Eleanor Kirk (harp)

Eleanor Kirk—who’s been praised for her “especially fine contributions” and “standout solo work”—is the principal harpist for the Illinois Symphony Orchestra and Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra. Previously, she was the acting principal harpist for the Grant Park Orchestra for the 2022–23 season and the Detroit Opera Orchestra for the 2023–24 season. Kirk was also the principal harpist for the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 2018 to 2022, and she frequently performs as a guest harpist with the Lyric Opera Orchestra and the Chicago, Detroit, and St. Louis symphony orchestras. In the 2024 season, she serves as the acting principal harpist for the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra.

Kirk’s chamber music highlights from the past year include becoming a member of the Chicago Harp Quartet and performing on the Rush Hour Concerts series and the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts series, both of which were featured on Chicago’s classical music radio station, WFMT. Her recent solo engagements include performing concertos with the Bach Week Festival Orchestra and the Illinois Symphony Orchestra in their 2021–22 seasons.

A dedicated educator, Kirk, who has degrees from Columbia University and the Chicago College of Performing Arts, serves on the harp faculties of The People’s Music School and the Young Artist’s Harp Seminar. Her students have received top honors at the Greater Chicago Chapter of the American Harp Society Competition, the Illinois American String Teachers Association Concerto Competition, and the Midwest Harp Festival Solo Competition.

Kirk is also a founding member of, as well as the development director for, the 5th Wave Collective, a Chicago-based classical music ensemble dedicated to the performance and promotion of music by womxn.