FLORALEDA SACCHI

Harpist · Composer · Recording Artist · Teacher

 
Floraleda Sacchi is an Italian harpist, composer, recording artist and teacher whose work bridges classical music, contemporary creation and electronic experimentation. Recognized for her distinctive artistic vision, she has performed internationally at major concert halls and festivals, developing a career that combines a deep engagement with the harp repertoire with a constant search for new musical possibilities.

Her recordings have been released by labels including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Universal Music and Brilliant Classics.

Floraleda received the Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album in 2018 and won prizes at 16 competitions.
In 2023, she was appointed Cavaliere al Merito of the Italian Republic.
 

AN INTERNATIONAL CAREER

She has performed over 1,000 solo concerts across four continents, appearing at prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall in New York, the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Großes Saal of the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Sala Verdi in Milan, the Gasteig in Munich, the Ehrbar Saal in Vienna, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid and the CBC Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto, Auditorium della Conciliazione (Roma), Società del Quartetto Milano, Festival Musica no Museo (Rio de Janeiro), Octobre Musical (Cartage-Tunis), Quintai Hall (China), etc.

Her performances have reached international audiences through radio and television broadcasts, including live appearances for RAI, RSI, Radio France, Rádio Slovensko and ABC Australia.

She has appeared as a soloist with orchestras around the world – Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Regionale Toscana, Neubrandenburger Philharmonie, Orchestra Toscanini, Orchestra Filarmonica di Sanremo, Orquestra de Cascais e Oeiras, Baltic Neopolis Orchestra, Passion Classique, Millî Reasürans Oda Orkestrası, Wuhan Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma, Daejeon Philharmonic, etc – and has taken part in radio and television broadcasts, including RAI’s internationally televised Christmas Concert with the Italian Youth Orchestra with Mozart and Handel concertos.

Her artistic path embraces both the traditional harp repertoire and new interpretations of classical and contemporary music, bringing the instrument into dialogue with different musical cultures and audiences.
 

CLASSICAL REPERTOIRE AND NEW MUSIC

Alongside her solo career, Floraleda has developed an extensive repertoire through arrangements, rediscoveries and collaborations with contemporary composers. Her work reflects a continuing interest in expanding the harp repertoire, bringing forgotten music to light and exploring new ways of presenting the instrument.

In 2014, she recorded and premiered Kojiki, a concerto for harp and string orchestra by Manuel De Sica, with the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini. The recording was released by Brilliant Classics.

In 2018, she recorded Mágica y Misteriosa, a harp concerto composed for and dedicated to her by Claudia Montero, with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Lucía Zicos. The album received the Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album.

Her contemporary music projects include the premiere of Peter Machajdík’s harp concerto Slovo O in 2013 and Howard Blake’s Loreley-Impressionen in 2021.

In 2020, she created her own arrangement of Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, replacing the solo violin with the harp and performing the concertos in Europe and Canada.

In 2026, she performed, recorded and edited Joaquín Turina’s Tema y Variaciones, Ciclo Plateresco, Op. 100, with Atlantida Orchestra conducted by Manuel Tévar, for the project La Locura Española recorded at Mozarteum Salzburg.
 

A PERSONAL SOUND: HARP AND ELECTRONICS

Since 2015, Floraleda has pursued a more personal musical direction, composing original pieces and combining the acoustic harp with electronics, looping and sound effects. This approach has allowed her to explore new timbres and textures, developing a distinctive sound that moves freely between classical traditions, minimalism and contemporary sound art.

Her project Darklight marked a defining moment in this journey. Combining harp, electric harp, electronics and original compositions, the album received international critical attention and entered classical charts in several countries. It also led to tours in Australia, Spain, Thailand, China and North America.

Her recording projects explore music by composers including Ludovico Einaudi, Philip Glass, John Cage, Michael Nyman, Nils Frahm, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Arvo Pärt, Ryūichi Sakamoto and Joe Hisaishi. Through her arrangements and interpretations, she brings this repertoire into the distinctive sound of the harp.
 

RECORDING ARTIST

With over 40 albums to her name, Floraleda has developed a discography that ranges from classical harp concertos, chamber music, solo repertoire to original projects involving live electronics.

Her recordings have been released by labels including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Universal Music, Brilliant Classics, Tactus. She currently releases music through Amadeus Arte.

Her work has received international critical acclaim and achieved significant visibility on classical music charts and streaming platforms.
 

COMPOSER FOR THEATRE AND CINEMA

Alongside her work as a performer and recording artist, Floraleda composes music for theatre and cinema.

Among her best-known projects are Viaggio sulla Luna created for Milan Planetarium and the music for Donna non rieducabile, a theatrical production that received more than 190 performances, including an appearance at the European Parliament in Brussels and in major Italian theatres.

Donna non rieducabile was subsequently adapted into a film (Il Sangue, la Neve) by RAI 2, presented at the 66th Venice Film Festival and released on DVD by PromoMusic.
 

RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONS

Floraleda has a longstanding interest in the history of the harp and in the rediscovery of its repertoire.

At the age of 21, she received the Harpa Award in Prague for her book on Elias Parish Alvars, the nineteenth-century harpist and composer she is still considered the reference expert.

She has also published articles in specialist journals, including American Harp Journal, Harpa and World Harp Congress Review, contributing to the study and rediscovery of harp music.

She published numerous editions with Ut Orpheus and many arrangements are available directly on her website and though Harp Column music publishing.
 

TEACHING

Floraleda Sacchi is Professor of Harp at the F. Torrefranca Conservatory (Italian University). She has given masterclasses and lectures at institutions in Europe, the United States and Japan.

Her teaching combines technical rigour with a broad artistic perspective, encouraging students to develop curiosity, creativity, awareness and a sustainable, relaxed approach to instrumental technique.

She also serves on the juries of international music competitions.
 

BIOGRAPHY

Born in Como, Italy, Floraleda Sacchi discovered the harp through the recordings of Annie Challan that inspired her as a child. She studied at the Como Conservatory with Lisetta Rossi and continued her musical development with Alice Giles in Germany, Alice Chalifoux in the United States and Judy Loman in Canada.

Her artistic journey has been shaped by an independent approach to music-making, a curiosity for unfamiliar repertoire and a desire to explore the harp beyond established boundaries. Today, her work brings together performance, recording, composition, research and teaching, with the aim of continually discovering new possibilities for the instrument.
 
 

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