AHEAD of the coronation of King Charles III one Pembrokeshire harpist will be proudly reflecting on her time as the royal harpist.

Claire Jones, who is from Crymych, spoke of her pride at playing in front of King Charles III to mark his first visit to Wales as monarch.

She played a specially composed piece as the King and the Queen Consort made their way through the Senedd in Cardiff to hear a motion of condolence, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II last September.

The piece, Gorymdaith i’r Frenin Siarl, which means A Procession for King Charles, was written by Ms Jones’s husband Chris Marshall.

Joining her in playing were Cerys Rees and Nia Evans, from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

“It was such a privilege to be his official harpist for four years and during that time I performed over 180 times for the royal family, including one-to-one for Her Majesty the Queen, and for many state occasions for Her Majesty over the years,” Ms Jones said at the time.

“The performance at the Senedd was a very special moment as I performed my husband’s music for His Majesty King Charles.”

Mr Marshall said: “I am truly honoured to compose this special work for such a momentous occasion, the arrival of King Charles III in Wales.

“The music is a stately, sombre procession which represents the ascension of the monarch to the throne.”

Ms Jones is one of Britain’s best known classical harpists and served as the official harpist to Charles as Prince of Wales between 2007 and 11.

She became a household name for her performance at the wedding of the new Prince and Princess of Wales.

Ms Jones was born in Crymych, attended school there, and in 2012, at Blaenffos Chapel, Pembrokeshire, she married musician Chris Marshall, whom she had met at the Royal Academy of Music.

Together with her husband she founded the Claire Jones Concert Ensemble from student and professional harpists.

Ms Jones began playing the harp at the age of 10 and performed for the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh when she was 16.

In 2007, she was one of the inaugural winners of The Prince of Wales’ Advanced Study in Music Award, and was appointed as the Prince's official harpist for a three-year term.

During the previous year, she had won the harp solo at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, been a finalist at the Third International Harp Contest in France, and won the Royal College of Music Harp Competition.

She also performed at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011, and is currently an ambassador for The Prince's Foundation for Children and The Arts.