Internationally renowned harpist and composer Catrin Finch is one of the most accomplished harpists of her generation, and has been delighting audiences with her performances across the UK and worldwide, since the age of five.
She started her studies in Wales with Elinor Bennett, achieving the highest mark in the UK for her Grade 8 ABRSM exam at the tender age of nine, and then went on to study at The Purcell School and the Royal Academy of Music with Skaila Kanga, graduating with the Queens Commendation for Excellence in 2002.
In 2000 she had the honour of reviving the ancient tradition of Royal Harpist to H.R.H, the Prince of Wales, a position she held until 2004, which was last held during Queen Victoria’s reign in 1873.
Since then, she has performed extensively throughout the USA, South America, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and Europe, both as a soloist, and appearing with many of the world’s top orchestras.
She has recorded for most of the major international recording companies, including Universal Records, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI and Sony Classical.
Showing her versatility in different musical genres, in 2013 Catrin collaborated with Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita on an album entitled ‘Clychau Dibon’, which won the 2014 Critics Poll Album of the Year fRoots and Best Cross-Cultural Collaboration in Songlines magazine, and two BBC Radio 2 Folk Award Nominations. This successful collaboration continues to this day, with their second album, SOAR, releasing in April 2018 to huge critical acclaim and 5* reviews for their live shows in both The Guardian and The London Evening Standard. They have performed extensively throughout the UK, Europe and America, including at festivals such as WOMAD, Shambala, SFinks and L’Orient Interceltique Festival.
Known for her work within the community and with the younger generation, Catrin is committed to promoting the harp and classical music through her now successful annual Academi Catrin Finch Academy Summer Harp School, an Annual Harp Fun Day and her ‘Classical Café’ evenings.
