Laura Smithburg Byrne

Lecturer (Harp) 

Laura Smithburg Byrne (Lecturer) received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music where she studied with renowned harpist Alice Chalifoux. She began her teaching career at CIM in the preparatory division while in graduate school and began teaching at the college level upon receiving her Master of Music degree. Mrs. Byrne served as faculty harpist at Gustavus Adolphus College, the Baptist Seminary (Louisville, Ky) and at the University of Louisville. Laura Byrne has been the harp instructor at Duke University and UNC at Chapel Hill since 2005.

Laura Byrne performs throughout the area as a soloist, in chamber music with her faculty colleagues and as an orchestral harpist in professional orchestras. She has performed for a variety of orchestras including the Joffrey Ballet, the Minnesota Orchestra, Minnesota Opera, Louisville Orchestra, NC Symphony, NC Ballet, NC Opera, NC Theatre, Master Chorale, Choral Society of Durham and the Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle. Laura also freelances extensively and performs with touring groups and popular entertainers such as Johnny Mathis, The Moody Blues, The Irish Tenors and Bernadette Peters. Laura Byrne can be heard performing at UNC and at Duke as well as on stages at some of the most popular venues in the area including DPAC, The Carolina Theatre and Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts.

Laura Byrne has played on numerous recordings including “Arts over Aids” by Aaron Jay Kernis with members of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, “The Stephen Foster Story” with the Louisville Orchestra, and for Libby Larsen’s Clarion award winning documentary “Leading from Bejing – Voices of Global Women” for harp and percussion. Locally, Laura Byrne has recorded with the Pro Cantores Orchestra in their live performance and recording of the Brahms ”Ein Deutsches Requiem” at Duke Chapel. Additionally, Laura Byrne performed and recorded in NC Ballet’s “Macbeth” with the Chamber Music of the Triangle with music by J. Mark Scearce, filmed by UNC –TV. Laura Byrne has performed on local and national television and has published articles in Harp Column Magazine. Currently, she freelances throughout the region and performs as the Principal Harpist for the NC Ballet and the Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle.