2026 Adjudicators

Julie Umbrico has been an active harp instructor and performer for more than thirty years, specializing in the classical repertoire as well as Celtic, folk, and other styles of music. She has served as Harp Instructor at the Oscar Peterson School of Music, Royal Conservatory of Music, since 2015, and has been a member of the College of Examiners of the Royal Conservatory since 2021.

Julie has adjudicated at numerous harp competitions and events including the Kiwanis Music Festival, the Ontario Music Festival, and the Scholarship Competition for the Toronto Harp Society. She has also adjudicated the orchestral harp class at the Glenn Gould School at the RCM.

As a performer, Julie has appeared as a soloist with various chamber ensembles and choirs, including the Orford String Quartet, Les Amis Ensemble, and the Exulte Chamber Singers among others. Her orchestral experience includes engagements with major Canadian ensembles such the Toronto Symphony, Canadian Opera Company, National Ballet of Canada, Winnipeg Symphony, Symphony Nova Scotia, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony and Orchestra London Canada.

Julie studied with Judy Loman, former principal harpist of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, with Alice Chalifoux at the Salzedo Harp School in Maine, and with Marilyn Costello at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She holds certification from the Royal Conservatory of Music as an Advanced Specialist – Harp, as well as an Advanced Certificate in Early Childhood Music Education (RCM/Ryerson). In addition, she holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology from the University of Toronto.