4 Girls 4 Harps is a quartet of award-winning female harpists formed in 2000.[1] They play Salvi concert harps and modern electric harps.[2] As of June 2012, the members were Keziah Thomas, Angharad Wyn Jones, Harriet Adie and Eleanor Turner.[2]
Radio
The group's music has been broadcast internationally on ABC Classic FM[3] and in the UK on Classic FM, where their recording was David Mellor's Recommended CD of the week in June 2009,[citation needed] on Rob Cowan's Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 3 in September 2009,[4] and on BBC Radio 2's Melodies for You programme with Alan Titchmarsh in March 2010.[5][6]
In December 2013, 4 Girls 4 Harps performed live on BBC Radio 3.[7]
In May 2015, the 15th anniversary of its formation, the group again performed live on BBC Radio 3 with the BBC noting, "Their upcoming concert at Temple Church in London features the world premiere of 'Tetra' -a four movement work based on the lives of four influential woman and composed by four female composers, commissioned by the quartet to mark the anniversary".[8] In the same month, they also performed live on BBC Radio Four's Woman's Hour.[9]
In May 2017, Classic FM's Lizzie Davis noted, "4 Girls 4 Harps [have] made a name for themselves with innovative arrangements of well-known works – from Piazzolla to Borodin. Harps don't often get the chance to be centre-stage, but 4 Girls 4 Harps are changing that, with their creative and virtuosic arrangements of well-known works for harp quartet".[10]
Television
4 Girls 4 Harps have also featured in several TV programmes including S4C's Nosen Lawen (March 2010) and Wedi 7 (May 2009). The group were also showcased in an article in Classical Music magazine (August 2009) about upcoming new groups and in Muso magazine (Oct/Nov 2009 issue).
Critical reception
Reviews of 4 Girls 4 Harps' concerts include:
"...A varied and innovative repertoire and four engaging personalities: A star." - N2 Arts and Entertainment, May 2010
"... no gimmicks, no stunts, no fancy costumes beyond elegant evening wear – just engaging chat and rather lovely music." - Lichfield Gazette, July 2011
"enriched their audience with floods of melody in an eclectic yet well proportioned selection of musical delights." - South Wales Evening Post, July 2012