Courtney Hershey Bress

Principal

Courtney Hershey Bress joined the Colorado Symphony Orchestra as principal harp in 2001. She has appeared with the orchestra as a soloist on numerous occasions.  During the 2009-10 season she recorded and played principal harp with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra along with performing in the Colorado Symphony.  Also during the 09-10 season she taught harp at the Eastman School of Music.  Ms. Bress has been playing with the Grand Teton Music Festival since 2007 and the Strings Music Festival, Steamboat Springs, CO since 2011.  She held the principal harp position with the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, California from 2002-2006.  She has also performed as a guest artist with Colorado College Summer Music Festival.  Other previous positions include principal free-lance harp with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, substitute harp with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and principal harp with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. From 1997-2000 she performed as principal harp in the United States Army Field Band in Washington, D.C. and toured the 48 continental states, playing concertos and concerts. She has performed for the American Harp Society and the World Harp Congress. 

In addition to her private teaching studio, she gives master classes throughout the United States and has served as a juror for the American Harp Society National Competition. She is the adjunct professor of harp at Metropolitan State College of Denver.  She held the position of artist and clinician for the Midwest Harp Festival in Tulsa, Oklahoma from 2002-2007. Ms. Bress was a 2005 GRAMMY® nominee for her performance of George Crumb’s chamber work Ancient Voices of Children. She has recorded with Naxos, Bridge, and Albany records.  You can also find her recordings with the U.S. Army Field Band.  Ms. Bress earned a bachelor of music degree and the performer’s certificate from the Eastman School of Music and she received her master of music in orchestral performance from the Chicago College of Performing Arts, Roosevelt University. Her teachers include, Kathleen Bride, Sarah Bullen and Gretchen Van Hoesen.