About Us
WELCOME TO
SYDNEY HARP SCHOOL
Principal Teacher
Louise Johnson
Louise Johnson, ALCM, WWCC, is celebrated as one of Australia's leading harpists and teachers. She began her harp studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music High School with June Loney at age 12. Following her debut performance with the Sydney Symphony at age 14 she began a successful professional freelance career which spanned all genres of music from classical to jazz, often being found in famous recording studios across Australia and the globe, including Abbey Road, recording for films, radio and television.
After receiving an Australia Council Study Grant, she later studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music and Salzedo Summer Harp School in the United States with the world renowned harpist and teacher, Alice Chalifoux.
At 18, she was appointed Principal Harp of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, a position she held for one year before continuing a freelance career overseas. Whilst living in London between 1983 and 1985, she performed regularly with the London Symphony Orchestra as Guest Principal Harp and Second Harp under the baton of such eminent conductors as Claudio Abbado and Richard Hickox. She also gave recitals in Wigmore Hall and the Purcell Room.
Louise Johnson has performed with all the major Australian Symphony and Opera and Ballet Orchestras, the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Australia Ensemble. She has also performed with legendary artists such as Cher, Sammy Davis Jnr, and the Bee Gees to name but a few, and has toured Australia with the Bolshoi and Sadler’s Wells Ballet Companies, accompanying the greats, Rudolf Nureyev and Dame Margot Fonteyn.
Having given her first performance with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra at the age of 14, she later won the position of Principal Harp in 1985, a position she held until leaving in 2019 to focus on solo work, jazz and teaching. She has worked under all of the major conductors since 1970, from Dean Dixon to David Robertson, performing with SSO for over 50 years. She regularly appeared as soloist with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. In 1990 she performed the Mozart Flute and Harp Concerto with James Galway and in 2006 performed Spohr’s Concertante for Violin and Harp with Michael Dauth. In 1996 she performed the Ginastera Harp Concerto in Seattle for the World Harp Congress and played again for the WHC in 2014 giving the world premiere of Lee Bracegirdle's Legend of the Old Castle, under the baton of Simone Young. In 2020 she recorded and performed Debussy's Dances Sacrée et Profane. She will continue to perform with SSO in their 2023 season.
Louise Johnson has taught harp at the Sydney Conservatorium for over 35 years. She also teaches at the Australian National University and her private studio in Cremorne. She teaches all genres of music, classical, jazz, improvising and, as an accredited AMEB examiner, can prepare both students and professionals for exams, HSC, orchestral audtitions etc. She is in great demand as a tutor and mentor and has taught regularly at the Australian National Music Camp, Sydney Youth Orchestra and Harp Holiday.
Louise understands the importance of working with children and has undertaken a Working with Children Check and has Child Protection and Appropriate Behaviour Certification.
Louise is the Director and Founder of Harp Holiday, the Musical Director of Roseville Music Club and Patron of the Harp Society of NSW.
She is proud to have set up Sydney Harp School with her former students Natalie Wong, Julie Kim and Solveig Hu, as a way to bring together Sydney students and teachers and to make available more performance and learning opportunities for the harp community throughout NSW.
TEACHERS
Natalie Wong
BMUS, MMUS, LMUS, WWCC
Natalie Wong began harp with Hazel Hu, then completed a Bachelor degree with first class honours studying under Louise Johnson and Jane Rosenson at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She attained her Masters of Music at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin under Maria Graf, studied intensively with Marie-Pierre Langlamet, and has taken masterclasses with numerous eminent harpists. Natalie performs regularly as guest principal harp with the Opera Australia Orchestra, and has played in the Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney Symphony orchestras. While living in Germany, Natalie worked frequently as guest principal harp in the Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester Frankfurt, and toured to Russia under Valery Gergiev alongside members of the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra.
Kate Moloney
BMUS, MMUS, WWCC
Kate Moloney has completed a Masters of Music (Performance) and holds a Bachelor of Music (Performance) Honours Class I at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music where she learnt from Alice Giles AM and studied orchestral and chamber works with Louise Johnson.
She is principal harp of The Metropolitan Orchestra and has played guest principal with Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Opera Australia Orchestra, the Australian Youth Orchestras and Ensemble Apex. Kate has toured with Momentum Ensemble and has played at events from the ARIA Awards to the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.
Kate is a regular performer at recital series throughout Sydney and at various venues including the Sydney Opera House. With composer Christine Pan, she received the ABC Classic and ABC Jazz Composer Commissioning Fund. Kate is also part of flute and harp chamber duo, Classical Elegance.
Kaela Phillips
BMUS, MMUS, WWCC
Kaela Phillips has been playing the harp for close to 18 years and, under the tutelage of Louise Johnson, she completed her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music Studies at the Sydney Conservatorium. In 2019 she received the Charles Perkins AO Memorial Prize, a scholarship awarded to the top three Indigenous students at the University based on the highest academic results in their field.
Kaela now performs harp professionally with many orchestras including the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra, Modést Orchestra, the Pacific Opera Company, the Sydney Youth Orchestra and has been the Principal Harpist for the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and the Australian Indian Orchestra since its inception. In 2023 she has been a part of several World and Australian Premieres, including P. Carr’s “Ubi Caritas” (WP) and “Requiem for an Angel” (AP), B. Chatpo-Koo’s Symphony no. 1 (WP), and “Bya” by Y. Xu (AP). In 2024 she will perform as Principal Harp for the Metropolitan Orchestra and the Willoughby Symphony, as well as giving solo recitals and playing in other orchestras and chamber groups.
From young children through ages 65+, Kaela now teaches harp privately both in person and online, and is the Harp Tutor for both Santa Sabina College and the Wahroonga SDA school. She strongly believes that building confidence and joy are key factors to successful learning, and strives to ensure every student is able to love the harp at any level.
Julie Kim
BMUS, MMUS, LMUS, WWCC
Julie Kim completed both her Bachelor and Master of Music in Performance at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music under the tutelage of Louise Johnson. She has been awarded prizes such as the Corinna D’Hage Mayer String Scholarship, The University of Sydney Academic Merit Prize, Estate Peter Davidson Scholarship and The South Sydney Rotary Club ‘Felix Switzer’ Memorial Award. She won 2nd Prize at the 2016 Fine Music Young Virtuoso Award and was a finalist in the NSW Doctors Orchestra Sydney Eisteddfod Instrumental Scholarship. Julie appears regularly as guest harpist in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and has also performed with the Opera Australia, Canberra and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. She has also had the privilege to perform as a soloist at the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall for the Bob Hawke State Memorial Service held in 2019.
Verna Lee
BMUS, GradCert Mus Perf, CCM1, WWCC
Verna Lee critically acclaimed as an Australian leading harpist and teacher. She has given over fifty solo concerto performances, premiering contemporary Australian works and lesser-known works.
Learning piano and violin from an early age, and harp at high school, Verna made her solo debut at age 14. She was principal harpist with AYO for 10 years whilst studying and performing in Germany, the United States, Japan, Singapore and New Zealand.
Performances include the Kiev Ballet, English National Ballet, Deutche Kammerakademie Neuss. With sopranos Greta Bradman and Amelia Farrugia and international performers such as Sumi Jo, Aled Jones, Il Divo. She has performed and recorded with the Singapore, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras and the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra. In 2012, Verna was awarded a grant for her sold-out multimedia performances, The Harp In Nature. This was also performed at the World Harp Congress in 2014. Despite all this, she is more famous for appearing in the movie “The Matrix!”
In 2015, Verna took up the Baroque triple harp performing with Sydney Consort and in masterclass with Andrew Lawrence- King.
Verna founded the Sydney Harp Eisteddfod in 2008, gives workshops and lectures at harp festivals and teaches at several schools including Sydney Conservatorium High School, at her private studio and tutors for National Music Camp.
She teaches lever, pedal and triple harp as well as styles from early music to jazz & contemporary. She has also had some experience teaching special needs students. Verna is President of the Harp Society of NSW and runs a harp strings and accessories shop called Harp Bazaar.
Solveig Hu
BMUS, JD, WWCC
Solveig Hu began her harp studies at the Conservatorium High School with Louise Johnson and completed her Bachelors in Music Performance at the Sydney Conservatorium. She enjoys pushing her boundaries, while maintaining a private studio and teaching positions in two private schools, she completed her Juris Doctor degree at the Sydney Law School. While her work week is in the office, the weekends are spent with music whether it is teaching, performing or collaborating with other artists to bring about new music. Her teaching is always evolving with regular exchange of ideas with other harpists and musicians to ensure students enjoy a wholesome learning experience. She has had the privilege of performing for past Prime Ministers and the rapper IceCube.
Georgia Lowe
BMUS, MMUS, WWCC
Georgia Lowe has performed Ravel's Introduction and Allegro, Leo Weiner's Romance for cello and harp, the Glière Harp Concerto, Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, Mozart Flute and Harp Concerto and Debussy Danses Sacrée et Profane with Sydney orchestras.
Georgia is a member of soprano and harp duo Lawergren & Lowe with Susannah Lawergren. They have performed for Art Gallery of NSW Resonate, Glebe Music Festival and toured regional NSW.
Georgia studied with Louise Johnson at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, before moving to New York, where she completed her Master of Music with Israeli harpist Sivan Magen.
Georgia has performed as Guest Principal Harpist with the Sydney Symphony, Canberra Symphony and Opera Australia orchestras and the Omega Ensemble. In addition to performing and teaching, Georgia works as a programmer at ABC Classic, and is a keen arranger, having arranged for Universal Music.
Eva Murphy
BMUS, M.ED, WWCC
Eva Murphy completed her Music Bachelor degree at Southern Methodist University in Dallas under Julia Herrmann Edwards and took private coaching in Jazz Harp under master jazz harpist Deborah Henson-Conant in Boston.
She earned her Music Education Certification as a Strings Specialist at Missouri State University, and later earned her Master’s degree in Education at The University of Missouri in St. Louis.
For 15 years, she performed harp music nightly at the elegant Café Capri in Dallas and for one year, performed harp music nightly at The Crown Restaurant, atop the Hotel Grand Palace in Tokyo.
Eva taught String Ensemble classes in public schools on a full-time basis in the USA for nine years and was Principal Harpist of the El Paso Symphony Orchestra. She taught Harp students from both the USA and Mexico at The El Paso Conservatory of Music.
She served as President of the American Harp Society, St. Louis Chapter.
During much of 2021, Eva performed harp music every weekend at The Four Seasons Hotel High Tea in Sydney.
Currently, Ms. Murphy teaches Strings at two Sydney area schools.
Each of our teachers bring a wealth of experience in both teaching and performance from maintaining a long-standing private studio to public solo recitals.
We cater to all levels of players, whether you’re a beginner or coming back after some time away from the harp, we are ready to support you along your journey in a nurturing and supportive environment.