BIOGRAPHY
Hannah is currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music, with Sue Blair where she was awarded a scholarship. She has also studied with Catrin Finch and Catherine White. She has performed a wide range of solo and chamber music as well as orchestral and choral concerts. Hannah is also a composer, having written and performed a collection of prize winning works. Previously, Hannah studied Harp and Viola at the Junior Royal Academy of Music with Miriam Keogh ARAM and Michael Posner, where she achieved Grade 8 Distinction on both instruments.
Hannah's strongest musical influences so far include the time she has spent at the Junior Royal Academy of Music, growing ensemble and orchestral experience in short amounts of time, and performing in masterclasses, gaining confidence as a performer. Another has been the recent lockdown, being forced into finding ways of performing music still, developing recording and editing skills in order to create ensemble music remotely, as well as performances to share on social media. Hannah spent time in a special educational needs school music department for a week, seeing first-hand the difference music can make to people’s lives and education, and feeling their connection to music even if they didn’t understand it. She also had the opportunity to perform with a group of primary school aged musicians at the Royal Festival Hall, playing the Nutcracker, which was wonderful; "being able to see the children so engaged in something I was performing for them was so eye-opening" with regards to the impact of music on children. Hannah intends to continue her work children and those with special needs, researching and reading about the strengths and benefits of music for them, and developing skills to communicate in new ways.
Hannah was awarded Maidstone Young Musician of the Year for 2021 (read about the competition here) placed 2nd in the North London Harp Competition of 2020, and was a finalist of Medway Young Musician 2020 which was cancelled due to COVID-19. She was also awarded the 2020 Try Angle Award for Musical Achievements. Hannah has composed chamber works, including 'Mouse Tail' for extended Harp Quintet, and 'Fragments' for Harp Trio, as well as writing a new setting for the popular hymn 'God Be in My Head' to be adopted as her school's song (Mayfield Grammar School, Gravesend.) Hannah was announced as the winner of Haberdashers' Aske's Carol Composition Competition of 2020, resulting in a performance of her work 'Hush, My Dear' by the St Catherine Singers at St Martin-in-the-Fields. (Read the interview here.) 'Fragments' and 'Mouse Tail' were both winning compositions of the Maidstone Music Festival 2020. Hannah is working on new music all the time, so be sure to subscribe to her YouTube channel to keep up to date. Many of her works are discussed and shared prior to this on her Instagram @hannahs_harp
Hannah has a particular interest in the psychology of music, specifically the relationship between music and dementia/autism/mental health, as well as the ways music can act as a form of communication. She also enjoys researching historical contexts of the the music she plays, looking at the way societal events impact the compositions and performances through time.
Hannah is looking forward to furthering her studies at the Royal Academy of Music, in particular her understanding of Jazz Harp, Early Harp and Music Therapy.
