Biography

Leonard Jácome is a Venezuelan harpist, composer, music educator, and creator of the Venezuelan Electric Harp, developed in collaboration with Camac Harps of France. He holds a Master’s degree in Music Composition from Valencia International University (Spain) and a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador (Venezuela).

His international career brings together performance, composition, education, and musical innovation, with the Venezuelan harp at the center of his artistic and pedagogical work. Throughout his career, Jácome has explored Venezuelan and Latin American harp traditions across traditional and contemporary contexts, contributing new techniques, approaches, and pathways for Latin American harp performance. His work integrates composition, improvisation, music technology, orchestral writing, and influences from Latin American and global music.

At Metropolitan State University of Denver, Jácome teaches Mariachi Harp, where he is developing the course curriculum, pedagogical framework, and instructional methods. Building on his extensive work with Venezuelan and Latin American harp traditions, he brings these evolving techniques and performance approaches into the academic environment, integrating technique, repertoire, musicianship, improvisation, cultural context, and contemporary performance practices.

Through his teaching and creative work, Jácome seeks to expand the possibilities of the harp within mariachi and broader Latin American music, while encouraging students to engage deeply with tradition, develop their own artistic voices, and explore new directions for the instrument.