“Whether playing the harp or singing to its accompaniment,
Tristan Le Govic displays a sensibility, a fineness,
a serenity even that affects the audience.”
– Le Télégramme
Originally from Brittany, Tristan Govic was only six years old when he began learning the Celtic harp at the Conservatoire of Traditional Music of Soye (Plœmeur). The attraction to music will never leave him.
During his studies he gained numerous prizes and nominations that emphasize the recognition of a talented and accomplished musician. Performing on international stages, critics pronounce him as one of the leading Celtic harpers today.
During his time living in Ireland, then in Scotland – where he was appointed Celtic harp instructor within the City of Glasgow – he developed a deep sense for Celtic music both in a solo repertoire or with big names of the music world. For the 30thanniversary of the Edinburgh International Harp Festival (2011), the harpist Corrina Hewat invited him to take part in the performing of her masterpiece The Song of the Oak and The Ivy with Mary Macmaster, Wendy Stewart, Heather Downie and Bill Taylor.
Tristan Le Govic created his musical diversity by performing with other musicians such as the accordionist Samuel Le Hénanff, harpists Rachel Hair and Ailie Robertson or Enez trio, a band mixing Celtic music with jazz colors, founded with Stuart Macpherson (bass) and Roy Shearer (percussions). Introduced to the Nordic music by the Swedish singer Lise Enochsson, he developed a unique repertoire of Scandinavian music on the Celtic harp whose result was the recording of the CD Elva.
Recognizable by his sense of rhythm and harmony, his style is popular among the public and critics alike. Singer, storyteller, virtuoso musician, he founded his repertoire in the tradition and also with his own compositions. In perpetual movement, his world opens the gates of an extraordinary rhythmic and melodic diversity such as in his trio with Tangi Le Hénanff (bass) and Alan Quéré-Moysan (drums).
He is the publisher of The Breton Harp Anthology, a unique collection of three music books featuring the best harpists in Brittany (Alan Stivell, Kristen Noguès…).