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In July 2011, I had the privilege of taking part in an International Harp Course for amateur and professional harpists in Milan, Italy for 10 days. It is run annually by a wonderful harp professor, Laura Caramellino, with the aim of providing an opportunity for all participants to increase the awareness of the musical world through harp playing. The course is taught in English and attracted young people and adults from across the world. Each of us had lessons with Laura and then also learnt from visiting International Harp tutors. This year we had a masterclass on Baroque Harp by Mara Galassi (Italy), Jazz workshops by Monika Stadler (Austria) and individual lessons with Luisa Prandina, Principal Harpist of La Scala (Italy).
We all stayed at the Santuario Di Crea (listed as a World Heritage Site), a magical place set in the hills of Milan. With practice rooms looking out to the hills, it was a pleasure to practise for many hours! It is a wonderful peaceful place to study and we were able to explore the large grounds in our free time. The visiting tutors each gave a recital in the church on site which was open to the public and was amazing.
The whole workshop was very well organised and was a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, learn from each other and receive amazing tuition. I especially enjoyed the group sessions with Monika Stadler, learning Jazz. These were great fun and the participants worked very well together and produced some great work. I also benefited a great deal from having one to one lessons with Laura and Luisa which helped to improve my technique and general musicianship.
It did not matter whether you were an amateur or professional, everyone was welcome and brought something that others could learn from. It was a truly inclusive and safe environment to learn, and an inspiration to meet so many harpists from around the world. Laura was a fantastic host and Professor and worked so hard to make it a very inspiring and special 10 days that I will never forget.
