ENSEMBLE “WHATSHARP!”
Aurora Bottacin, Viola Dall’Olmo, Cecilia Amelie Toffoli, Bianca de Gioia, Miriam Pipitone, Giacomo Dall’Aglio, Melani Judi Fiorentini , Iris Fioretti
The Ensemble ‘WhatsHarp!’ formed by the pupils of the harp class at the Conservatorio ‘Cesare Pollini’ in Padua, Prof. Tiziana Tornari,
The students, of various ages and instrumental preparation, learn to listen to each other musically, to share moments of study and recreation, to collaborate according to their abilities, and to be proud to be part of a group that they create themselves through study and passion for their instrument: the harp. The varied and articulated programme offers pieces from various epochs and geographical areas, sometimes also using string, wind and percussion instruments. Despite the group’s young age, the Ensamble ‘WhatsHarp! ‘has performed at Villa Guidini in Zero Branco, at Casa Marani in Villorba for AIDO, at the Council Chamber in Paese for the Free University, for the ’Albinoni‘ Musical Institute in Spresiano, for the International Inner Circle of Treviso, in the Clock Tower in Vittorio Veneto for the ’Corelli‘ Institute, for the “Carillon” festival in Padua, for the ’Summer under the Stars” festival in Breda di Piave, for the ‘Musica al museo’ review in Abano Terme (PD), for the COSMUS Association at the Pileo Theatre in Prata di Pordenone, at the ‘Da Ponte’ Theatre in Vittorio Veneto, at the ‘Santo Stefano’ Auditorium in Farra di Soligo, for the Marciana Library in Venice, for the Levico Terme Festival, for the ‘Arpissima’ review in Noventa Padovana, in Pordenone for the Venezia Giulia Festival and on numerous other occasions. The Ensemble won first prize and a scholarship at the 6th International Competition ‘Città di Palmanova’ in May 2018, in November 2017 won second prize at the International Competition ‘Crescendo in Musica’ in Padua, in March 2019 won second prize at the International Competition ‘Città di Belluno’, in October 2020 won first prize at the Competition ‘Giovani Musicisti città di Treviso’ and in November 2021 won first prize at the 6th edition of the Competition ‘Incontriamoci tra le Note’ and in 2023 won first prize at the International Competition ‘Città di Palmanova’.
Concert programme
E. Grieg Morning Mood – Anitra dance / A Vivaldi / Le quattro stagioni – L’Autunno terzo tempo Allegro “La caccia” – L’Inverno primo tempo Allegro “Agghiacciato tremar tra le nevi., secondo tempo Largo “La pioggia” – La Primavera primo tempo Allegro “Giunta è la Primavera” – L’Estate terzo tempo Presto “ Il temporale”
Omaggio a Disney – A.Ponchielli Danza delle ore : Le ore dell’aurora, La danza delle ore del giorno, Sortono le ore della sera, Sortono le ore della notte
P.I.Tchaikovsky: Danza della Fata Confetto (Arr.A.Luise)
A. Menken:The Little Mermaid (Arr.Meng-Lu Chiu)
Echi di Spagna – M.De Falla: Spanish Dance n.1
D.Henson -Conant: Baroque Flamenco
Oksana Sidyagina
Oksana Sidyagina is an internationally acclaimed Russian harpist based in Paris, renowned for her expressive artistry, versatility, and emotional depth. Her career spans solo and chamber performances across Europe and beyond, with appearances in France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Israel, Thailand, and many other countries. Oksana moves fluidly between classical, contemporary, and experimental repertoire, bringing historical and modern works to life with extraordinary finesse. A laureate of numerous international competitions, she has won first prizes at Suoni d’Arpa International Harp Contest in Italy 2021, Rencontres Internationales de la Harpe en Île-de-France (France, 2018), the International Harp Competition of Italy (Italy, 2014), the Harp in the 21st Century competition (Russia, 2013), and the IV Vera Dulova International Competition (Russia, 2008), among others. Her artistry has also been recognized with awards in Russia, Ukraine, and Greece. Oksana is a graduate of the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, where she studied under Emilia Moskvitina, and the École Normale de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot (class of Nicolas Tulliez). She has performed at major festivals and venues, including Suoni d’Arpa, Harpissima Salvi Harps (Italy and Poland), Jornadas de Arpa (Spain), Brucknerhaus Linz (Austria), and Svetlanov Crazy Weekend (Russia).
Oksana is currently a professor at the Sergei Rachmaninoff Conservatory in Paris. She regularly gives masterclasses across Europe, having taught in France, Italy, Spain, Poland, Croatia, and Russia, including as part of the Harpissima Salvi series.
In 2022, she launched her project “Harp Meditation” in Paris—an innovative concept blending classical performance and music therapy, offering audiences an immersive and contemplative listening experience.
In March 2025, at the Rachmaninoff Conservatory in Paris, she organized the inaugural edition of the Paris Harp Week festival, which immediately achieved an international dimension, welcoming participants from various cities across France, Russia, and Bulgaria.
2025 also marks the release of Oksana Sidyagina’s debut album, “Map of My Imaginary Memories”, published by Prima Classic. More than just an album, it is a musical diary of the past seven years—a deeply personal and introspective journey through sound. Inspired by John Cage’s In a Landscape, the album weaves together works by Claude Debussy, Erik Satie, Arvo Pärt, Benjamin Britten, and John Cage, alongside Oksana’s own original creations and improvisations.
Naoko Yoshino
Japanese harpist Naoko Yoshino was born in London, and started her harp studies with Susann McDonald at the age of six in Los Angeles. In 1981, she received the Second Prize at the First International Harp Competition in Rome. In 1985, at the age of seventeen, she was the First Prize Winner at the Ninth International Harp Contest in Israel.
Naoko Yoshino’s solo engagements with the world’s top orchestras have included the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Zurich’s Tonhalle Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and Concentus Musicus Wien. Renowned conductors with whom she has shared the stage include Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Zubin Mehta, Pierre Boulez, Herbert Blomstedt, Yehudi Menuhin, Frühbeck de Burgos, and Seiji Ozawa. She has given solo recitals in New York, Vienna, London, and Tokyo, among other cities around the world.
Naoko Yoshino has been invited to numerous prestigious music festivals, such as the Lucerne, Salzburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Marlboro, and Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festivals. Through chamber music, she has worked closely with such renowned musicians as violinist Gidon Kremer, violists Veronika Hagen and Nobuko Imai, cellist Clemens Hagen, flutists Aurèle Nicolet, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Wolfgang Schulz, Emmanuel Pahud, and horn player Radek Baborák.
As an advocate of new repertoire for the harp, Naoko Yoshino has premiered many works, including Toru Takemitsu’s “And then I knew ‘twas Wind”, Toshio Hosokawa’s Harp Concerto “Re-turning”, Yuji Takahashi’s “Insomnia”, and Ami Maayani’s “Sonata No.2” for solo harp.
Recordings to date include releases on the Teldec, Philips, Sony Classical, and Virgin Classics labels. In 2015, Naoko Yoshino started recording for her own private label “grazioso”. The first album: “Harp Recital – Favorite Masterpieces and More…”, was released in January 2016, followed by “Harp Recital II – Sonata / Suite / Variations” in 2017, “Harp Recital III – Schumann / Schubert / Mozart / Mendelssohn / Brahms / Bach” in 2018, “Harp Recital IV – Takemitsu / Hosokawa / Yoshimatsu / Cage / Satie” in 2019, “Harp Recital V – Favorite Masterpieces and More… vol. 2” in 2020, “Harp Recital VI – Tournier / Renié / Caplet / Casella / Salzedo / Fauré” in 2021, and “Harp Recital – Intermezzo” in 2022.
Prizes achieved include: 1988, Arts Festival Prize (Japan Agency for Cultural Affairs); 1989, Mobil Music Award for Brilliant Young Musicians; 1991, Avon Awards to Women (Arts division); The Mainichi Art Award FY2021 (special prize).
Since April 2024, Naoko Yoshino is a Guest Professor of Harp at the Tokyo University of the Arts.
www.naokoyoshino.com
Concert programme
Jean Baptiste Loeillet (arr. by M. Grandjany):Toccata / Johann Sebastian Bach (arr. by D. Owens & N. Yoshino): Ciaccona, from Partita for Solo Violin No. 2, BWV1004 /
Alfredo Casella: Sonata for Harp, Op. 6 / Henriette Renié: Contemplation / Marcel Tournier: Jazz Band, Op. 33
Renee Yadav
Born in 2006, Renee Yadav is a Temasek Foundation Young Artist Scholar and a recent graduate from the International Baccalaureate Career Programme at School of the Arts Singapore (SOTA). She started learning the harp at 7 years old and is currently under the tutelage of Ms Katryna Tan of Rave Harps. Passionate and driven, she is one of the most active youth harpists in Asia and has been invited to perform in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, USA, Wales, France and Italy.
Recently, Renee made waves in the harp scene when she clinched the first prize at the 2024 Korean International Harp Competition despite being one of the youngest competitors in the 32 years old and under category. Other accolades include winning the first prize at the 2024 Camac Prize Taiwan and the 8th Félix Godefroid International Harp Competition held in Belgium in 2022. She is also an active participant in the local music scene, winning the Best Performance Award at the 2024 Rave Harps’ International Prestige Award. In addition, Renee made her debut as a soloist in 2024 with the Orchestra of the Music Makers (OMM) after winning the SOTA/OMM Concerto Competition.
Apart from her solo endeavours, Renee performed with OMM throughout their 2024/25 season and has been an active part of Rave Harps’ ensembles and productions. Renee aspires to make the harp more accessible and to share her love for music with the world.
Concert programme
Domenico Scarlatti “Sonata 466” / Henriette Reniè “Danse des Lutins” / Albert Zabel “Fantasy on themes from Gounod’s Faust” / Marcel Tournier “Feerie” / Germaine Tailleferre “Sonata” / Marcel Grandjany “Colorado Trail”