The Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales is a position within the Royal Household. In 2000, King

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

, the then

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

, revived a tradition of having Welsh

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

ists, which was the first time the post has been occupied since it was last granted to John Thomas in 1871 by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

. The harp is an important national instrument in Wales, and although the role of Official Harpist was discontinued during the reign of Queen Victoria, the Prince of Wales restored the position in 2000 in order to foster and encourage young musical talent in Wales and the UK and to raise the profile of the harp as an instrument. On 5 July 2006, the Prince of Wales was presented with a £150,000 gold leaf harp from harp maker

Victor Salvi Victor Salvi (\ˈvik-tər\ \ˈsal-vē \); (March 4, 1920 – May 10, 2015) was an American-born harpist, harp maker, and entrepreneur. Salvi, who has been called "harpmaker of the world", was of Italian descent. Born in Chicago, Illinois, he ...

of the Italian harp makers

Salvi Harps Salvi Harps is an Italian manufacturer of concert harps. The company was founded by Italian-American harpist and harpmaker Victor Salvi in 1956. History The father of company founder Victor (Vittorio) Salvi was an Italian luthier, piano and ...

. The harp is used by the official harpist.

List of official harpists

* John Thomas, 1871 *

Catrin Finch Catrin Ana Finch is a Welsh harpist, arranger and composer. She was the Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales from 2000 to 2004 and is visiting professor at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and the Royal Academy of Music in London. ...

, 2000 to 2004 *

Jemima Phillips Jemima Phillips is an English-born Welsh harpist. She was the Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales from 2004 to 2007 but was later convicted of handling stolen goods. Biography Phillips was born in North London, where her father Robert was an ...

, 2004 to 2007 * Claire Jones, 2007 to 2011 * Hannah Stone, 2011 to 2015 *

Anne Denholm Anne Denholm is a Welsh harpist born in Carmarthenshire, who held the position of Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales from 2015 to 2019. Education Denholm was educated at Ysgol Gynradd y Dderwen and Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bro Myrddin. She t ...

, 2015 to 2019 * Alis Huws, 2019 onwards

References

{{reflist

External links

The Prince of Wales Official Website
Positions within the British Royal Household 2000 establishments in Wales Harpists

Harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...