Carolyn Munford
Personal Motto
Confidence comes from preparation.
Carolyn Munford is a dynamic performer, teacher, and advocate for music education. She began playing the piano at age 5 and the harp at age 9. She spent three formative years as a harp student in Japan before moving with her family to Augusta, Georgia, where she studied with Augusta Symphony harpist Vonda Darr. Carolyn holds a Bachelor's Degree in Communications from Brigham Young University in addition to a Bachelor's Degree and a Master’s Degree in Harp Performance from the University of Arizona under the tutelage of Carrol McLaughlin.
In July 2012, Carolyn was named a semi-finalist in the Ksenia Erdely International Harp Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia. Carolyn has had great success at national competitions as well, winning third place in the American Harp Society National Competition in 2011 and being named a winner of the Anne Adams Awards in 2008. While at the University of Arizona, Carolyn was granted a Teaching Assistant position in one of the largest harp departments in the world. She also enjoyed being a member of HarpFusion, and performed in Holland, Belgium, Austria, Liechtenstein, and Brazil as part of the ensemble.
Carolyn served as the Artistic Director of The Urban Youth Harp Ensemble for 7 years, where she taught hundreds of students to play the harp in the Atlanta Public School system. The Urban Youth Harp Ensemble gained local and national acclaim under Carolyn’s leadership and was even featured on CBS Sunday Morning. Carolyn led the Ensemble to perform at prestigious venues such as the Governor’s Mansion, Martin Luther King, Jr., memorial sites, and Atlanta City Hall.
Carolyn is the Principal Harpist of the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra. She also frequently performs with The Augusta Symphony, The Savannah Philharmonic, and has appeared with The Phoenix Symphony and The Charleston Symphony.
Carolyn recently completed a term as the Second Vice President of the American Harp Society, the largest organization of professional harpists in the world. She served as Co-chair of the American Harp Society’s 42nd National Conference, which was held in Atlanta in July of 2016. Carolyn currently resides in Augusta, Georgia, where she maintains a private studio of harp and piano students.