Harriet Riley

Stevie Toddler, Spindle Ensemble, Zoobers

Harriet Riley is a British Percussionist and Composer based in Bristol, UK. Her work has brought her all over the world playing with chamber ensembles, orchestras, dance projects, theatre work and bands. With a broad range of percussion disciplines, Harriet studied orchestra percussion after growing up in a household learning jazz and many percussion traditions from around the world. Long established chamber quartet Spindle Ensemble featured on Guardian’s Top 10 Contemporary Classical albums of 2021 and recently collaborated with Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan in Toronto. Harriet also plays with alt pop project Stevie Toddler on vibraphone and percussion which featured on Guy Garvey BBC Radio6 and Jamie Cullum BBC Radio 2. Harriet regularly plays with Charles Hazlewood’s Paraorchestra and has performed with them in Moscow and Australia as well as London’s Barbican and headlining at Bluedot Festival in UK with Hannah Peel. Through Paraorchestra she met Will Gregory (Goldfrapp) and started playing in Will Gregory Moog Ensemble, performing at The British Library and with BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Harriet studies Balinese Gamelan and regularly goes back to Bali to learn and perform Gender Wayang, a chamber music gamelan used for ceremonies and shadow puppetry. In 2023, Harriet performed in Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror, at Bristol Old Vic + a UK tour, playing Wernick’s Xylosynth. Harriet is also an official artist with Malletech and Collingwood Cymbals. Harriet is a busy performing and recording artist and has been freelancing since 2014.