A Small Hall Session with Esther Swift

Esther Swift was a sensation when she came to the Small Halls in February of 2023. She won the hearts of everyone in the audience at each of her fives sessions. One of those hearts was that of Pitsch Leiser, Creative Director of the HB Arts Festival.

After some negotiations Pitsch booked Esther to play in this year’s Festival as well as in Arts Festivals in Nelson & Taranaki. Sadly this years Festival has been postponed, and so I leaped on the opportunity to bring her back to Hawke’s Bay for three more Sessions.

Esther Swift explores ritual, connection, isolation, and the natural world in her performance with pedal harp and voice.

A prolific, boldly innovative harpist, composer and singer, Esther works across genres as diverse as classical chamber music, folk and free improvisation, and writes for ensembles large and small. Having studied at Edinburgh’s St Mary’s Music School and the Royal Northern College of Music, as well as with harp pioneer Catriona McKay, she has received numerous prestigious commissions and featured in many international collaborations.

She has travelled the world with her music, and shared international, music lead collaborations with musicians and other artists around the world.

She has recently been commissioned by Celtic Connections, Chamber Music Scotland, Manchester Jazz festival and The Edwin Morgan Trust and performed internationally with her band Emergence Ensemble.

Esther's debut solo studio album, Expectations of a Lifetime, was released in June 2024.