Day 22 - Teachers - HARPRIL 2026

Day 22 - Teachers

I’ve been incredibly blessed by the teachers I’ve had along the way.

My first harp teacher was Dona Delcia Coelho. I started lessons with her on October 29, 2001, and studied with her for two years before my family moved to the United States.

At the time, I didn’t have my own harp, so my schedule looked a little different. I had lessons on Mondays and would stay to practice until my mom picked me up. Then on Wednesdays, I’d go back and practice again while my mom ran errands.

One of the most valuable things she taught me was that you don’t have to be at your instrument to practice. Reading music, naming notes, clapping rhythms, noticing accidentals and dynamics—there’s so much you can do anywhere. I still use that today.

She also had an incredible ear. She could be resting on the sofa while I played, wake up, and tell me exactly what I got wrong. She tried to give me space during practice, but every now and then I’d hear a correction called out from upstairs if I was about to lock in a mistake.

She gave me such a strong foundation, and I still think of her every time I sit down to play.

Years later, after I purchased my Lyon & Healy Prelude, I began lessons in Chattanooga with Mrs. Laura Goldstein.

She didn’t just teach me how to play—she helped me step into performing.

I still remember when she told me a friend of hers would be calling to ask if I could play for a wedding cocktail hour… and that I was to say “yes.”

I was shocked. I didn’t feel ready. I didn’t think I had the right music. I didn’t have a music degree. I still felt like a beginner.

But she walked me through everything—contracts, music selection, what to expect when I arrived, how to set up. And after the event, she checked in to see how it went.

​That one “yes” opened the door to so much of what I do now.

I’m so grateful for her guidance and encouragement—I truly don’t know what my music journey would look like without it.

Good teachers don’t just teach music.
They shape the path you take with it.