Video Round

Nathania Ko, Canada

Nathania Ko is a harpist, Konghou performer, and composer based in Vancouver, Canada. She received her Master’s of Music degree in Orchestral Performance (Harp) from the University of British Columbia in 2020, and in 2018, she received her Bachelor’s of Music degree in Konghou Performance from the Shenyang Conservatory of Music. She is a passionate advocate for her instrument, raising awareness of the Konghou both in her home country of Canada and abroad. Nathania was a member of the 13th World Harp Congress hosting committee in Hong Kong. During this event, she hosted for the second half of its opening ceremony and was one of four finalists in the Congress’ Creative Media Competition. She has presented her Konghou-related research in scholarly conferences such as the Canadian University Music Society and has hosted masterclasses around the globe.

Music Unearthed from the Silk Road

The Konghou was extinct for 400 years until its revival in 1984, when remains of this instrument were excavated from tombs along the Silk Road. It is known as the Chinese harp and can be considered a sister instrument of the Western pedal harp. I am excited about the prospect of presenting a performance that merges ancient and contemporary melodies that represent music from countries connected by the Silk Road. This is reflected in the Konghou’s ability to mimic instruments and sounds of various cultures (such as maqams from the Middle East and China’s Peking opera). To assist me with this performance, I have assembled an ensemble of Indian tabla, cello, and flute to create an immersive and multicultural experience. The intertwining conversations of the Eastern and Western pieces on my program are capable not only of “unearthing” ancient tunes, but of recontextualizing them through our contemporary voices as well.

Eléonore Niubo, France

Eléonore Niubo is a French harpist and composer specialized in jazz music. After a classical training in various European conservatories Eléonore now focuses in jazz and improvised music. She has seen herself awarded various scholarships to pursue her studies in this domain, leading her to study with internationally renown jazz harpists, such as Felice Pomeranz, Park Stickney, Carol Robbins, or Cristina Braga. In 2018 she obtained a merit-based grant from the Berklee College of Music of Boston, where she studied a double course in Jazz Performance and Jazz Composition. In 2020 Eléonore Niubo was the second harpist ever admitted to the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, led by Danilo Pérez.

Order and Disorder

This program was conceived as a journey into my own musical world: starting from the classical harp repertoire I grew up with, mixing it with my favorite jazz standards, and taking it to the next level with some of my originals. This program mirrors how my relationship with the harp has evolved over the years. I’m using some of the classical repertoire I love as tools to enrich the jazz environment I am now familiar with, by using it as intro and quoting it during the improvisation. As for my own compositions, they come from both places, using my classical training and the modern harmonies I love to hear in today’s jazz. This program is thought of for a jazz harp trio, with double bass and drums, in the most traditional jazz setting.

Maria Sá Silva, Portugal

Maria Sá Silva started her musical studies at Porto at the age of seven. In 2015 was admitted to Civica Scuola di Musica Claudio Abbado, Milan, where continued her bachelor studies with Professor Irina Zingg. Wining several prizes in national and international contests in Spain, France and Mexico, she played in several solo concerts and recitals at Casa da Música, Pinacoteca di Brera (Milan), Museo Teatrale La Scala (Milan). In 2021, she won a prize on the national competition Concurso de Intrepretação do Estoril, played as soloist with Orquestra de Câmara Portuguesa at Centro Cultural de Belém conducted by Pedro Carneiro and presented her first creative project “Brisas e tonalidades” at Casa da Música.

Saudade

“Saudade” is a Portuguese and Galician word for a feeling of nostalgic longing for something or someone that one was fond of and which has knowledge that the object of longing might never really return. Deeply associated with this sentiment is Fado, from latin “faytum” a traditional Portuguese music genre usually played by a singer and Portuguese guitar. This solo harp concert celebrates the Portuguese and Spanish music heritage, with a program that includes classical pieces but also traditional songs originally written for Portuguese guitar by the guitar players Carlos Paredes and Artur Paredes and that will be played for the first time on the harp.

Stef van Vynckt, Belgium

Stef Van Vynckt is currently studying at the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague in the class of Sylvain Blassel. In addition he is pursuing a postgraduate Chamber Music at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. He has previously obtained a Master’s Degree in Ghent under the guidance of Arielle Valibouse. Stef specializes in contemporary music and works closely with leading composers. In 2019 he founded the chamber music ensemble EMC Extended Music Collective. He has premiered several pieces by composers from all over the world, including Dai Fujikura, David Lang, Vache Sharafyan and Frank Nuyts. In 2022, he will premiere works by Lise Morrison, Renée Vos, Siebe Thijs, Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti et al.

Novelties

New music takes on a lot of different forms.
Novelties broadcasts a diverse concert program which includes world premieres by composers from all corners of the world, including renowned composers Dai Fujikura, Vache Sharafyan, Frank Nuyts and Maja Bosnic. Inspired by our continuous involvement with the future and worries about an unstoppable flow of time, feeling overwhelmed by the challenges we face today. Music helps us to envisage a new world, helps us to see each other, helps us to come closer to each other. This design was constructed after engaging in extensive dialogue with composers, collaborating closely.
Stef will be joined on stage by the musicians of the Extended Music Collective consisting of flute, cello, harp and piano, widely used in different combinations, often in dialogue with multimedia such as video, smartphone and live processing.
Let’s defy the way contemporary classical music is represented in modern-day society.

Katherine Harrison, Scotland

I began playing the harp aged 10. During my teens, I struggled to reconcile the wide range of music I loved listening to with the classical music I was learning to play. I gave up aged 18. I no longer wanted to be known as ‘that harp girl’, and I thought I was done with études and orchestras. I began playing again aged 30, seeking something safer and cheaper to do in my spare time than racing motorbikes (I soon found harps were far more expensive than bikes and I still injured myself!) Now the harp is just one part of my identity that lets me share the music I love with others while telling stories about my life. I studied at Trinity College of Music and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Dear Mr Bowie – Letters to a Dead Rockstar

In 2016, after the death of David Bowie, and against the background of my struggle to understand my relationship with an instrument which seemed to define me no matter how far I ran from it, I started writing to ‘Mr Bowie’. In these letters I shared some of my thoughts, and I imagined what he might write back. There were three messages he had for me. While reading some of my letters, accompanied by solo harp pieces and incidental music, I will take the audience on parts of my journey of discovery since I began playing the harp again as an adult, including the day the music literally stopped. This will be a performance with pedal harp, electric lever harp, effects and live storytelling.

Julie Rokseth, Norway

Classically trained and holding a cum laude MMus in Argentinian tango on the pedal harp, Celtic folk harp and medieval harp, Julie is an innovative harpist and composer mastering a broad range of genres. Musical collaborations include artists such as Gunnhild Sundli, Mette Henriette Martedatter and Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, but her main effort goes into the duo “Julie & Andreas” with her brother on the bandoneon. After successfully pioneering harp in tango on their previous album “With the Sky in Our Hands – the tangos” (a harp column 10/10), it is now that Julie & Andreas unveil their own very unique virtuoso style and sound – best described as sublime Nordic melancholic joy.

ENE: No Windows Face the Sea

This performance tells the tragic story of Julie & Andreas’ grandparents. It stands as a tribute to brave souls lost at sea, and as a celebration of those left behind to shoulder the extra burdens even through their grief. Voyaging between sorrow and elation, navigating through tragic loss and grief to resilience and hope, finally casting us adrift into deep yearning this performance serves the listener as an astonishingly cathartic liberation.
All music is arranged/composed for and by Julie & Andreas, and the arc of the performance is created through use of 3 harps (Celtic, classical and medieval), 1 bandoneon, field recordings, loop station, poetry as well as acoustic chamber music.

Hope Wilk, USA/Canada

Hope Wilk was most recently named a fellow of The Rebanks Family Fellowship and International Performances Residency Program at The Royal Conservatory’s Glenn Gould School. Originally from New York; Hope has played harp with The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, and The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. Hope holds degrees from The Glenn Gould School and New England Conservatory of Music, where she was awarded The John Cage Award for her commitment to contemporary music. As a soloist, she has garnered acclaim for her performance of Ginastera’s Harp Concerto by being titled first runner-up in concerto competitions with The Boston Pops and The NEC Symphony.

Queer Legacies

Queer Legacies is the story of my experience as a queer woman, told through my chosen medium of classical music. In effect, this is a chronological recital of works by LGBTQIA+ artists; however, the recital differs from tradition by including short video vignettes that introduce and interact with each piece. These vignettes use musical, visual, and narrative elements to tell the stories of each artist and how their experiences relate to my own. My goal is to inspire empathy by creating an immersive concert experience that highlights the work of these underrepresented artists and the cultural events that have shaped a generation.

Ciorstaidh Beaton, Scotland

BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award Finalist Ciorstaidh Beaton grew up as a native Gàidhlig speaker in the township of Kilmuir, on the Isle of Skye on the west coast of Scotland. She is a graduate of the Royal Northern College of Music and completed her post-graduate studies at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Ciorstaidh is a versatile harpist, always immersed in a diverse range of musical styles which uniquely shape her as one of Scotland’s leading harpists. She has performed with the UK’s professional orchestras and ensembles, works as a freelance session musician and teaches clàrsach at Douglas Academy Music School in Glasgow.

Between Two Worlds

A symbolic title representing my identity between musical genres (folk and classical), languages (Gàidhlig/English) and instruments (concert harp and clàrsach), and exploring the idea of our greater existence between two differing worlds – life and death. This programme features numerous works for solo harp and clàrsach written by me, including dedications to friends/family – some who have passed away, and a premier of a new work in memory of those we lost during this pandemic. The whole programme is heavily influenced by the music of Gaelic Scotland and also of Ireland, with the common Gaelic language, culture and style of traditional music between the two countries. I will perform on both clàrsach and pedal harp and include field recordings featuring sounds and voices of my native landscape. This programme includes music from my upcoming debut album, which is to be released later this year.

Marcel Cara, France

Born in 1996, Marcel CARA studied at the Paris Conservatoire (CNSMDP) in the class of Isabelle Moretti, and also worked with Germaine Lorenzini. He made his debut as a soloist in prestigious settings like as Théâtre du Châtelet, Singer-Polignac Foundation, British Museum, Sala of Sao Paulo. He has worked with musicians such as Adrien la Marca, Philippe Bernold, Amaury Coeytaux, Nina Pollet, Stéphanie Huang. Marcel Cara has performed Bruno Mantovani’s Concerto and Debussy Dances with the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris under the baton of the composer. He’s also a laureate of the Hong Kong Harp Contest and the YCA Auditions, New York and is supported by the Academie des Beaux-Arts.

Myths, tales and folksongs

After meeting during their studies, Nina Pollet and Marcel Cara decided to explore their repertoire and have performed regularly at festivals in France since then. They offer original works, composed for this formation, but also arranged pieces, from the romantic era to the most contemporary creations. Their program was inspired by the lyricism and specific timbres of the flute and the harp, which illustrate the connection between arts and the myths and legends of many civilizations. Composers from the Renaissance to the 20th century (with Ravel and Britten) have always appropriated mythologies and legends, until Debussy’s fantasized antiquity, Fauré’s images or even Bartok’s fierce rhythms.