Everybody knows me as the girl who plays the harp. I don’t know what I’d do without this amazing instrument!
Meredith Kiemer was only four when she first picked up (or rather, climbed up, as she was rather small) her mum’s Clarsach (Scottish harp). She has played it so much over the intervening years that it has become an inextricable part of who she is. “It’s such a big part of my identity” she says, “I can’t really go a day without playing it.”
Meredith studies both Gaelic Scottish and classical music and credits a special relationship with her teacher for helping her develop a broad-minded approach to music. “She really understands how I feel about both the music and the instrument” Meredith says. “She’s a composer and she’s creating some fantastic music that I couldn’t even think of.” Being pushed beyond obvious musical choices is a big deal for Meredith: “if you expand your repertoire then you understand your instrument more, because there’s not just one way of playing any instrument.”
Meredith earned a place at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh age 10. Now 12, she has won several age classes at the Royal National Mòd, Scotland’s prestigious Gaelic music competition. She has high hopes of becoming a soloist and travelling the world.
Part of our 20th anniversary project: My Musical Journey
