It's finally here! After many months of hard work and anticipation, we are thrilled to share our brand new album, "Play." Available in hard copy and digital download:
Praised for their “engaging jazz…with scintillating plays of light and subtle colors” by DownBeat Magazine, Pacific Harp Project’s emergence on the jazz scene has surprised listeners with a unique sonic experience. By incorporating classical harp music into the realms of jazz, pop, and fusion, this groundbreaking group “leads the listener to the conclusion: The harp has been unchained and left to go wherever it is guided.” (AllAboutJazz.com)
PHP was founded in 2014 and released their eponymous debut album in December, 2015 with a sold-out concert. The album won the 2016 Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Instrumental Album of the Year, and received positive reviews from DownBeat Magazine, Jazz Weekly, CD Hotlist, AllAboutJazz.com, The Aquarian Weekly, TheJazzPage.com, Midwest Record, LA Jazz Scene, Honolulu Star Advertiser, and ASX.com. PHP has performed throughout Hawaii at such venues as Blue Note Hawaii, Hawaii Theatre, Atherton Performing Arts Studio, Monarch Room at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Pacific Club, Orvis Auditorium, and Medici's Jazz Club.
PHP was formed when Megan Bledsoe Ward, a classically-trained harpist, teamed up with acclaimed jazz musicians Noel Okimoto (vibraphone), Jon Hawes (bass), and Allan Ward (drums). Bledsoe Ward wanted to approach jazz harp from a new perspective, leaning on her experience in classical performing, composing, and arranging. CD Hotlist notes: “When she ventures into the very dangerous territory of arranging classical pieces in a jazz style, she comes out the other side not just unscathed but triumphant.” The result is an innovative collaboration in which the musicians delight in working together and captivating audiences at each performance.
Pacific Harp Project's self-titled debut album is available for purchase here and at the following stores: