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Deborah Henson-Conant

Grammy-nominated electric harpist, singer, composer, innovator and educator Deborah Henson-Conant (known to many as DHC) has mesmerized audiences throughout the US and Europe for the past three decades. Shattering every harp stereotype with her electrifying performances, she’s known for her on-stage image, her humor, passion and innovation, wearing the electric body-harp she designed. Whether commanding concert halls or intimate salons across the U.S. and Europe, she transforms the harp into an instrument of limitless expression—blending blues, flamenco, Latin, and classical influences with her powerful vocals and storytelling flair.

Using a looper pedal to layer melodies and guitar effects on her harp, she plays solo or in collaboration with symphonies and chamber ensembles – always mixing music, story & movement. She’s opened for Ray Charles, toured with icons of the music world like the Boston Pops and guitar legend Steve Vai, and jammed onstage with renowned powerhouses like Bobby McFerrin and Mason Williams.

As a composer, she writes music that tells stories – from intimate solo harp pieces to orchestral concertos, from one-woman musicals to dramatic song cycles. Her Grammy-nominated works have been performed by the Boston Pops, National Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, Orlando Philharmonic and ensembles from major symphonies to school orchestras worldwide. Deborah teaches improv for harpists internationally and is creator and founder of Hip Harp Academy and the Harness Your Muse Mentorship program which provide training to harpists in improv and self-expression with a focus on breaking through long-held limitations and creating their own authentic performance styles.

Awards

Nominated for a Grammy for “Best Classical Crossover” album for 2007 Invention & Alchemy album.

International Songwriting Award - for Baroque Flamenco, which was premiered with the Boston Pops and has since been programmed world-wide in professional, regional, community and school orchestras. In 2025 it was adapted as a Bandura Concert for a premiere in Kiev, Ukraine and later broadcast on Ukrainian National TV.

Electric Harpist Deborah Henson-Conant NYC Concert Friday, March 21st

Source: AMT Public Relations
March 12, 2008

Known as the “wild woman of the harp," Grammy-nominated composer/performer Deborah Henson-Conant brings her fusion of music, theater, stories and humor to Manhattan's Symphony Space. The self-produced One Way... and Another showcases two separate concerts: One Way @ 7:30pm featuring her favorite works from the past 15 years; and ...and Another @ 9:30pm premiering new pieces. Both concerts are soaked with cross-genre music ranging in style from flamenco and blues to heart-wrenching ballads, all complimented by Henson-Conant's singing and story-telling. ...
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“Dazzling harp playing, gorgeous jazz/pop singing, comic timing and impressive songwriting.” -- Austin American-Statesman

“Reshaping the serenely Olympian harp into a jazz instrument by warping it closer to the Blues.” -- New York Times

“A combination of Leonard Bernstein, Steven Tyler and Xena, the Warrior Princess.” -- Ed Siegel, Boston Globe

“Virtuoso out-of-the box harpist Deborah Henson-Conant is known as the rockin’ bad girl of the harp world. She took the ancient instrument off its pedestal, cocked it on her hip, and made it play everything from Mexican cantina music to Brubeck to gut-bucket blues and sounds like Van Halen.”
-- NPR: On Point Radio

“She may look like an angel, but she plays devilishly well.”
-- Joan Rivers

“Imagine the talented love-child of André Previn and Lucille Ball.”
-- NPR: Scott Simon

“A confident and exciting entertainer … Deborah Henson-Conant delights in musical adventure” -- Billy Taylor, CBS “Sunday Morning”

“Pushing the envelope … freeing herself and her instrument… that’s what Deborah Henson-Conant’s music is all about.” Jamie Gangel, NBC TODAY Show