..."fine technical command of the instrument, and brings a very personal touch to her music... an aura of unusual warmth." Montreal Gazette
For harpist Lucile Brais Hildesheim, music is an expression of colour and texture. Curious to explore a wide range of music, she loves to push boundaries, and often brings a variety of harps, each with its own voice and personality, to the stage.
Lucile's musical journey began in Montreal when she was eight, still too small to reach the pedals of the concert harp, but determined to learn to play. Her determination never wavered and eventually led her to McGill University, and a Bachelor of Music in Performance.
Soon after graduation she was a finalist in the CBC National Music Competition, and a position of harpist in residence was created for her at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. A beautiful relationship with the CBC and Radio-Canada began, with many studio recordings and concert broadcasts.
Her solo, concerto and chamber music concerts have taken her across Canada, to Europe and the United States, and to summer festivals at Lanaudière and Le Domaine Forget, as well as to Ottawa's Music and Beyond festival. She has also performed with the Ottawa Jazz Orchestra, and in the Ottawa Jazz Festival.
Lucile is particularly fond of playing with choirs, especially at Christmas. Choir conductors value her sensitive accompaniment skills and have included her in many concerts and recordings.
In 2002, she premiered the Concerto for Celtic Harp by Canadian composer Mark Mitchell, which was reprised as a chamber piece with members of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra; in 2012 she played its American premiere in New York City.
She has produced three solo harp albums and published some of her compositions and arrangements.
Lucile teaches both classical and celtic harp to young and mature students at her studio in Ottawa, Canada. A member of the Royal College of Examiners, she is a harp examiner for the Royal Conservatory, and is in demand as an adjudicator.
She is equally passionate about snow and skiing, and is a certified ski instructor.
Lucile and flutist Sheila White make up the duo sheila&lucile, who perform classical, traditional, and new music, painting captivating soundscapes with their unique genre-defying arrangements. The duo's creativity and mastery shine through in their two albums, each a finely crafted array of musical colours and textures expressed through a variety of harps and flutes.
Lucile performs on four kinds of harps: Lyon & Healy 23 Concert Grand; Josephus Dayspring 38 lever harp; Salvi Delta electric harp; and Haydn Harp carbon fibre 24.