Spend a week learning from Noël Wan, one of the brightest stars in the harp world, June 21–27, 2026, at the American Harp Academy in Winston-Salem, NC. Throughout the week, Noël will share her mentorship and expertise through masterclasses, private lessons, workshops, seminars, and casual, meaningful conversations that define AHA’s immersive experience.
Noël Wan was recently appointed to the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music—one of the world’s most prestigious conservatories—while continuing to teach harp and entrepreneurship at Florida State University. Celebrated for her charismatic artistry and genre-crossing virtuosity, Wan has won major international harp competitions, including the Gold Medal at the 2022 USA International Harp Competition. Her current research and creative work explore the embodiment of digital sound creation through the electroacoustic harp.
Learn more about Noël, the AHA program, and her teaching philosophy below. Application details can be found here!
What do you want parents and students to know about your teaching methods?
My teaching method is based on building the whole musician, from technique fundamentals to awareness of bodily health to thoughtful, creative artistry. Speedy fingers aren’t sustainable in the long term if there’s tension in the body, and a fabulous technique has little use if there isn’t a curious sense of musicality that informs it. I strongly believe that this holistic approach applies to students at any point in their harp journey, whether they’ve been playing the harp for only a few months or for 10+ years.
In lessons and masterclass, I put my ears first: not only is critical listening central to my skills as a music teacher and coach, but I also try to listen generously to each student. Who are they as emerging artists? What are they trying to convey through their music? How can I help them tap into their individual strengths and build their confidence—all while helping them improve in their skills as harpists?
What makes the AHA program unique to other summer harp programs?
One of the reasons AHA is great is that harp students will be on campus with other summer students in music, film, dance, and visual arts. UNCSA also has beautiful facilities that are designed for music-making, whether that is in the form of masterclass, harp ensemble, chamber music, seminars, or private lessons.
Unlike other summer harp camps that have a large team of faculty, AHA offers dedicated study with three faculty, meaning students will get to spend a lot of quality time with me, Jacquelyn Bartlett, and Grace Ludtke. I plan to be on campus for the whole week and will offer private lessons in addition to the regular academy events, but some of the best learning experiences will probably happen in spontaneous interactions, such as conversing while moving harps or during a meal. Jacquelyn and I also have some interesting seminars planned (“Different Career Paths for Harpists,” “Working on Tone,” and more), and the close interactions that students will have with us means we can address their needs really individually.
What do you hope students gain from being an AHA student?
I hope students will leave AHA feeling really inspired. It could be that they were inspired by the performance level of their classmates and are motivated to improve more. It could be that they were inspired to learn new pieces, or to reconsider what they’d like to do with the harp, or whether they’re interested in studying music at the university level. For me, the act of learning is one of the most valuable experiences in life, and AHA will really be the place where students will be encouraged to learn, think, share, and play.
What do you love most about playing the harp and being a teacher?
I love the versatility of the harp and the fact that the technique is simultaneously complex, frustrating, yet capable of so much physical and artistic expression. The sound can be deep, warm, bright, intimate, sublime, yearning, strong… I could unpack an entire dictionary just describing what the harp is capable of. As such, as a teacher, I love working with harpists to experience that wide range of the instrument and teaching repertoire that reveals yet another layer to the harp that we hadn’t yet heard. I love seeing the joy of the “aha” moments in lessons, or hearing the music finally clicking for a student after they overcome a particular challenge. Finally, I love helping students find their interpretation of a piece of music—really, their voice as a performer—because the process of making a piece one’s own is such a meaningful, sometimes even life-changing, experience.
The American Harp Academy featuring Faculty Guest Artist Noël Wan (Gold Medalist of the 2022 USA International Harp Competition) will be held June 21-27, 2026 in Winston-Salem, NC.