Briana Younger, The New Yorker
The majestic beauty of a harp evokes a visual and sonic mysticism that makes it at once inviting and intimidating. With Brandee Younger at the helm, the instrument gains a bit of soul, as she tends to the legacies of such harpists as Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane while breathing fresh life into its repertoire with her own compositions. Her radiant playing is as cogent on hip-hop and R. & B. albums as it is set against classical and jazz backdrops. On Blue Note’s stage, May 21-22, she’ll manifest her own starry vision of the harp’s potential.