From English Major to Harp Teacher:

About Me

My name Susan Zevenbergen, and I am a Celtic harp teacher. I also provide music with my harp and flute duo for events in San Diego.

If you had known me in college, you would certainly be surprised to find me writing a website about playing the Celtic harp!

Back then, I was studying English and settling for a minor in music, thanks to my belief that I would never make it as a "serious" pianist. Why did I believe that? Well, like many of my students, and probably many of you, I encountered a teacher who made it clear that I was not fabulously talented enough to be a piano star, so why even try? In our culture, only the stars seem to matter, and there are only a few winners in the impossible competition to be "the best".

Who knew I would someday prove him wrong by becoming not only a professional harpist but also a harp teacher?

It would take years before I took my piano playing back out of the closet and into a public place. Thanks to a special dancer in need of an accompanist, I eventually started to play and learn again.

Once I had done that, a magical thing started to happen. I started to realize that I could be the best musician I could be, and that was enough. Better than enough. And once I started playing as if I deserved the joy of music, my musical growth took off.

Then another even more magical thing happened . . . I discovered the Celtic harp! While I had the same obstacles to overcome as anyone does who tries to learn a new musical instrument as a middle-aged adult, as soon as I started to play the harp, I knew I had come home. Home to "my instrument" and home to my heart. I discovered that I could be the musician I always dreamed of being, on my own terms. What could be more magical than that?

Now I have the great privilege of helping other people make the same discoveries in my own studio. Being a harp teacher brings me incredible joy!

Everything happens for a reason, and my background in English is certainly coming in handy now. For the past two years I’ve been enjoying writing new pages and eZine issues for this website.

It all started because I wanted my Celtic harp students to have, at their fingertips, all the information I could give them to supplement their lessons. Soon I was not only referring potential students and live music clients to the website for more information, but new ones were finding me when they went searching for a Celtic harp teacher or harp information on the internet. (If you'd like to know more about how I learned to build a website that can actually be found high in the search engines and generate business, check out my website magic page).

Of course I love it when students and customers find me! But in the meantime, I discovered that I equally love reaching out to people all over the world, encouraging all who fall in love, as I did, with the magical sounds of the Celtic harp.

I grew up in Denver and graduated from Colorado State University with that Bachelor's degree in English and minor in music. I also completed a Masters Degree in English at the University of Colorado in Boulder, teaching creative writing, composition and literature. In between, I lived in London, England and worked as an research editor for an international management consultancy.

After earning my second degree, I focused on raising my daughter but spent many hours contributing piano music, vocal music and eventually harp music to events at her Waldorf school in Fort Collins, as well as organizing committees, events and sales efforts.

I started playing the harp professionally in 2002 and started teaching two years later. I studied extensively with Rachel Starr Ellins, Associate Professor of Harp at Colorado State University and Goddess of Harp Fabulosity. I have also taken workshops from Kim Robertson, Alfredo Orlando Ortiz, Sharlene Wallace, and Christina Tourin, including the International Harp Therapy Program, from which I graduated in 2006.

In 2007, I made the big move to San Diego, where I enjoy sunshine and moderate temperatures year round. My work as a harp teacher has been steadily growing in this paradise. I live in a vibrant and lovely neighborhood, full of restaurants and shops that I can walk to, as well as beautiful trees and canyons. And, yes, the beach is only ten minutes away!

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Thanks for reading, and enjoy your journey of discovery with the Celtic harp!