Working with performers and ensembles to shape repertoire and programmes through context and collaboration.

Jan-Hendrik Harley is a composer, arranger, and performer whose work lies at the intersection of classical music and living tradition. Drawing on vernacular idioms and performance practices, he reimagines both established repertoire and original material through shifting cultural contexts. Across chamber, ensemble, and educational settings, his music treats tradition as a dynamic and evolving process, inviting audiences to encounter familiar sounds through new lenses.

Featured Works

Sidlala, siyamamela (We play, we listen)

A work for four violas. Music emerging through shared listening.

Drawing on its isiXhosa title and principles associated with the uhadi, the piece unfolds as a field of interdependent lines in which no voice assumes a fixed hierarchy; instead, texture and intonation are shaped collectively through interaction, response, and attention.

Dragoste

An original work for folk–Baroque ensemble. Music reimagined through living traditions.

Romanian musical character is refracted through the sound world of a Romani band playing Baroque instruments passed down through generations.

Advent Calendar (2024)

A curated series of seasonal arrangements released daily throughout Advent.

Drawing on lesser-known carols and historical sources, each piece is reimagined through vernacular idioms and flexible instrumentation.

Fox & Crow: Bespoke Folk Tunes

A series of miniature commissions in which new folk tunes are written in response to individual performers and contexts.

Each piece is treated as a found melody—arranged, notated, and recorded within a living tradition.

Upcoming / Recent Projects