An artist shaped by beauty, story, and faith.

Driven by a desire to capture light and beauty through music, Jonathan Schneider is a harpist whose expressive playing communicates deep stories and creates vibrant sonic landscapes. Whether performing on the concert stage, shaping music for worship, teaching students, or contributing to meaningful gatherings, he approaches music as more than performance: a way of helping people listen more deeply, become more present, and encounter beauty that points beyond itself.

Born in Spain, Jonathan began piano lessons at an early age, though it was not until moving to Puerto Rico that he discovered the harp. His participation in Experiencia Sinfónica, a program organized by the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, helped deepen his love for music and opened the door to the orchestral world. Years later, he returned as a young adult to perform Debussy’s *Danses* with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra. That same year, he won first prize in the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico’s concerto competition, which led to a performance of Gabriel Pierné’s *Concertstück* for harp and orchestra with the Conservatory Symphony Orchestra.

In 2025, Jonathan completed a Master of Music in Harp Performance at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he received the Theodore Presser Graduate Music Award. That recognition gave him the opportunity to travel through Spain, France, and Italy for further study with some of Europe’s leading harpists, including Marie-Pierre Langlamet of the Berlin Philharmonic and Anneleen Lenaerts of the Vienna Philharmonic. These experiences strengthened both his technique and his desire to pursue artistry that is not only polished, but honest, luminous, and alive.

Alongside performing, Jonathan has taught since 2017, when he began working as a harp teacher at the Escuela Puertorriqueña para la Música. Since then, sharing a love for music with the next generation has become an important part of his vocation. In recent years he lived in Spain, where he dedicated himself to teaching music and giving harp concerts. He has recently returned to Puerto Rico to continue developing his artistic and educational work. Across each of these settings, the purpose remains the same: to create beauty that helps people become more present—to the moment, to one another, and ultimately to what is true.