Gaylen Rose Sales
Harpist
Harpist Gaylen-Rose Sales (née Hendey) was born in Pretoria and started piano lessons at the age of six and harp lessons at the age of ten with Moya Wright and later with Rosalind Dunbar. She matriculated at the Pro Arte High School and later obtained a BMus degree in Performing Arts at Wits University. Her main instruments were harp and organ which she studied under Kathleen Alistair and Henk Temmingh respectively. She has performed as soloist with the National Symphony Orchestra, Pro Musica Orchestra, Transvaal Philharmonic Orchestra and more recently with the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of South Africa. As an orchestral player, she has made appearances with NAPAC, PACOFS and NSO, toured South America with the Junior SABC orchestra, joined a Greek choir at the Athens Music Festival as the harpist, and played at the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival. Gaylen has been the recipient of many awards and bursaries, including the Unisa Buy-Aid Bursary (1981), the SAMRO Undergraduate Music Bursary (1982-1984), the Olga Lipman Bursary (1982, 1984, 1985). From 1986-1988 she worked as repetiteur and Principal Harpist for PACOFS. In 1993 she joined the Transvaal Philharmonic Orchestra (later known as The New Arts Philharmonic Orchestra of Pretoria) as Principal Harpist until its closure. Amongst her varied solo and chamber performing, she currently serves as Principal Harpist for the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra, Guest Principal Harpist for the Free State Symphony Orchestra and appears regularly with flautist Bridget Rennie-Salonen as the Gabriel Duo.