Fraya Thomsen

 

Fraya Thomsen is one of the most exciting Scottish harpists of her generation. A graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly the RSAMD), she is in constant demand as a performer, teacher and composer. 

Fraya performs as one half of The Duplets, a partnership with fellow Highland harpist, Gillian Fleetwood.  The Duplets have released two albums to critical acclaim with their 2012 release, Leverage, being described as:

skilled and imaginative, the harps merging seamlessly Norman Chalmers, The Scotsman

rich and enduring….a feast of exquisiteness….arguably the most moving, emotive music I’ve heard in years. Tim Carroll, Folk Words

fiery passion that only tangled emotions seem to evoke  Neil King, Fatea

Composing and arranging are a particular passion of Fraya’s.  Her experience includes:

- Composing music for theatre

- Composer in Residence for the Ceòl Mòr project at Aberdeen International Youth Festival.

- Composing for two Distil Showcase concerts.

Her music has been performed in concerts and at festivals worldwide including: Celtic Connections, Rio Harp Festival, Celtic Colours, The Green Man Festival, Solfest, Blas, The World Saxophone Congress and The Edinburgh International Harp Festival. She also composed the music for a short documentary film, The Worm Inside, which was selected by Sight and Sound in their eight picks of the London Short Film Festival.

Fraya has spent 2011/12 working as Musician in Residence with Fèis Rois. During this time she has developed both her skills as a community music facilitator and a composer. During her residency, Fraya published three harp tutor books with publishing house, Taigh na Teud. These books are called Puirt Ura Air A Chlarsaich: New Tunes for Harp, and feature Fraya’s own compositions. This creative residency has seen Fraya deliver music making workshops with many different groups of people, including residents in care homes across the Highlands. As part of her residency, Fraya composed a new work called Highland Reminiscence. She will tour this new piece for string quintet and percussion in October.

Fraya is hugely excited to have been offered a place to study at the National Film and Television School. She has been offered a place on the MA in Composing for Film and Television - a 2 year course starting in 2013. Fraya is currently fund raising in order to meet the cost of tuition fees and living expenses and she would be very grateful if you could make a donation to support her in this exciting creative development opportunity.  The cost of tuition fees alone is £10,800 per year!