About Christen Stephens.
I have a passion for making the world a more beautiful place and enriching people's lives through the things I love to do, including music, gardening, cooking, writing, and photography. My home office overlooks the majestic foothills of the Rocky Mountains and my bright flower gardens. When I'm not organizing wedding and event performances or writing music arrangements in my office, you can find me tending my gardens on cool summer mornings, cooking tasty food creations in the kitchen, or playing my flute, piano, or cello. When I see the joy on the faces of others when they hear my music, it uplifts and inspires me. I want to bring joy to your world through my music!
I enjoy constructing order, systems, and harmony. But there's another side of me that revels in the surprise of the unknown, because that's where true creativity blossoms. Whether I'm perfecting details or experimenting with something new, my goal is to elevate everything that I touch.
Playing flute gives me flight
Playing cello is savoring a piece of dark chocolate
Playing piano transports me to a different world
Biography:
I have over twenty-five years of experience as a professional wedding ceremony and event musician. I play the flute, piano, and cello, and the flute is my specialty. Inspired by my love for playing chamber music, I have created and personally lead a variety of small ensembles that feature the music of the flute and strings. These groups regularly perform for weddings and social occasions throughout Colorado. I am also the founder and creator of “Inspire Duo”, a flute and piano duo that is completely improvisational.
I am known for my musical versatility on the flute. Using my classical training as a foundation, I have since developed an extensive repertoire of jazz, traditional Irish, sacred, and popular music and also enjoy improvising. My playing has been featured in performances for dignitaries such as the Dalai Lama, Bob Dole, Madeline Albright and former US representative, Sue Myrick. I play on a handmade solid rose gold and silver Powell flute.
I have soloed on flute with orchestras and have done public and private performances across the country. I am very familiar with traditional and modern Christian music and have played flute, cello, and piano regularly on church worship teams. I also do studio recording work on flute and piano and can be heard on several albums. I am also a music arranger and specialize in making contemporary music sound great with classical instruments. I make custom music arrangements for my ensembles and take special song requests from my clients.
Education:
I was classically trained on the flute, piano, and cello. I graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education with an emphasis in flute at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. There, I served as concertmistress of the UNCC flute choir. Most of my flute study was under Mark Thomas, an international soloist and the founder of the National Flute Association.
