Biography

 

Often described as a quirky and engaging performer, who is fully at home on stage both as a harpist, and as a storyteller and actor, Rosanna Moore, has made it her aim to combine theatre and music wherever possible. She has had success in multiple international competitions such as being first harpist to be a finalist at the Gold Medal Competition at RNCM (the highest accolade offered for solo performance), won the Stan Baker award for jazz improvisation, was a semifinalist in the Dutch Harp Competition and placed third at both the Welsh International Jazz and Pop Harp Competition, Tierra47’s International Pedal Harp Competition and the Marcel Tournier Competition.

​

In addition to performing as a tenured member of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Rosanna can often be seen with ensembles such as Ensemble Signal, Slee Sinfonietta, Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes, Anchorage Symphony, Symphor!a, Vancouver Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony and Buffalo Philharmonic. She was invited to give the opening solo recital at the Sentmentat International Harp Festival, Spain in 2018. In 2023, she will appear for the seventh year as principal harp and core artist with the Lake George Music Festival, NY.

​

As an actress, she has worked as a narrator for orchestras and ensembles in addition to doing voice over work. In a combination of both art forms, she has worked with trombonist/actor John Kenny, was awarded honourable mention in the Eastman Lecture Recital Prize for her research and performance into the choreography used in R. Murray Schafer’s Crown of Ariadne and created a Vaudeville harp show entitled ‘Roll Up, Roll Up’, presenting theatrical harp works and storytelling, which won her a spot in the Dutch Harp Competition’s semi final in 2018 . Her research into the relationship between music and theatrical performance practices was published in Contemporary Music Review in 2020 and she performed at the rescheduled World Harp Congress in Cardiff, 2022. Rosanna also provides workshops to musicians on stage presence and etiquette and the use of acting techniques from theatre practitioners to further musical expression.

​

As a self described ‘professional composer collector’, Rosanna pesters composers until they write for her! This has lead to two world premieres of concerti, the US premiere of David Horne’s Splintered Instruments and Amy Victoria Nam’s Somewhere to Elsewhere, a show entitled God Complex with percussion and harp duo Sticks&Strings, an recording project with flute, viola, harp trio, Trio Alexander, and new interdisciplinary commissions with Hats+Heels bassoon and harp duo.. Since 2017, she has served as a harpist consultant for the Future Blend Project, an innovative and collaborative composition competition. She also served in a number of roles on the executive board of OSSIA New Music collective, including as President in the lead up to the organisation’s 20th anniversary season.

​

In addition to performing, Rosanna was recently appointed as the new Full Time Assistant Lecturer in Harp at the Dublin Conservatoire at TU Dublin, Ireland, where she will teach students at the collegiate and pre-collegiate level and also is the Harp Instructor at Opus Ithaca. She has been invited to present masterclasses and clinics for the Royal Northern College of Music, Chetham’s School of Music, Cincinnati College of Music, The Royal Welsh School of Music and Drama, the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble in Atlanta, GA and appeared as the adjudicator for the American Harp Society’s Auditions and Evaluations. Formerly she held the position of Instructor of Harp/ Artist in Residence at the University of Oregon, was the Professor of Harp at Nazareth College and the Harp Instructor at the Eastman Community Music School. In these roles, she works to bring the harp to as many students as possible and teaches students of all ages and abilities. She served as President of the Rochester Chapter of the American Harp Society from 2019-2021 and from 2022-23 served as Secretary in the Eugene Chapter. In addition to this, she is the co-founder and host of the Soundweavers Podcast, a chamber music podcast that explores the trials and tribulations of being a chamber musician and composer in the gig economy.

​

Rosanna recently completed her Doctor of Musical Arts degree with the Performer’s Certificate, an Arts Leadership Certificate and a minor in theatre at the Eastman School of Music, supported by the Eileen Malone Scholarship. She previously studied at the Royal Northern College of Music and Chetham’s School of Music. Her wonderful mentors throughout the years have been Kathleen Bride and Eira Lynn Jones.

​

This past season will saw the release of her debut duo album with Hats+Heels Duo (‘Women are...’), performances of the Ginastera and Debussy concerti, along with the US premiere of Kelly Marie-Murphy’s En el Escuro, es Todo Uno for ‘cello, harp and orchestra with cellist Nicholas Finch. Future collaborations include the world premiere and tour of DJ Sparr’s ‘Extraordinary Motion’ concerto for electric harp and orchestra from 2024, will be teaming up with percussionist Dr. Hannah Weaver for the premiere and tour of a new percussion and harp concerto ‘Mountains Become Oceans’ by British composer Angela Slater from 2025 and the release of Rosanna’s debut solo album.