Helen Gerhold (Harp ’18)
Interviewed by Ali King
Director, Marketing and Business Development
Curtis Institute of Music
October 29, 2020
AK: What do you wish more people knew about playing the harp?
HG: Well a lot of people don’t know that there are seven pedals and 47 strings — there’s a start! Reading harp music is a lot like reading piano music, unless there are so many accidentals that you can’t change the pedals fast enough. It’s a hard orchestral instrument to play too, because there are so many point of contact happening at once; you have to think about the pedals, your hands, the music score, and then the conductor. Also there’s the ability to self-accompany, like the piano, which gives more range to perform independently.
AK: Do you encounter stereotypes about being a harpist?
HG: When we’re moving the harp, people always stop and ask if I wish I played the piccolo. I’m like…“No, I play the harp because I want to play the harp!” Moving it is tricky but that’s part of the novelty of it. And there’s the “Oh, it’s so soft…you’re an angel…” but I think we can be just as badass and loud and bombastic as anyone else.
AK: A couple months ago you were featured in a Philadelphia Inquirer article about how the Lyra Society, for which you serve as Executive Director, has pivoted its teaching mission online during the pandemic. What has been a challenging aspect of your role as a non-profit organization leader?
HG: Finding my voice in donor relations and communications, I think. Because I’m so young I sometimes feel like I’m unqualified, or there’s some sort of secret language that I need to know in order to talk to donors. Being confident in myself to go out and just do it still makes me a little uncomfortable.
AK: How did Curtis prepare you for a career in arts administration?
HG: I was a student worker in the advancement department and really loved it. I worked with a few different staff members, doing everything from stuffing ticket envelopes to calling patrons to editing program donor lists to updating the online Curtis merchandise store. I remember there was a big conversation about ticket pricing that I helped gather data for — I enjoyed all of that stuff and it helped me figure out what I liked doing.
AK: Being a performer, administrator, and teacher, how do you think about your professional identity?
HG: When I was in high school I always thought of myself as a harpist but actually wasn’t planning on going to a conservatory. When I came to Curtis, it definitely became my identifier. Now it changes week by week. Before the pandemic, sometimes I’d be subbing with the Philadelphia Orchestra and then wearing the Executive Director hat. I’m not good at sitting at a desk for hours. I want to move around, travel, practice — having these variations has helped me immensely.
AK: Besides occasionally playing with the Philadelphia Orchestra, have you taken other gigs during the pandemic?
HG: There’s a bit of work out there with small weddings and virtual recital requests, that kind of thing. We’re getting gigs but they’re few and far between. Lessons definitely pop up, especially now that people have more time to devote to new hobbies, being at home all the time.
AK: How do you see being a Curtis alumna who is visible in Philadelphia’s arts community influencing your relationship with the school?
HG: Keeping the Curtis excellence alive in Philadelphia is something we, I, should be doing. I feel responsible for encouraging students to participate in the Philadelphia arts scene, which is so established and part of the local culture. Curtis alumni are the ones who make the world that students graduate in to, and having no idea what to do when you come out of a school like that is scary. It sweeps you off your feet — especially when your classmates are winning Queen Elisabeth Competition.
AK: What are ways that Curtis students can practice this local interaction?
HG: The Lyra Society and Curtis are already connected, which is great. Doing something with the career studies or artist citizen curriculum, or offering students the opportunity to shadow an arts administrator for a day would be really cool. Giving Curtis kids more chances to impact young musicians’ lives is priceless. When I was in school, I was so focused on being a performer. Now we’re seeing musicians have high-profile performing lives who are doing other things — like Elizabeth Hainen for example, who’s the principal harpist for the Philadelphia Orchestra, on faculty at Curtis, has a solo career, and founder of the Lyra Society. My friend Timmy Chooi is doing great things performance-wise and still manages to do community outreach. As harpists we’re forced to have more variance in our careers, and I don’t see who other instrumentalists can’t do the same.
AK: You mentioned you’re getting drinks with two Curtis staff members after this interview; where are you all headed?
HG: The Fitler Club, where I’m a member. We should go some time!
