Charlotte Harding is an award-winning composer, orchestrator and saxophonist. Her works include the Ivors Composer Award-winning ‘Convo’ for massed ensemble (Royal Albert Hall) and the Ivors Composer Award-nominated ‘Them’ for contemporary dance company Balletboyz (Sadler’s Wells/Edinburgh Festival/Vaudeville Theatre, West End).
Drawing on an eclectic mix of classical and cross-genre influences, Her diverse career has seen her work performed IN CONCERT HALLS (Queen Elizabeth Hall, Kings Place, Cadogan Hall, St John’s Smith Square, St Martin-in-the-fields), AT MUSIC FESTIVALS (WOMAD, Simple Things, THREE CHOIRS, HIDDEN NOTES) AND NEW MUSIC NIGHTs (NONCLASSICAL) aLONGSIDE plays on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 6 and Soho Radio.
Recent Projects include ‘england on fire’ (sadler’s wells/balletboyz) for which she was musical director and co-composer (with the score written for live ensemble and a specially installed d&b audiotechnik soundscape system, ‘to stay open’ for solo flugelhorn (imogen whitehead) exploring the connections between sports Psychology and musical performance, and creating a soundtrack for the exhibition ‘Dress Codes’ which will open at Kensington palace in 2025.
As an orchestrator and arranger, projects with Paraorchestra have included collaborating with Suede’s Brett Anderson for ‘Death Songbook’ (Gŵyl 2021/BBC/#12 in the independent’s ‘Best albums of 2024’), reimagining the songs of Barry White (Park Stage, Glastonbury Festival 2019), and creating realisations of works by electronic pioneer Pauline Oliveros for the concert ‘Minimalism Changed my Life’ (Queen Elizabeth Hall, London/Bridgewater Hall, Manchester). Charlotte also orchestrated Mercury Prize -nominated Hannah Peel’s no.1 classical album ‘The Unfolding’ released on Real World Records.
As a saxophonist, Charlotte co-founded ‘Over 100 Years of Women and the Saxophone’ with acclaimed saxophonist Amy Green which launched at the World Saxophone Congress, SaxOpen, in Strasbourg and made its debut in the USA in collaboration with Pennsylvania State University in early 2020.
Charlotte is passionate about the role of music in health, education and wellbeing and has collaborated with leading arts organisations including Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Streetwise Opera, Britten Pears Arts, RCM Sparks, Youth Music Theatre UK, PHILHARMONIA and English National Ballet. She is a trustee of the Pete Handley Percussion Award and has been an Associate Lecturer at Goldsmiths University, London. In 2022 She was invited by the Ivors academy to speak at the Houses of Parliament to celebrate 20 years of the ivors composer awards.
Charlotte studied at the Royal College of Music, London with Mark-Anthony Turnage (composition) and Martin Robertson (saxophone) and on graduating was awarded the prestigious Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Rosebowl.
charlotte is a faber alt. artist: faberalt.com/charlotte-harding
Click here for full list of works
photography: Eric oliveira // @_ceharding_
REVIEWS
GLOW
BBC Music MAGAZINE - paul riley
‘Charlotte Harding enlists the writings of Hildegard of Bingen, clothing them in plush, enveloping harmonies that work towards a radiant sunburst of a climax …’
III
tom robinson - bbc Radio 6
“Extraordinary”
Them
The Guardian - Lyndsey Winship
‘The choreography was made in parallel with Charlotte Harding’s excellent string score, and dance and music are clearly, pleasingly, in cahoots. Harding’s music is spare but rich: it has melody but never predictability with its riffs, clear statements and space in between, and the dance follows suit.’
The Guardian/the observer - Sara Veale
‘Buoyant phrases thrive in concert with Harding’s wily score, which roves from suspenseful to playful to sultry …’
‘Along with the dancers, composer Charlotte Harding feels like a seventh choreographer, with every knee lock, head turn or glide of the arm perfectly synchronised to her music.’
‘It’s a devised piece, made in tandem with Charlotte Harding’s string score, that feels loose, born of spontaneity and authentic.’
The stage - anna winter
‘Harding’s string score, combining propulsive pizzicato passages with shrill, nervy shudders and grinding bass, conjures a suitably enigmatic soundworld.’
convo
national campaign for the arts - samuel west
‘It was a big, beautiful thing, and it knocked me sideways.’
‘The performance itself was a spectacular display of music and visual colour.’
minimalism changed my life;
tones, drones and arpeggios
‘Two pieces by San Francisco's Pauline Oliveros – realised by British composer Charlotte Harding –
prove to be the deepest sound experiences of the evening.’
THE INDICATOR LINE
The Guardian - Judith Mackrell
“driven by the percussive power of Charlotte Harding's score”
Death songbook
The Telegraph
“Indie anthems were given a classical twist … delivered with heart-wrenching beauty … as haunting as they come …”
THE INDEPENDENT - MARK BEAUMONT
“…they deliver sublime and avant-garde orchestral reskins of songs that taunt, confront, lament and ultimately celebrate death, for all the life that went before.”
TO STAY OPEN
BRENE BROWN
“BLOWN AWAY! Cried the entire time listening. Openness, flow, deep and wholehearted wins.”
IMAGES
Photography: Eric Oliveria // artwork: Keaton Henson // film: John Minton
Photography: Eric Oliveria
Photography: Eric Oliveria
