What Appalachian Harpist Rachel O'Brien Can Teach You About Celebrating Your Roots
Rachel O'Brien. Credit: Ryan Brandenberg.
Rachel O’Brien's ornate bronze and walnut harp looks positively celestial, as though it might have been played by an angel in some Medieval or Renaissance painting.
O’Brien’s musical artistry is worthy of her harp. Having studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music, O’Brien is now settled in her beloved Appalachia, teaching her own students both locally and around the world on Zoom. She has also written a book to inspire young musicians and she regularly performs herself. On April 10, O'Brien will give a recital in Philadelphia which will celebrate her Appalachian heritage.
A Fateful Visit to a Craft Show
O’Brien and her two brothers were introduced to music when they were very young. She started off playing the violin, but her life was changed forever when her family took her to a craft show when she was five-years-old.
“Craft shows are very popular in this part of the country, in Roanoke, Virginia, where I grew up and where I live now,” she said. “So we went to this craft show, and there was a woodworker who had made these beautiful folk harps, and there was a lady playing them. I fell in love with the sound of the harp. I wouldn't stop talking about it. So the next year, my parents got me a little folk harp for Christmas. I always say they didn't know what they were getting into.”
She took to the instrument naturally and when she was 11 years old, her parents agreed to upgrade her harp.
“When I was ready to size up to my full concert grand, my family and I took a trip to Chicago where there is a famous harp factory, Lyon & Healy,” O’Brien said. “I tried all of their hundreds of harps that they have there, and this is the one that I picked. It has served me well. It's a very nice instrument.”
O’Brien started taking formal lessons around age ten. She had a teacher who would travel to Roanoke where she also led a harp ensemble and played with the Roanoke Symphony. Eventually the teacher wasn't able to come to Roanoke as often, so O’Brien and her parents would travel as long as three hours for harp lessons.
“If that’s what you want and you're dedicated and you also have dedicated parents, they’ drive you all over Virginia,” O’Brien said.
Rachel O’Brien is Taught by Her Idol
“I don’t ever remember not wanting to play the harp for a career," O’Brien said. “I remember sitting on the couch listening to harp recordings, specifically my favorite harpist in the world, Yolanda Kondonassis. It was my dream to study with her one day.”
That dream would become a reality when O'Brien was accepted to the prestigious Cleveland Institute of Music, where Kondonassis was the harp instructor.
“She’s the world's most recorded harpist,” O’Brien said. “I always tell people that if you've heard harp on the radio, it's probably her. She’s a beautiful player and just as beautiful a person. It was amazing getting to work with her.”
Kondonassis’s student learned her lessons well. O’Brien was the 2015 Cleveland Institute of Music Presser Scholar and won the 2013 Lyon & Healy Award, the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra’s Anne Jett Rogers Award, the Roanoke Youth Symphony Orchestra Young Artist’s award and the James Bland Music Contest of the Lions Club.
One of O’Brien’s most notable achievements was winning the 2019 Ima Hogg Competition.
“It’s the Houston Symphony’s concerto competition,” O’Brien said. “I won first prize and was able to perform with the Houston Symphony in a concert in their hall. That was just a fantastic experience playing the Ginastera harp concerto. It uses all of the harp’s capabilities and especially brings out the strength and power of the harp. I just love that about it.”
Rachel O’Brien Comes Home
O’Brien received both her undergraduate and master's degrees at the Cleveland Institute of Music. After graduating, she had to choose where to pursue her career as a harpist. She could have moved to a cultural hot spot like New York or Chicago, but O’Brien made a different choice.
"I ended up back home in Roanoke for a variety of reasons,” O’Brien said. “I love it here and it's served me very well. There are musical opportunities here, and I'm hoping to provide even more to give back to my community. I’m on the board of a Christian arts organization, and we're trying to ramp up the arts and culture here.”
O’Brien has a deep love for her Appalachian home and heritage. It is perhaps that, more than anything, that drew her back to Roanoke.
“We’re an often underestimated and not respected group of people,” O’Brien said, “but because of what I've seen growing up, I feel like we're worth appreciating.”
Rachel O’Brien's April Recital To Celebrate Her Roots
O’Brien will pay tribute to Appalachia, its people, natural beauty and culture with her recital, “Deeply Rooted,” presented by Astral Artists, April 10 at Benjamin Franklin Hall in Philadelphia. The concert will include the world premiere of Walking with Spring by Steven Snowden.
“It's based on the Appalachian Trail, which is exciting,” O’Brien said. “I don't know of another piece that has been written about the Appalachian Trail. It's specifically about three points along the trail that are close to my home. These are trails that I’ve gone over dozens, hundreds of times. I think he did a really amazing bringing out the rusticity of Appalachia, but also the grandeur and beauty of the gorgeous vistas.”
Also on the program is Mountain Songs by Robert Beaser.
“It was written for flute and guitar, but instead of guitar, I'll be playing it on the harp,” O’Brien said. “It’s a collection of really gorgeous songs which give a picture of what life in Appalachia is like and what the people and culture are like.”
O’Brien will also perform her own composition, Fantasy on The Wayfaring Stranger.
Rachel O’Brien Inspiring Young Musicians
O’Brien is a busy woman. In addition to concertizing and touring with the Astralis Chamber Ensemble around the country, she is on the faculty of Hollins University and has her own harp students, whom she teaches in person and on Zoom. She also teaches eurythmics.
“Eurythmics is the study of rhythm using movement,” O’Brien said. “It’s the idea that if you can fully understand rhythm by stepping it out and feeling it in your feet, you will more fully understand the rhythm to be able to play it on your instrument. The Cleveland Institute of Music requires it for all their students.”
O’Brien has also written a book, Purpose In Practice: 26 Rules for the Practicing Musician, meant to motivate young music students who might need an extra push.
“One of my big passions is inspiring other young musicians,” O’Brien said. “As I built up my Instagram following, I got a lot of questions about how to practice. A lot of them were really thought-provoking and deep. So I actually wrote a practice book for young musicians who want to be professionals. That goes alongside a practice journal that’s meant to be inspiring and motivating.”
It would seem that O’Brien needs no help with motivation. She is an incredibly driven woman with a devotion to music and her students. She has a great love for life, and will have another special event to look forward to,
“My husband and I were married a year and a half ago, and we're expecting our first baby,” O’Brien said. “So this summer I'm taking a little break to have the baby. It worked out well because I’ll be able to finish my season of concerts and my teaching and dismiss my students for the summer and have a baby and then get right back at it.”
O’Brien’s baby will surely be one of the luckiest babies in the world, being lulled into golden slumbers while her mother plays her bronze and walnut harp.
