2020 & 2021 Wiltshire Louise Schaefer Fund; 2019 NAFA Merit Award; Participant, 2022 USA International Harp Competition
Bowdoin Music Festival, Maine, 2019; HarpMasters, Switzerland, 2018
I did ballet when I was 4, and I preferred listening to the music over dancing.
When I was living in a girls home from the ages of 12 to 14, the prominent Singaporean percussionist Riduan Zalani would visit as a volunteer and make music with us. Having experienced first-hand the impact that music can make on a person during hard times really drove me to want to do the same. I picked up the harp at 14 and never looked back!
I heard about TŌN from my professor, Gillian Benet Sella. I was inspired by the numerous orchestral performance opportunities.
Fewer unspoken concert hall rules! Dismantle barriers between the performers and the audience. A more welcoming environment would invite newer audiences.
Benjamin Franklin’s portrait on a green piece of paper; this girl has to eat. And my undergrad professor, Gulnara Mashurova. She’s so elegant and poised, and listening to her talk about how she worked hard to get to where she is now always inspired me.
Most Romantic symphonies. Sappy music that makes you feel strong feelings and emotions are my guilty pleasures.
Pièce Symphonique by Henriette Renié. It details the different stages of grief, and is filled with so many raw, conflicting emotions. Which is rare in solo harp repertoire.
Getting to meet so many people from different countries and from all walks of life! I wouldn’t have been able to travel so much and make so many friends if not for music.
P. Ramlee and Pink Martini
Definitely the cello. I just love how the instrument sings.
I was actually accepted into pharmaceutical school alongside music school. So either a pharmacist or my childhood dream, which was to be a cleaner in a zoo. Because I wanted to be near animals but I didn’t really like studying.
Jesus, just to see if he was really real. Would love to see what a conversation with Erik Satie would be like. And lastly, Cleopatra because why wouldn’t you?
I worked in a harp factory as an apprentice so I can power lift and regulate harps! I can also physically move my intestines and curse in more than 10 languages.
Don’t be afraid of failure and rejection. You fail, fail, and fail before you succeed, so embrace and accept it as part of growth. And get out of the practice room to experience the world!