Wedding Music in Colorado, Wedding Ceremony Music, Flute Music » Events

Boulder Symphony Orchestra Concert

Christen — Fri, 11 May 2012 18:10:15 +0000

I play the cello with the Boulder Symphony Orchestra and am pleased to announce our upcoming performance:

The Boulder Symphony Orchestra along with the Cherry Creek Chorale presents the Brahms Requiem conducted by Devin Hughes on May 18^th and 19^th. Soloists are soprano Teresa Castillo and baritone Thomas Fitzpatrick Kittle. The concert also features the world premiere performance of “Inter” by Austin Wintory. Tickets are $15. Learn more about the orchestra and order tickets at the Boulder Symphony Website.

Join us for a wonderful evening of music on one of the following days:

Friday, May 18^th at 7:00pm, First Presbyterian Church, Boulder
Saturday, May 19^th at 7:30, Bethany Lutheran Church, Denver

Professional Flute Choir Concerts, Las Vegas, NV

Christen — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 16:30:13 +0000

I have been chosen in competition to be a member of the 2012 Professional Flute Choir, and will be performing in concert with other flutists from across the nation at this year’s National Flute Association Convention in Las Vegas, NV. If you are attending the convention, or live in Las Vegas, this is a chance to hear a one of a kind concert of challenging music. We will play at the Pompeian Ballroom in Ceasars Palace on Saturday, August 11^th at 10:00am and for the closing ceremonies at the Augustus Ballroom in Ceasars Palace on Saturday, August 11^th at 4:00pm.

Networking

Christen — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 21:41:39 +0000

This Tuesday I had the opportunity to meet a lot of great Colorado wedding professionals at a networking party hosted by The Knot. As I meet more Colorado wedding professionals, I’m continuing to find that they are a friendly and supportive group that works well together and also takes time to have fun together. Wedding and events run smoothly with collaboration and I think these professionals are doing it right.

Among those I met were Laura Pearson of L Elizabeth Weddings and Events and Photography. Laura has kindly invited me to another event to get to know more wedding professionals. I also had a great conversation with Molly Richardson of Blair Bennetts Photography and I met Stacy Harris of Cielo at Castle Pines. Stacy was excited to meet a flute player that she can recommend to brides. I also met Vi Wickam, a fun-loving and multi-talented fiddle player, and Mike Neville of MPN Photography, who took the time to give me lots of helpful information related to the wedding business in Colorado.

On the following day I went to an event hosted by the Wedding Singers, a group that has recently expanded to Denver. I met lots of very talented musicians, and vocalists in particular. I also enjoyed talking with Julia Tobey again, this time in a much more relaxed setting than at my Wedding Singers audition!

Colorado Flute Forum

Christen — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 21:37:25 +0000

I am one of the presenters for this month’s Colorado Flute Forum meeting, where I will give a presentation on how to play Celtic flute music, specifically music of the Irish tradition. There will be two other presentations, one of which will be given by Greg LaLiberte on the Brazilian Choro. This meeting will be held in held at Chris Potter’s house in Boulder, CO on Friday, April 13th from 10am to 12pm. Contact me for more information.

Empty Bowls Fundraiser and Live Piano Music at Caffe’ Colla’ge

Christen — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 17:44:33 +0000

Join us at Caffe’ Colla’ge in Estes Park, CO for an Empty Bowls Fundraising event and a live piano performance by myself. Caffe’ Colla’ge is located in Estes Park and they are remaking the old Creation Station Coffee shop into a new coffee shop that will be a place for the arts, community service, ministry, and of course – coffee! The event is this Friday, March 23rd at 6:00pm with live piano music beginning at 7:00pm. For more information, contact Rachel Hartman at 970-691-1339. Find Caffe’ Colla’ge At the Courtyard Shops: 165 Virginia Dr. Unit 7 Estes Park, Co 80517.

The Colorado Flute Choir Festival 2012

Christen — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 19:59:57 +0000

Don’t miss the upcoming Colorado Flute Choir Festival which will be held on Saturday, April 28th. The festival is presented by the Colorado Flute Association and open to all association members. Attendance is free and open to all flutists from middle school through adults. The festival will be held at Longs Peak United Methodist Church, 1421 Elmhurst Drive in Longmont, CO from 9am – 5pm.

The festival will have workshops for piccolo, c flutes, alto flutes, and bass flutes. There will also be a low flutes reading session, mass flute choirs, a class on contemporary techniques for c flutes, and a festival recital. Clinicians include Christina Jennings, Kay W. Lloyd, Christine Potter, and Michelle Stanley. Go here for more information.

Colorado Flute Fair 2012

Christen — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 19:58:23 +0000

Carol Wincenc

I attended the Colorado Flute Fair at the University of Colorado in Boulder this past weekend and it was a great day packed full of instructional classes, masterclasses, and concerts. The fair featured guest artist Carol Wincenc, professor of music at Julliard School of Music.

The day began with a warm-up class that focused on relaxation techniques for comfortable and injury free practice. Following that was a tone development class which focused on the importance of breath control. Then Carol Wincenc gave a surburb masterclass. She has a flair for the stage and spreads her enthusiasm to those she teaches. She also has a knack for pushing her students to reach their highest potential while allowing them to remain true to their personal musical style.

After lunch we heard a demonstration of Carol Wincenc’s edition of Andersen’s Op. 15. Anderson’s original etudes are combined with a duet part that Ms. Wincenc wrote for the teacher to play. The duet part highlights the chord structure of each etude, and is a valuable resource for flute teachers.

Following the demonstration was a Flute Association members recital and then a fabulous performance featuring Carol Wincenc. Carol chose an engaging variety of songs from different time periods, in different styles, and with a variety of instrumentation. Her playing is suburb and her technique flawless, and her performance was much enjoyed.

Mementos from my Musical Journey

Christen — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 02:39:53 +0000

A few days ago I was digging through my “memory box” and came across various newspaper clippings and other similar items that reminded me of past musical experiences. I hope you enjoy looking at these mementos from my musical journey.

I was in middle school when I had the privilege of playing for the 1995 Wingate University Commencement, with Bob Dole as guest speaker. I played flute along with the Wingate Symphonic Band, of which I had been a member for a year.

Here is the program and ticket for another concert that I played with the Wingate Symphonic Band. This time Madeleine Albright gave the address.

This is an article written about a concert given by the Charlotte Flute Choir in honor one of my former flute teachers, Irene Maddox. Her husband was the director of the flute choir until he passed away a few years later. I played in the Charlotte Flute Choir for six years, but only had the advantage of being Irene’s student for a few months before she passed away.

This is the summer 2002 edition of the Flutist Quarterly featuring my flute teacher of six years, Mark Thomas. The Flutist Quarterly is the official magazine of the National Flute Association, which was founded by Mark Thomas. Mr. Thomas was kind enough to sign my copy of the magazine.

Right: This is an article about Sue Myrick’s 2004 campaign ball, and if you look for the star, you will see our flute and harp duo, “Jubal” mentioned.

Below: This is a page from “Skirt!” magazine featuring my music business.

The National Flute Association (NFA) Convention comes to Las Vegas, Nevada

Christen — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 16:42:04 +0000

Whether you are flute player or a flute enthusiast, start planning now to attend the 2012 NFA Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada from August 9th – 12th. The NFA consists of over 6,000 members from over 50 countries and is the largest flute organization in the world. Come to learn and watch or enter one of the competitions including solo, flute choir, masterclasses, and non-performance competitions. I am looking forward to attending this convention and also seeing Vegas for the first time! Visit the National Flute Association website if you would like more information.

The Irish Session in Colorado

Christen — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 17:38:30 +0000

An Irish session is an informal gathering of people to play traditional Irish music. If you live in Charlotte, NC you will have a very hard time finding a traditional Irish session. In fact, I’ve lived there for almost twenty years without finding a single regular session closer than the two hour drive to Asheville. So imagine my happy surprise when I moved to Colorado a few months ago and found over ten Irish Sessions less than thirty minutes from where I live!

I was classically trained in flute, but what really sparked my interest in traditional music was an old-time/bluegrass jam session I found in a nearby small town in North Carolina. After the group broke up a year later, I continued to explore on my own, and fell in love with traditional Irish music. I found that my extensive experience with improvisation and playing by ear was a great asset when learning Irish music.

And so my adventure began in Colorado. I began going to Irish sessions in Denver, CO and Boulder, CO and my appetite was whet for more. I still play Irish music on my classical flute and various whistles, but I’m going to start saving my money and realize my long time dream of buying an Irish flute.

If you are interested in listening to or playing Irish music, you can visit these local Irish Sessions in Colorado. Swallow Hill in Denver also has regular sessions. Each session is a bit different so there is something for everyone, from beginners to advanced musicians, or music lovers who come to listen.

You can also go here to learn more about what I do with Irish flute music.