Kirsten Agresta Copely is a GRAMMY® Nominated harpist & composer based in New York City. She is a former associate professor of harp at Vanderbilt University, an affiliated artist on the music faculty of Sarah Lawrence College,[1] a board member of the World Harp Congress, and a member of NARAS and ASCAP. Agresta has collaborated with many artists across a wide range of genres, including Jay-Z, Beyoncé Knowles, Enya, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, The Mavericks, Evanescence, The Who, Carrie Underwood, Tony Bennett and Kristin Chenoweth.
Aside from a performance for former U.S. President Barack Obama at his second official White House State Dinner, Agresta has also performed privately for several officials and dignitaries, including Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Queen Silvia of Sweden, Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore.
Agresta received her bachelor's and master's of music degrees from Indiana University Bloomington in Harp Performance.
After placing third in the 1989 USA International Harp Competition,[2] Agresta began performing as a solo artist, traveling across the United States, Europe, South America, Israel, Japan, and the South Pacific. Her success culminated in three Carnegie Hall solo recitals from 1998 to 2002 and two recitals at the Lincoln Center.
Her debut album, Dream World was released in August 2001.
"The Covers Album" was released on all streaming platforms in May 2019. The all-original, new age album "Around The Sun" released January, 2020, marking Kirsten's first as composer and winning a silver medal at the Global Music Awards. Ms. Copely's most recent album, "Aquamarine", was nominated for Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant in the 66th Annual Grammy Awards. [3]