Isabel Cardenes

Harpist, Astralis Chamber Ensemble

Harpist Isabel Cardenes is known for her sensitive musicianship and expressive style. Committed to using music for healing and social impact, she frequently performs in non-traditional and community-centered settings.

Isabel has performed with the Harrisburg Symphony and Charleston Symphony, and made her Metropolitan Opera Orchestra debut at Carnegie Hall in 2022. She has attended Interlochen Arts Camp and several European festivals, and in 2024 performed Glière’s Harp Concerto with the Butler Symphony.

An avid chamber musician, Isabel appeared at the 2025 Joseph Gingold Chamber Music Festival, performed with the Georgetown Chamber Players in Washington, D.C., and now appears on their musician roster. She is a founding member of Trio con Brio, whose Porch Concert Series has featured over 100 musicians and raised more than $15,000 for Pittsburgh-area causes since 2020.

At age eleven, she began her harp studies with Pittsburgh Symphony principal harpist Gretchen Van Hoesen. She earned her Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music on a Presidential Scholarship, studying with Metropolitan Opera harpist Mariko Anraku.

She is currently based in Philadelphia where she is pursuing her master’s degree at the Curtis Institute of Music with Philadelphia Orchestra principal harpist Elizabeth Hainen.