About Lauren.
About Lauren.
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Music has been my second language for as long as I can remember. It all started when my grandparents gifted my mother a Young Chang baby grand piano during my first Christmas. The harp may be my primary instrument today, but that piano - which I lovingly named after the great Marvin Hamlisch - is my baby. My musical world started right there at those keys.
With that piano sitting in our living room, it was only natural that I started formal lessons at Stetson University’s community music program in DeLand, Florida when I was just three and a half years old. During one of my first weeks there, right before my lesson time, my mom and I ran into a student wheeling a massive object into the music building elevator. The student told us that underneath the big blue travel case was a harp. The instrument instantly felt mysterious, carrying this incredible weight and presence, but before we could ask anything else, the elevator came to a stop and the student left for class, leaving us with no other information. It didn't matter though. My mom and I were hooked. Because we had only ever seen the instrument hidden away, we made it our mission to check a new practice hallway before each of my piano lessons, eager to finally see the harp uncovered and hear how it sounded. Looking back, this brief encounter became a piece of foreshadowing for what was to come.
A few years later, my family relocated to Illinois, a move that would inevitably bring me right back to the instrument. Fun fact: Chicago is home to Lyon & Healy, the premier harp makers in the world. With their headquarters less than an hour away from our new house in Plainfield, it didn’t take long for the harp to find its way into my life. I can still picture my dad carrying my very first lever harp through the front door, the instrument’s black travel case strap slung around his shoulder as we welcomed the first of many harps into our lives. I started my first lessons that year at ten years old.
I never could have predicted that the elevator story would eventually come full circle, and that I would become that exact college student wheeling a harp through the hallways of Northern Illinois University, answering the same questions from curious strangers. So when people ask me what inspired my career, the answer is simple: Music has just always been there. It’s the language that ties my life, and the stories I now get to tell through it, together.
TESTIMONIAL"If you are looking for a harpist you need to hire Lauren!!!! She performed at my bridal shower and I couldn’t be happier. Her music was beautiful and she learned how to play Video games by Lana del rey for me. We loved her so much at the shower, I asked her to stay longer than the original agreed upon time (which she was able to accommodate)!! She is extremely talented and kind, and has great communication. She truly elevated the event and my family is still talking about it. HIGHLY RECOMMEND."
—Madison Earing / Bride
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Years ago, a client asked me a deceptively simple question: what do you actually love to listen to? It was one of those moments that forces you to pause and trace the lines back to why you do what you do.
The honest answer? My taste is eclectic. While my ears love pop royalty like Charli XCX, Chappell Roan, and Carly Rae Jepsen, I also feel alive listening to high-energy EDM and future bass, and I always have an earworm for indie artists like Dayglow, Magdalena Bay, or BETWEEN FRIENDS. I also love being introduced to new songs by my couples, because it creates such a lasting fondness whenever I play their melodies in the future. But at the end of the day, my heart truly belongs to film scores. And there is an entire origin story to back that up.
When I was fourteen, I became completely obsessed with the soundtracks to DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda, composed by Hans Zimmer and John Powell. I listened to the scores daily on my iPod Nano, and through a deeply analytical, teenage deep-dive, I noticed something: every time the two main characters shared a scene, a subtle, beautiful love motif would begin to play. Every time they spoke, every time they locked eyes - it was there. I was so captivated that I learned to play the theme on both piano and harp. I can still pinpoint the exact moments where the harp notes are entirely exposed in the Kung Fu Panda 2 score (ex. My Fist Hungers for Justice timestamps 2:35-3:13 if you wanna fact check me haha). I fell in love with the distinct voice the harp had in the orchestration, and the way all the music blended together gave me a sense of fulfillment. It gave me a deep appreciation for how music shapes the emotional core of a story, and how a well-crafted melody can perfectly define a specific moment or feeling.
This is exactly why I love playing for weddings. Everyday life is full of chaos, but a wedding ceremony is a rare, beautiful moment where everything else fades into the background. You’ve both lived entirely separate lives, full of your own complex stories, just to arrive at this exact second. And you deserve a love motif of your own.
I want you to hear your love song and be transported right back to the entire timeline of your story: the moment you first met, the moment you first spoke, the moment you locked eyes. The harp has an ability to carry listeners to another world and I am an advocate for creating a deeply romantic atmosphere as you step down the aisle and walk into the first sounds of your forever.
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While I lean into the magic of a story, I am an absolute perfectionist when it comes to the execution. Guided by over twenty-five years of classical training, I’ve spent my life mastering the technique to make playing the harp look entirely effortless. You can hand the musical logistics of your day over to me knowing you are in expert hands that treat the business of music with the exact same care as the performance.
My attention to detail started early. I grew up studying under the guidance of the incredible Nichole Young before earning a Bachelor of Music and a Performer's Certificate in Harp Performance from Northern Illinois University, where I studied the Salzedo Method under Faye Seeman. Along the way, I took home performance awards from Lyon & Healy’s Auditions and Evaluations and placed multiple times in the Midwest Harp Festival Competition. Today, I bring that same focus to managing logistics, custom arrangements, and live cues for high-end events.
Whether I am performing at some of Chicagoland’s stunning venues, like The Langham, Drury Lane Theatre, or The Morton Arboretum, or meticulously changing all 47 strings on my Lyon & Healy Concert Grand ahead of its yearly technician tuning, I leave absolutely nothing to chance. I know firsthand how much work goes into planning an event and that is why I prioritize clear communication, reliable contracts, and a stress-free vendor experience from your first inquiry to my final note. I pour genuine care and intention into my art form because I truly thrive when I get to be creative and I love building an experience around the music I deeply resonate with.
I’ve always been this way. For my senior college recital, I put together a Beatles-inspired tribute called A Harp Day’s Night. I had the best time recreating the classic album artwork for the poster, and when I think back on April 2017, I know that was a project that truly defined the musician I am today.
That same love for themed, vibrant storytelling is exactly what I bring to my current piano students' recitals today, and it’s the exact same energy I bring to your wedding day. I take care of every single detail so you can just breathe, look at each other, and take in the moment.
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When I'm able to hit pause on work, I lean into the simple things that bring me joy: whether that's finishing a book to watch the characters come alive in a screen adaptation, capturing a snippet of life each day on the 1 Second Everyday app, or booking a trip to a theme park.
My partner, Jack, and I are massive rollercoaster nerds with a goal to visit one new park every year, though we keep failing because we booked trips to Universal Studios Florida three times this past year alone! (And yes, I love that the How to Train Your Dragon coaster at Epic Universe plays John Powell’s film score on the speakers as you glide over the Isle of Berk).
But as fun as it is to step through a portal into a fictional world, the best destination is always the one waiting for me back home. While I spent over two decades living in Plainfield, I’ve recently traded the suburbs for city life, and I am so grateful to call Chicago my new headquarters. For a long time, my weekends were spent driving or taking the Metra into the city to visit Jack. Djo’s song "End of Beginning" came out the year we started dating, and I still get emotional when the chorus hits because it instantly takes me back to how the skyline looked on the drive up for our very first date.
I’ve fallen slowly but surely in love with the city's energy, from running 5Ks at the Lincoln Park Zoo, to having our first couples' photoshoot at Buckingham Fountain, to convincing myself to try another Alfred Hitchcock film at the Music Box Theatre. Every neighborhood feels like a different film set, and it’s impossible not to feel inspired by the architecture and history built into the city. The love for cinema and film scores has even sparked a fun ongoing project on my social media, where I am learning a harp cover for every single movie in Jack's physical film collection.
When I’m not out riding rollercoasters or logging movies on Letterboxd, you'll find me snuggling with Jack's cat, Cooper. He is a master of distraction who will happily block the TV if he doesn't approve of what we're watching, or perfectly time a round of biscuit-making to lure me away from my admin duties. I've wanted a furry friend for as long as I can remember, and Cooper officially made my dream of being a cat mom come true.
At the end of the day, I just love finding fun, vibrant ways to enjoy life, and I love bringing that same positive energy to the couples I get to work with. My mission has always been simple: to brighten the world through music - with one song, and one act of kindness at a time.
Ready to bring that touch of cinematic romance to your wedding day?
My passion for vibrant, themed storytelling is the energy I bring to your celebration. I handle every detail behind the scenes so you can focus entirely on each other, pause, and simply take in the moment.