Flute class and Professor Barth Turner Hall, Blair School of Music Vanderbilt University Photo: Anne Rayner; VU

Teaching students to view life with creativity and enthusiasm is important to me.  I encourage my students to jump into every opportunity possible, so that they are better able to figure out their ideal role in the musical community. As a professor of music, my primary role is to expand each student’s love for music, while creating an environment that provides structure and support. I encourage critical thinking among my students, as I ask them to relate their music pursuits to the world at large. Entrepreneurship, interdisciplinary events, and business savvy are taught in conjunction with technical and musical aspects of flute playing. Teaching these beliefs by example as well as through weekly lessons and flute classes offers my students the skills and knowledge to realize their full potential.

Due to my passion for and reputation in the world of contemporary music, many of my students are drawn to the studies with me with a desire to follow in my contemporary music footsteps. I find myself remarking to these students in particular that they need to first generalize their knowledge in order to eventually be able to specialize. I make a point each term to actively include fundamentals, etudes, orchestral excerpts and solo works from all time periods into weekly lessons. Studio classes present the opportunity to instruct students in skills both music and business-related; students develop performance skills, offer constructive comments to their peers, and learn about topics such as extended techniques, public speaking, and development of successful marketing and auditioning techniques. Every year, I invite guests from various disciplines to present topics in our studio class. Guest artists presenting master classes and clinics have included, among others, flutists Luis Julio Toro, Bradley Garner, Greg Pattillo, Jonathan Keeble, David Buck, Alicia Paulsen, Caen Thomason-Redus, James Hall, Marcia Kamper, and John McMurtery, traverso players Wilbert Hazelzet and Kim Pineda, body mapping expert Marieke Shuurs, two physical therapists, breathing expert David Fedderly, composer Eve Beglarian, and flute repair technicians Jim Phelan and Ethan Lin.

Each term we present a flute studio recital, often in collaboration with other studios and areas of the music school. We have worked with the composition studio, the electronic music studio, the string area, and the bassoon and horn studios. The flute studio has commissioned and premiered scores of new compositions. My students organize one recital each year on their own, with minimal guidance from me. These recitals have resulted in many successes: students learn the wherewithal to program, plan, promote, and present a recital, and they have supported wonderful community causes in the process. For example, 148 pounds of food was donated to Food for Lane County in February 2011, and my students initiated a book donation in May 2013.

By the time a student of mine graduates, he or she will also have gained knowledge on auxiliary instruments such as the piccolo and alto flute. A flute student who graduates from my flute program will have had several public speaking experiences and will understand the need to present oneself in a professional manner at all times. Most importantly, in my opinion, my flute student will gain two important abilities that are essential to reach the top echelon in any business. First, my students will possess the self-control, dedication, and attention to detail that is honed while sitting in isolation in a practice room for hours each day perfecting the art of flute playing. Second, my students will become colleagues whom everyone wants to hire: serious yet jovial, committed yet flexible, knowledgeable yet humble.

Students of mine have been widely recognized for their talents. Student achievements include advancement in the National Flute Association Young Artist and Masterclass Competitions, finalist in the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Competition and first prize-winner in the Areon Chamber Music Competition. My students have performed in master classes of Marina Piccinini, Trevor Wye, Robert Dick, Jill Felber, Walfrid Kujala, Jeffrey Khaner, Jan Vinci, Joshua Smith, Kathy Chastain, and Jim Walker, among others. They have been admitted to summer festivals including the ARIA Festival, Julius Baker Summer Course, Mannes College Contemporary Music Workshop, Project Trio workshop, Carnegie-Mellon’s Consummate Fluist, the National Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute, the Banff Center Summer Class, and the Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice. Together we have performed at the National Flute Association Convention in Las Vegas and at the Greater Portland Flute Society Flute Fair, and at high schools throughout the state of Oregon. Many of my present and former students are active freelancers in the community and throughout the nation. Students who have graduated from my flute program have gone on to pursue further degrees at esteemed schools worldwide, and numerous former students hold adjunct and tenure track teaching positions throughout the nation.

I would love to meet with you if you plan to audition for admittance to the flute studio. Please feel free to email or call me with any questions about the program or to set up a lesson.

Degree Programs Offered

B.Mus., B. Musical Arts

Scholarships available to highly qualified applicants.

For more information about the Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University, admissions procedures, and audition dates and requirements, please visit https://blair.vanderbilt.edu/

Flute class and Professor Barth Turner Hall, Blair School of Music Vanderbilt University Photo: Anne Rayner; VU

 

Blair Flute Studio Blair School of Music Turner Hall Vanderbilt University Photo: Anne Rayner; VU

 

GUESTS OF NOTE

  • Lorna McGhee (Soloist, Principal Flute, Pittsburgh Symphony)
  • Conor Nelson (UW Madison Flute Professor)
  • Jennifer Parker Harley (University of SC Flute Professor)
  • Lauren Carr (Flute Repair Technician)
  • Mary Karen Clardy (Soloist, Flute Professor, University of North Texas)
  • Gloria Yun (Piccolo, Nashville Symphony)
  • James Hall (Professor, University of Northern Colorado)
  • Jonathan Keeble (Flute Professor, University of Illinois)
  • Mary Stolper (Flute Professor, DePaul University)
  • Marcia Kamper (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra)
  • John McMurtery (NYC Opera/OR Symphony)
  • Luis Julio Toro (Venezuelan flute-playing phenom)
  • Marieke Shuurs (body-mapping expert)
  • Jim Phelan (flute maker, Burkart Flutes)
  • Shannon Millington (physical therapist)
  • Kim Pineda (baroque flute specialist)
  • Brenda Hutchinson (performance artist)
  • Sarah Tiedemann (Portland-area freelance flutist)
  • Alicia D’Donato Paulsen (flutist, Oregon Symphony Orchestra)
  • Ethan Lin (sales representative and repair technician and flutist, Burkart Flutes)
  • Kristen Halay (principal flutist, Eugene Symphony)
  • Lisa Bost (composer/new music specialist)
  • John Savage (composer/new music specialist)
  • Shannon Budd (early childhood educator)
  • Jennifer Rhyne (flute instructor, Pacific Lutheran University)
  • Caen Thomason-Redus (flute professor, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee)
  • Sarah Beck (sales representative, Burkart Flutes)
  • Greg Pattillo (beatboxing flutist)
  • Jesse Tatum (Santa Fe Symphony Principal Flute, and expert: topic of performance anxiety)
  • Sarah Nemecek (Feldenkrais instructor)
  • James Hall (Professor of Flute, University of Northern Colorado)
  • Orlando Cela (new music specialist and conductor based in MA)
  • Javier Montilla (Venezuelan flute virtuoso)
  • Emily Stanek (Oregon-based freelancer and teacher at Corban University)
  • Heather Johnson (Yakima Symphony Orchestra)
  • Elise Blatchford (City of Tomorrow)
  • Martha Long (Principal Flute, Oregon Symphony)
  • Zachariah Galatis (Piccolo, Oregon Symphony)
  • Orlando Cela (Contemporary music specialist, Boston)
  • Myungwon Yoon (Korean flute and percussion, Seoul, Korea)