CONCERTS in the West, the charity that brings rising young stars of the chamber music scene to venues in Dorset and Somerset, has an exciting harp-violin duo for the October tour. The series starts with the usual coffee-time concert at Bridport Arts Centre at 11.30am on Friday 16th October, followed that evening at Ilminster arts centre at 7.30pm, and on Saturday 17th at Crewkerne Dance House, also at 7.30pm.

Lise Vandersmissen, harp, and Gabriela Opacka-Boccadoro, violin, will be playing a programme of works by Debussy, Barbara Strozzi, Jeanne Adrienne Kufferath, Handel, Andy Scott, Henry Purcell and Lise Vandersmissen.

The Belgian virtuoso and her Italian triple harp perform across Europe and Asia. As a soloist, Lise has won many prizes including the Guildhall Harp Prize. She recently completed a six-month residency in Hong Kong where she was teaching and performing at an international harp academy.

Lise released her debut solo album in 2023: Transformed, consisting of her own transcriptions for pedal harp solo. Last summer she released her second solo album Tre. She played the Händel Harp Concerto with the Bach Academie under Luc Ponet, and the London Händel Festival Orchestra under Laurence Cummings. In June 2019, she gave the world premiere of Mark-Anthony Turnage’s new piece for solo harp, Four Meditations, which was dedicated to her.

Lise lives with her harps on a blue houseboat on the London canals. When she is not playing the harp, she loves to knit jumpers and run along the canal.

Gabriela Opacka-Boccadoro is a Polish-British musician who has built a multifaceted career as a violinist, conductor and recording artist across classical performance, theatre and film. She holds a PhD in violin from the Chopin University of Music in Warsaw and an Artist Diploma from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

Gabriela has performed as a soloist with the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice and at the OCM Festival in Prussia Cove. She has led the International Philharmonic Orchestra in New York, including performances at Carnegie Hall, and was a prizewinner at the 2012 Young Paganini International Violin Competition. She tours and records with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and has released the album Ravel with Oliver Wass, featuring violin and harp transcriptions of works by Maurice Ravel.