Marie-Pierre Langlamet

France's Marie-Pierre Langlamet is one of the world's leading harp soloists and orchestral harpists, having served as principal harpist of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra since 1993. Unusual among players of her instrument, she is known as a champion of contemporary music. Langlamet was born in Grenoble, France, on September 13, 1967. She first fell in love with the harp through watching the animated cartoon Piccolo, Saxo et Compagnie, and when her piano class at school was full, she opted to take up the harp instead. Entering the Nice Conservatoire, Langlamet progressed rapidly and was playing in the orchestra of the Nice Opera while still in her teens. Langlamet continued her education at the Curtis Institute of Philadelphia, and from there landed a position as deputy principal harpist in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York in 1988. She won several major prizes, including the Concert Artist Guild Competition in New York the following year. Langlamet remained in New York until she joined the Berlin Philharmonic as principal harpist in 1993. She has performed worldwide in recitals, appearing in such venues as Avery Fisher Hall and the Albert Hall in London, and has played concertos with various orchestras including L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Israel Philharmonic, and the Sinfonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks. She has collaborated with American composer Sebastian Currier to create new works for the harp, and she often programs the harp concerto of 20th century Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera. Langlamet has recorded for the Chandos, Ancalagon, and Erato labels, as well as appearing in chamber works on other labels and performing on numerous recordings with the Berlin Philharmonic. In 2019, she released an album of harp and string quartet arrangements of Mozart piano concertos on the Indesens label. In 2009, Langlamet was made a Chevalier of France's Order of Arts and Letters.