Described by the Philadelphia Inquirer as an “exceptionally fine player,” Helen Liu Gerhold is an internationally recognized harpist whose career spans the world’s most prestigious concert halls, orchestras, and musical institutions. A sought-after soloist and chamber musician, and distinguished orchestral artist, she has appeared as a soloist at Carnegie Hall in NYC, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C., and Marian Anderson Hall at the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus in Philadelphia.

Helen has been featured at major international festivals and broadcasts, including the Lyon & Healy Summer Concert Series in Chicago, the Philadelphia International Harp Festival, From the Top on National Public Radio, the USA International Harp Competition, and the World Harp Congress. Her concerto performances include appearances with the Berkshire Symphony, the Lower Merion Symphony Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra.

As an orchestral harpist, Helen has performed regularly as First and Second Harp substitute with The Philadelphia Orchestra since the age of seventeen. She is also a regular performer with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, appearing in the opera pit, on international tours, and at Carnegie Hall, including participation in the GRAMMY-nominated recording of The Hours. Additional orchestral engagements include performances with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, with which she contributed as Principal Harp to a GRAMMY-winning recording.

Her accolades include the U.S. International Lyon & Healy Awards, top prizes across divisions of the American Harp Society’s National Competition, and the American Harp Society Foundation Award. She is also a frequent master pedagogue and recitalist, having presented recitals and masterclasses for the Philadelphia and Baltimore chapters of the American Harp Society.

Deeply committed to contemporary music and chamber performance, Helen has premiered new works and appeared in chamber ensembles at the Tanglewood Music Center and with the Network for New Music, the Curtis Institute of Music’s New Music Ensemble, and The Philadelphia Orchestra, among others. She was named a Tanglewood Harp Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center.

Helen’s musical lineage is both personal and distinguished. In 2001, she received her first harp from her aunt, harpist Yi Liu, and began her studies with the legendary Lucile Lawrence as her youngest and final student. She continued her training with Virginia Flanagan, Dewey Owens, Judy Loman, and served as Principal Harp of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra for five seasons. She earned her Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music as the Marilyn Costello Fellow, studying with Elizabeth Hainen, Principal Harp of The Philadelphia Orchestra.

Beyond the concert stage, Helen is a leader in arts education and cultural equity. She serves as Guest Faculty at the Curtis Institute of Music and is the Executive Director of the Lyra Society, a nonprofit dedicated to providing free, high-level harp education and mentorship to students in Philadelphia public schools. In recognition of her impact-driven leadership, she received a career merit scholarship to complete her Executive Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the Villanova School of Business.