Heather Harper CBE (born 8 May 1930) is a operatic soprano from Northern Ireland. 　　She was born in Belfast, where she received her early musical training. She studied piano at the Trinity College of Music in London, with voice as a second subject. She was initially a Mezzo-Soprano, and sang as such in the Ambrosian Chorus; her fellow altos included Jean Allister, Pamela Bowden, and Helen Watts.She also sang in the BBC Chorus, before retraining as a soprano with Professor Frederick Husler and Yvonne Rodd-Marling, authors of "Singing: The Physical Nature of the Vocal Organ".