"She demonstrated so much strength and power in her performance. That's terrific because it is such an integral thing. It is one of the characteristics we see in prodigy performers. Her musical ability is outstanding. She hears well, listens well, interprets well and she communicates well. It is very clear that Vanessa is not only willing but eager to apply herself and test her own limits. That personal commitment is essential and critical to success." ~Dr. JoAn Kunselman |
| It was during my first harp lesson, at the age of nine, that I discovered my life’s vocation, a career in harp performance. A native Southern Californian, I hold a Bachelor’s and Master’s of Music in harp performance from the California State University Los Angeles, where I was named the CSU system's youngest to receive a graduate degree. In 2005 I earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts in harp and musicology from the University of Arizona, where I was the Graduate Teaching Assistant to professor Carrol McLaughlin and member of the world- renown HarpFusion. Other instructors have included Stephanie Osborne, Susan Allen, and Linda Wood Rollo. I have also been honored as the University of Arizona's youngest doctoral graduate, receiving my degree at age 19. I have performed as a member and guest soloist with countless chamber ensembles, orchestras, and bands across the United States. Highlights of my international tours include concerts in Shanghai, Seoul, and Madrid. In April 2009 I performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where I premiered "Reverie" by Masatoshi Mitsumoto for solo harp. In addition to playing for such notables as Oprah Winfrey, Maya Angelou, Tippi Hedren, and Barbara Sinatra, I have played as an honorary guest at UCLA, the Colburn School, at the California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education at UC Santa Cruz, for the Japanese Ambassador and Embassy, and appeared as guest artist with world-renown cellists Michael Cameron and Masatoshi Mitsumoto, as well as the Anderson String Quartet and Barry Manilow. I have been the recipient of numerous awards for both my musical and academic performance, including the Valeria Finzi Memorial Harp Competition two years consecutively, the Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Fellowship, and have been named as a Medici Scholar and on the Who's Who Among American Women and National Dean's List. I am also a member of the National Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi and the Golden Key International Honour Society. As a member of the Venice Youth Pops Orchestra, I was featured in a Southern California Edison television commercial. Other television appearances include feature-length stories on ABC's 20/20, KUAT's Arizona Illustrated, and KGUN 9 News, in addition to radio appearances. Besides working as a professional harpist and instructor for the past ten years, I am also active as a composer, arranger, and transcriber, with a particular interest in transcribing the solo piano works of Franz Liszt and other Romantic composers, as well as promoting new music for harp. Since August 2005 I have taught at the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, California, having earned the accolade of being the youngest college professor in the world, and in Fall 2009 joined the faculty at Norco Community College. In addition, I am a teaching artist with the McCallum Theatre Institute and an instructor for the Osher Institutes of the University of California, Riverside, and California State University, San Bernardino. |
| Help Dr. Vanessa Sheldon and the Norco Choir go to South Africa! Every donation and CD sale helps! Music at Norco Website. |
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