Continuing the series profiling some of the new crop of Music Scholars here at Kent: this week, harpist Emma Murton.

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I owe my musical upbringing to my mum, who is a music teacher with flute as her first instrument. It was when she was at university that she performed in orchestra The Childhood of Christ by Berlioz an first encounter and fell in love with the harp. For her *mutter age* birthday she finally got to have lessons on the harp, dragging me alone (as a kicking and screaming seven-year old for the hour drive) to the lessons. Then I started, she stopped and hey ho!

I was at Wells Cathedral music school for ten years and was a specialist musician there for five years. During that time I have achieved grade 8 in Harp, grade 7 in singing and piano. Through the school I was lucky to have some amazing performance opportunities, such as performing regularly in the Cathedral from a young age. Some concert highlights for me were Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man with Karl Jenkins in the audience, candlelight carol services, Rutter’s Requiem conducted by the composer himself and orchestra concerts in Bristol’s Colston Hall. I also had the amazing opportunity to go out to Sierra Leone last year to teach and perform around the capital.

Personally with the harp I have had master classes with Eleanor Turner and took part in the annual harp festivals of Bristol and Mid-Somerset, I have also been a part of South West Youth Orchestra, Somerset County Youth Orchestra and county choir.

The wide variety of music at Kent was a real deciding factor for my University choice and am over the moon I got in. The music department are so friendly and passionate and I know I’ve certainly met some fantastic people through orchestra.

One highlight for me with music at Kent so far is getting into the Chamber Choir, who are some of the maddest and amazing people I’ve met on campus yet and being able to sing with is a complete privilege. For the most part being involved in music at Kent means getting involved with as much as I can whilst continuing with my harp lessons as I work towards my diploma.