDT
St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church 73 Simcoe St, Toronto, ON M5J 1W9, Canada

Lecture, Lecture Recital

15:00 EDT

Let the harp sing- the art of phrasing

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:00 - 15:45 EDT

Grand East

Explore fresh ideas for creating a more singing lines on the harp, including alternative fingerings, enharmonic substitutions and palette of options for articulation with master artist Silke Aichorn. You love to have a singing harp line? Come hear ideas on how to change the sonority, to create a more legato line, to show a powerful and not only virtuoso presentation. Selected examples are shared, for you to use in your next pieces.

Presenters

Silke Aichhorn

"Certainly the most prominent, the most powerful, and also the most entertaining representative of her field..." Silke Aichhorn is known for her colorful sound, her moderated concerts as well as her unconditional desire to present something new and still unknown on the harp. She is... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:00 - 15:45 EDT
Grand East

Lecture, Lecture Recital

15:15 EDT

Fantasising Chromatically from J.S. Bach to New Music: A lecture-Recital by Anne-Marie O'Farrell with performance by Emmanuel Ceysson of O'Farrell's Murmuration

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:15 - 16:00 EDT

Chestnut Ballroom

Part I
A performance and lecture recital on Anne-Marie O’Farrell’s transcription of J.S.
Bach’s Chromatic Fantasy BWV 903 for lever harp
Part II
A performance by Emmanuel Ceysson and lecture by Anne-Marie O’Farrell on her
new composition, Murmuration, for solo pedal harp commissioned by Music Network
(Ireland).

The wide tonal and timbral range of both pedal and lever harps are showcased in
two contrasting works, J.S. Bach’s Chromatic Fantasy alongside O’Farrell’s new
composition, Murmuration for pedal harp. This lecture-recital illustrates methods of
achieving the range of chromatic colour made available using two completely
different mechanisms and compositional methods, including transcription
approaches for chromaticism on lever harp.

Presenters

Anne-Marie O’Farrell

RNCM

Leading international harpist, Dr Anne-Marie O’Farrell is recognized for her innovations on lever harp, demonstrated in her substantial output of publications and recordings. She has been commissioned to compose several large-scale works featuring the harp. Her compositions... Read More →

Emmanuel Ceysson

Laphil

Emmanuel Ceysson is Principal Harp of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and former Principal Harp with the New York Metropolitan Opera and the Paris Opera. He is Associate Artistic Director of the USA International Harp Competition, where he was awarded the Gold Medal in 2004. He received... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:15 - 16:00 EDT
Chestnut Ballroom

Lecture, Lecture

15:30 EDT

Beneath the Sea of Time, concerto for harp and orchestra by Alice Ping Yee Ho 🍁

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:30 - 16:15 EDT

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church

Explore the lyrical writing of Canadian composer Alice Ping Yee Ho's concerto for harp, exploring memory, loss, and renewal, where oceanic soundscapes mirror humanity’s fragile relationship with nature.

Presenters

Teresa Suen-Campbell

Lakehead University

Teresa Suen-Campbell released her concerto album, including concertos by Canadian composers Chan Ka Nin & James W. Campbell, with Sinfonia Toronto/Nurhan Arman, which received critical acclaim and international broadcasting. Teresa has commissioned 5 concertos, 3 solo works, and 2... Read More →

Jialiang Zhu

Piano

Chinese pianist Jialiang Zhu is an educator, performer, concert producer, and researcher. She is a Sessional Lecturer at the University of Toronto and a Chamber Music Faculty at the Royal Conservatory of Music. She has produced and performed in multiple concert series... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:30 - 16:15 EDT
St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church 73 Simcoe St, Toronto, ON M5J 1W9, Canada

Lecture, Lecture Recital

15:30 EDT

An Introduction to the Arpa Jarocha and Son Jarocho

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:30 - 16:20 EDT

Willow

A comprehensive introduction to the Veracruz arpa jarocha and its pivotal role in the dynamic Afro-Indigenous-Mestizo musical tradition from southern Veracruz, Mexico including “La Bamba,” “El Cascabel,” and “La Bruja.” This workshop is made possible in part by the generous support of the UCLA Center for Latino Arts, founded by Dr. Steven Loza.

Presenters

Jillian Risigari-Gai

Jillian Risigari-Gai is a Los Angeles freelance artist. She is currently Principal Harpist & Co-Founder of the Los Angeles Chamber Music Co., a non-profit providing audiences with exceptional and affordable chamber and collaborative arts concerts that inspire and promote our sense... Read More →

Dayanara Bravo

Violinist, guitarrón player, vocalist

Dayanara Bravo is a violinist, guitarrón player, vocalist, and ethnomusicology student at UCLA. Originally from Delano, California, she has been involved in mariachi for over 16 years, beginning her musical journey at a young age with Mariachi Juvenil Mestizo. She currently... Read More →

Stephanie Valadez

Marimba

Stephanie Valadez (she/ella) is a musician and scholar based in California and Mexico City. She is currently a PhD student in Ethnomusicology at UCLA . Valadez holds a MA in Music (Cross-Cultural Musicology) from the University of California, Santa Cruz, two MM degrees... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 15:30 - 16:20 EDT
Willow Willow West + Willow Centre

Lecture, Lecture Recital

16:30 EDT

Exploring the Music Therapy profession for Harpists

Wednesday July 29, 2026 16:30 - 17:15 EDT

Willow East

Defining Music Therapy credentials and practice within the harp community as a profession, differentiating it from harp therapy training and other therapeutic music practices.

Presenters

Jessica Brizuela

Jessica Brizuela, MT-BC is a harpist, educator, and board-certified music therapist (MT-BC) with additional credentials in Neurological Music Therapy and Hospice & Palliative Care Music Therapy. Through her passions of music and medicine, Jessica linked her education studying: music... Read More →

Wednesday July 29, 2026 16:30 - 17:15 EDT
Willow East

Lecture, History & Practice

17:00 EDT

My Life with Jean-Jacques Rousseau: A Musical Love Story

Wednesday July 29, 2026 17:00 - 17:45 EDT

Willow

Speaking from the Harp: How Rousseau's "Minuet" transformed into "Baroque Flamenco", unlocking a world of solo harp works, concertos, chamber music and education.

Presenters

Deborah Henson-Conant

Deborah "DHC" Henson-Conant is a Grammy-nominated composer and electric harpist who performs solo or with symphony on her signature instrument, the CAMAC "DHC" electric lever harp, in performances inspired by jazz, blues, flamenco and storytelling. Her compositions, like the groundbreaking... Read More →