ABOUT

Introduction:

The 2025 World Harp Talent Competition（WHTC）inherits Europe's century-old musical traditions, committed to creating a fair, professional, and humane platform for global harpists. Initiated by French harpist Isabelle MARIE, this competition aims to discover global harp talents and promoting innovative expressions of harp art in the 21st century.

Vision Statement:

To serve as a bridge connecting classical traditions with modern innovation, nurturing culturally profound harp ambassadors for the 21st century.

Isabelle MARIE was born in Paris. She begin the harp with Odette Le Dentu and Lily Laskine. She received first prizes for harp in 1981 in the class of Jacqueline Borot and for chamber music in 1982 in the class of Maurice Bourgue in the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris.

She also took lessons with Germaine Lorenzini and Catherine Michel. She realized a career as concert artist and teacher in France and Switzerland. She was the first solo harpist during 8 years at the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra in Switzerland and played with the Tonhalle Orchestra from Zürich, she joined the harp quartet “Harpège” also Michel Corboz’s Ensemble and Contrechamps in Genève.

After twenty years of teaching, she is retired from the municipal conservatories of Paris, and from the Schola Cantorum in Paris. She wrote arrangements for harp quartets who are edited ( Durand, Leduc, Harposphère)and a Methode for harp published in 2017. She also performed with numerous ensembles and orchestras and recorded CDs with Laurent Hacquard (oboe),JocelyneLucas(sopranist) and with the Harps Quartet : “Harpège”.

She wishes to develop the instrument's repertoire by arousing the interest of composers such as Emmanuel Bellanger with “Entrelacs” for violin and harp, a work created in Dublin in 2005, or in 2020 the trio “Méditation pastorale” by Nicolas Bacri, which is dedicated to her. She was President of the Focus on Youth Concerts of the World Harp Congress 2002 and performed in the WHC Genève, Dublin and Vancouver.

We were able to listen to her at the Festivals : Megève Savoy Truffle, Ninon Vallin, Arts et Vignes, Musiques au cœur des Musées en Isère, Le Mois Molière de Versailles, Musique au Château d’Anjou, à l’Hôtel de la Marine à Paris, au festival Crezanswing. Isabelle is also producer. Her recordings are distributed digitally by Absilone Technologies on the platforms like Spotify, Applemusic.

Her research led her to publish numerous harp adaptations of works in various styles, for harpsichord, piano, and other instrumental ensembles. For ten years, she served as secretary general, and later editor, of the InternationalAssociation of Harpistsand Friends of the Harp (AIHAH), founded in 1962 by Pierre Jamet.

In 2020 she created the “ÉditionsIsabelleMarie” dedicated more specifically to harpists with the publications of pieces for harp alone or with harp not yet published, or already published in the past but which deserve to be rediscovered, particularly concerning the periods of 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, A collaboration with composer also envisaged, such as with Marc Tallet whose the piece "En semant des étoiles" is now edited.

Isabelle MARIE 

Founder & Art Director

Listen Isabelle MARIE's harp music on Spotify and QQ Music