I’m Canadian harpist and composer Josh Layne. Come along with me as I combine my love of music with my love of the outdoors as a Harpist in the Wild! 🙂
Harpist in the Wild, Season 5, starts September 2nd!
The first episode of season 5 will be published on YouTube on Saturday, September 2, with weekly videos following.
This season was filmed during my travels earlier this year in New Zealand, Australia, and Japan. There will be nine episodes – in chronological order as they were filmed (New Zealand, Australia, Australia/Tasmania, Japan) save for the very first episode, which features my composition Forgotten Summer and which was filmed in Australia.
Episode 4 – “Pistache” and a windy day in the Grampion mountains of Australia
Episode 3 – New Zealand rainforest, waterfall, and “The Little Fountain”
Episode 2 – New Zealand with special guest Anna Dunwoodie
Episode 1
SEASON 4 – 9 episodes
The theme of this season is travel, with episodes I filmed during my travels this spring, summer, and fall, as well as episodes from my hometown of Victoria, BC, Canada.
Episode 1 – A Minstrel’s Adieu to His Native Land by John Thomas. Dec. 10, 2022. Filmed in Victoria, BC, Canada
Episode 2 – Cherry Trees at Merchiston by Isobel Mieras. Dec. 17, 2022 Filmed in New Hampshire, USA
Episode 3 – Noël No. 1 by Marcel Tournier, Dec. 24, 2022. Filmed in Suffolk, UK
Episode 4 – Soupir by Marcel Tournier, Dec. 31, 2022. Filmed in Victoria, Canada
Episode 5 – Prelude for Lute, BWV 999 by J.S. Bach, Jan 7, 2023 Filmed in Suffolk, UK
Episode 6 – Calanais by Carol Kappus, Jan 14. 2023. Filmed in Rome, Italy
Episode 7 – Handel’s Concerto for Harp, 3rd movement. Jan. 21, 2023. Filmed at Grüner See, Austria
Episode 8 – Bach’s Gavotte en Rondeau. Jan. 28, 2023. Filmed in Prague, Czech Republic
Episode 9 – Granados’s Spanish Dance No. 5 Season Finale, premiered Feb. 5, 2023. Filmed in Victoria, Canada
Episode 1 – Uncharted Shores. Sep. 25, 2021
Episode 2 – A Bird Came Flying. Oct. 2, 2021
Episode 3 – Naderman’s Sonata No. 1. Oct. 9, 2021
Episode 4 – The Nightingale. Oct. 16, 2021
Intermission – Oct. 23, 2021
Episode 5 – For the Earth: Song without Words. Oct. 30, 2021
Episode 6 – Aurum Aqua. Nov. 6, 2021
Episode 7 – Naderman’s Sonata No. 2 in C Minor. Nov. 13, 2021
Episode 8 – my composition Nordic Spaces. Nov. 20, 2021(Season Finale)
A stand-alone adventure sponsored by Camac Harps and The Virginia Harp Center:
Season 2, A Baroque Feast, is complete:
May 1st. Episode 1: Bach, Toccata (and Fugue) in D minor, BWV 565. Written in 1705 [perhaps…]
May 8th. Episode 2: Handel, Chaconne from Suite in D Minor, HWV 448. Published (written?) in 1705/06
May 15th. Episode 3: Vivaldi, Winter from The Four Seasons. Written in 1717
May 22nd. Episode 4: Bach, Prelude from Cello Suite No. 1. Written perhaps in 1720 or possible even earlier
May 29th. Episode 5: (Handel)
June 5th. Episode 6, season finale! (Bach)


Harpist in the Wild is a YouTube video series, organized into seasons, with occasional stand-alone episodes. During a season, episodes air every Saturday.
Read the announcement in my Feb. 15th email newsletter.
Hannah Palmquist at The Harp Column did this Q&A about Harpist in the Wild.
Past episodes and seasons:
February 20, 2021: The very first Harpist in the Wild episode! “A Winter’s Day“ – a stand-alone episode about an ensemble piece I wrote in 2017.
Season 1, improvs, featured my small electric harp:
Episode 1 – “By the Ocean”
Episode 2 – “Looper pedal“
Episode 3 – “Encounter with Deer”
Episode 4 – “Ocean at Dusk”
Episode 5 – “Snow Day” (Series finale).
You can support the work I do on YouTube through my Patreon page. At the “Wild Harpist” level ($10 or more a month) I’ll display your name on-screen when I thank my patrons at the end of each Harpist in the Wild episode.

The harp that I’m using in Season 1 is a Firefly II electric harp, by a harp maker in Rhode Island – Dick Ranlet of Wickford Harps. http://wickharps.blogspot.com (I believe he is semi-retired now).
I did a Harp Tuesday episode about the harp: http://www.joshlayne.com/harptuesday/ep-111-exploring-electric-harps-part-1/