Rachel O'Brien

One of North America’s premiere emerging harpists, Rachel Lee O’Brien (formerly Rachel Lee Hall) has captured the ears of audiences nationwide. The 2019 Gold Medal winner of the Houston Symphony Orchestra’s Ima Hogg Competition, O’Brien is in high demand as a harp soloist and chamber musician, as well as a respected music pedagogue and author. 

Praised for her “fluid technique…and expressive musicality,” (The Chestnut Hill), O’Brien has appeared as a concert soloist with such esteemed orchestras as the Houston Symphony Orchestra, members of The Philadelphia Orchestra, the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the National Repertory Orchestra, and the Cleveland Institute of Music Symphony Orchestra. Her career has landed her in many well-known concert halls, including Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Houston’s E. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, Cleveland’s Severance Hall, and Blossom Music Center.  

A winner of Astral Artists’ 2017 National Auditions, O’Brien has received top prizes from such competitions as the Lyon & Healy Awards, the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) Concerto Competition and the Saratoga Harp Colony “Play with the Pros” Competition. She is also the recipient of the Alice Chalifoux Award and was the 2015 CIM Presser Scholar. 

O’Brien is a member of the Harvest Arts Chamber Ensemble, with whom she tours coast to coast reaching new audiences through a unique blend of classical music, folk music, and hymns. She is a former member of the Astralis Chamber Ensemble. O’Brien has also performed as a guest orchestral harpist with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Akron Symphony Orchestra, the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, Opera Roanoke, and as a fellow with the National Repertory Orchestra.

O’Brien is most passionate about inspiring the next generation of young classical musicians. To that end, she authored the popular book, “Purpose in Practice: 26 Rules for the Practicing Musician,” which was designed to inspire and motivate musicians to achieve their highest practice room goals, along with a corresponding practice journal.  O’Brien serves locally on the board of Claritas Arts, a Christian nonprofit for Roanoke-based creatives. She also maintains a significant following on social media. 

As an educator, O’Brien serves as professor of harp at the Virginia Tech School of Performing Arts. She also maintains a private studio comprised of harp students both local and worldwide. Many of O’Brien’s private students have been accepted to major music conservatories such as the San Francisco Conservatory, the Cleveland Institute of Music, University of Michigan, Oberlin College, New England Conservatory, and University of North Carolina School of the Arts. In addition to teaching the harp, O’Brien has training in Dalcroze Eurhythmics, an approach to rhythm through movement, which she incorporates in her private lessons in addition to masterclasses and workshops. 

O’Brien holds both a Bachelor and a Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied harp performance under Yolanda Kondonassis. When not performing, Rachel Lee O’Brien may be found with her husband, Jeremy, and their two children in Roanoke, Virginia, a small valley nestled in the heart of Appalachia.