Flute Quartet Wedding Music at Black Canyon Inn

This past Monday I had a wonderful time playing the flute for a wedding at the beautiful Black Canyon Inn in Estes Park, Colorado.  The wedding was outdoors under a pavilion with a spectacular mountain view. The hot day cooled down with nearby rain, giving us a pleasant breeze and cooler temperatures. I played with the Ribbons and Strings Ensembles, and because the groom was partial to the sound of the flute, the couple chose to have a quartet with flute, violin, viola, and cello.

Wedding Ceremony Music:

Prelude ~ What a Wonderful World  (Armstrong), Arioso  (Bach), Spring (Vivaldi), Rondo (Mozart)

Processional for the Maid of Honor ~ Canon in D (Pachelbel)

Bridal Processional ~ Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach)

Signing the Marriage License ~ "Only Hope" from A Walk to Remember

Recessional ~ Psalm 19 (Marcello), Hornpipe (Handel), Allegro from Spring (Vivaldi), Divertimento in D Major, 1st mvmt. (Mozart), selections from Autumn (Vivaldi)

First Dance ~ "Unchained Melody" from Ghost

We played for the cocktail hour at the Twin Owls Steak House. We played a wide selection of classical, jazz, rock, and popular songs. A shortened sample is listed below.

Selected Cocktail Hour Music:

All You Need is Love (Beatles), Unforgettable (Nat King Cole), Wonderful Tonight (Eric Clapton), Blue Moon, Chasing Cars (Snow Patrol), Don't Stop Believing (Journey)

Flute and Cello Duo Wedding Music at The Pines at Genesee

Flute and Cello Duo Wedding Music at The Pines at Genesee

Wedding season is in full swing in Colorado, and this past Saturday, I had the pleasure of playing flute for a wedding at the Pines at Genesee in Golden, CO. I played the flute and was accompanied by Marcelo Sanches on the cello. One of my favorite parts about playing for weddings in Colorado is having the opportunity to explore beautiful locations and venues, not to mention enjoying the gorgeous weather. Saturday turned out to be a very hot day, but upon arriving at the Pines, the elevation combined with some helpful clouds cooled things down. With the added shelter of the beautiful towering pine trees, it turned out to be a perfect evening.

With brick pathways, arbors, and towering pine trees, the ceremony location was rustic with a simple understated elegance. The bride's choice of a flute and cello duet complemented the setting perfectly.

Marcelo and I played a selection of classical music for the cocktail hour. For the wedding ceremony, the bride asked for traditional and classical music. Other than the Bridal Chorus by Wagner, this busy bride left the specific song selections up to me:

Attendant’s Processional ~ Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach)
Bridal Processional ~ The Bridal Chorus (Wagner)
Recessional ~ Hornpipe (Handel)

Boulder Symphony Orchestra Concert

Brahms

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 18th and 19th. 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. Join us for a wonderful evening of music on one of the following days:

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

Professional Flute Choir Concerts, Las Vegas, NV

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.

New Music Samples for Flute and Harp Duo

Recording Session at Swallow Hill in Denver, CO

Thanks to Brian Hunter at the Swallow Hill recording studio in Denver, I have replaced my ten year old homemade flute and harp recordings with new professional ones. On the recordings I am playing on my new solid rose gold and silver Powell flute that I bought last summer. I was accompanied by talented harpist, Mary Keener. Our duo is available to play for your Colorado wedding or event.

Colorado Flute Forum

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.

The Colorado Flute Choir Festival 2012

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.

Colorado Flute Fair 2012

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.

The Flute – Top 10 Questions a Flute Player is Asked….

1) Where does the sound come out from the flute? Most of the sound comes from the location where the air that the flutist blows strikes the flute. This is the part of the flute that is right in front of the lips and is called the “strike wall”.

2) Are flute players called flutists or flautists?

Both terms are equally correct. I personally prefer “flutist” because what is a “flaut” anyway?

3) Do you ever need a microphone for your flute when performing?

I rarely need a microphone because the flute is a very resonant instrument and its sound carries well both indoors and outdoors. I do need amplification if there is excessive ambient noise, or if I am playing in a band in which all the other members are amplified.

4) How do you hold the flute to play “air flute”?

Hold the flute out to your right with your left hand to the right of your face facing in and your right hand further to the right facing out. Both thumbs will curve naturally under the flute. For a more detailed description of holding a real flute go .

5) What are flutes made out of?

Flutes can be made of many different materials. Many student models are made of nickel or silver plated. Professional models are usually made of silver, gold, or platinum. Flutes have also been made from tin, copper, wood, plastic, carbon fiber, aluminum, palladium, bones, glass, and even carrots. My flute is silver on the inside and rose gold on the outside.

6) Can you play like Jethro Tull?

Ian Anderson is the flute player and leader of Jethro Tull. I’ve never actually spent time trying to copy him, but I do my own style of flute improvisation to various musical genres.

7) What is the difference between a flute and a recorder?

A flute is held horizontally and played by blowing across the tone hole, while a recorder is held vertically and played like a whistle. The flute has a more complex system of keys that cover the holes while a recorder simply has holes that the player has to cover with their fingers. Flutes are typically made of metal and recorders are usually made of plastic or wood. The flute is far more versatile, and most of the music written for recorders by major composers was written in the Baroque period (1680-1720).

8 ) Does playing the flute take a lot of air?

Playing the flute does take a lot of air, but it’s important to learn how to control the air than rather than just to blow hard. A flute player must learn to breathe correctly to take in the maximum amount of air and then use their muscles to support the air stream while releasing it in a very controlled manner. Good flute players also know how to correctly shape their embouchures (the way their lips are shaped) and adjust the space between their lips to focus the air so there is minimal waste. Using these techniques, a flute player can play long phrases without taking a breath.

9) Why are there holes in the keys of the flute?

Most intermediate to professional flutes have keys with holes in them. The benefit of having holes in your keys is that you can partially cover the holes and be able to play notes that are in between the normal notes of a scale. You can also use the holes to slide from one note to another note. This is particularly handy for modern music that uses extended techniques and for Irish music.

10) Why are some flutes so expensive?

Both materials and workmanship have big impacts on the price of a flute. The going price of precious metals and the amounts of those metals in a particular flute will have a strong impact on its current value. Other factors that affect the cost of a flute are the amount of handmade versus machine made parts in the flute and the quality of materials used to make the flute.

Unlike stringed instruments, flutes do not typically gain value with age. However, a well maintained flute, particularly one made of a precious medal, can retain its value. As improvements are made to the design of the flute, people tend to buy newer improved models in favor of the older styles.

Mementos from my Musical Journey

Newspaper article featuring Bob Dole's address to Wingate University Grads, Wingate, North Carolina

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.

Spring Lecture Series Program from Wingate University featuring an address by Madeleine Albright in Wingate, North Carolina

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

Spring Lecture Series Ticket from Wingate University featuring an address by Madeleine Albright in Wingate, North Carolina

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.

Newspaper article featuring concert given by the Charlotte Flute Choir honoring the passing of Irene Maddox

Newspaper article featuring concert given by the Charlotte Flute Choir honoring the passing of Irene Maddox

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.

Summer 2002 Edition of the Flutist Quarterly featuring founder of the National Flute Association, Mark Thomas

Article from newspaper featuring 2004 campaign ball given by Sue Myrick

Left: 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.

Article from Skirt! Magazine featuring Christen Neumann Stephens

Win Free Live Music for Valentine's Day

Gigmaster's is hosting a contest to win $200 towards a Valentine's Day performance from a Gigmaster's musician like myself. If you win and choose solo flute and/or solo piano from me, this means a nice long free performance! Enter before February 6th: Win a Serenade for Valentine's Day

Romantic Music

Romantic music for Valentine's Day and Wedding Ceremonies

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner and spring weddings drawing near, it’s time to start thinking about romantic music to complete the occasion. With the help of friends, I’ve compiled a list of romantic songs, and I hope you enjoy listening to them. What makes a song romantic? Romantic music mirrors four aspects of romance in life – intimacy, time, conversation, and passion. But just as we all experience intimacy in different ways, we all have our personal preferences in romantic music. Intimacy

Every romantic song has some level of intimacy. Intimate songs tend to be personal and not showy or performance oriented. They frequently have sweeping strings or soulful guitar or piano in the background. Also, most romantic songs fall between the pulse of 60 -100 beats per minute which also happens to be the average heartbeat of a human being. Coincidence? I think not. This gentle pulse is often done with soft percussion, or naturally emphasized in the music. Over this pulse is usually a warm and tender voice or instrumental lead.

Time

Romance flourishes when you give another person your full attention and time.  The following songs are all about the element of time and they do this by drawing out words and spacing phrases:

Can’t Help Falling in Love With You, Elvis

Come Away with Me, Norah Jones

Fascination, Nat King Cole

I Will Love You, Fisher

Unchained Melody, Righteous Brothers

Wonderful Tonight, Eric Clapton

Conversation

This is an easy one, because words of love and devotion can be translated directly into music as in the following examples:

Always On My Mind, Willie Nelson

Devoted to You, Everly Brothers

For You, John Denver

I Will Be Here , Steven Curtis Chapman

Longer Than, Dan Fogelberg

Time in a Bottle, Jim Croce

Truly Madly Deeply, Savage Garden

Your Song, Elton John

Passion

Passionate songs have energy, intensity, perhaps a faster pulse than the typical heart rate, and often the element of the unexpected. Some of the most passionate songs are classical, particularly from the aptly named “Romantic Period” of music. Following is a wide range of passionate songs:

Everything I do, Bryan Adams

Hello Young Lovers, Stevie Wonder

Libestod from Tristan Und Isolde (Richard Wagner), Birgit Nilsson

Love Theme from Romeo and Juliet, Henry Mancini and his orchestra

Meditation from Thais (Massenet), Yo-Yo Ma

‎Someone to Watch Over Me, Herb Alpert

For fun I looked for a song from above that, in my opinion best blends all four categories. The result was a tie between “Unchained Melody” by the Righteous Brothers and “Can’t Help Falling in Love With You” by Elvis. "Unchained Melody" frequently uses the word “time” which enhances its slow development, then crescendos with passion towards the end. “Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” brilliantly combines all the elements of intimacy, along with slow romantic words.

Announcing New Event and Wedding Music Samples

I have recently completed several recording sessions with Brian Hunter at Swallow Hill in Denver, Colorado. This music is now available for you to listen to on my website (see below for links). There are new music samples of solo flute, flute and piano, and flute and cello.

You are probably very familiar with the sounds of the piano or orchestra, but do you know what flute sounds like all by itself? Take that a step further and imagine flute combined with cello, harp or other instruments. The blending of two different sounding instruments makes a new unique sound, which sometimes even sounds like an entirely different instrument. I hope you enjoy the variety of music samples on my website.

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

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

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.

Two Concerts

Cello

This past week, I had the pleasure of attending two great concerts – one by the Jefferson Symphony Orchestra, and the other by the Broomfield Symphony Orchestra. As a flute player, I enjoyed that both concerts had some great flute solos. As usual, I also loved watching the cello and bass sections, given that I play cello and my husband plays bass.

The Jefferson Symphony played at the Colorado School of Music in Golden, CO. They performed a lively and engaging concert featuring works by Brahms and Richard Strauss. The concert ended with an impressive performance of Ravel’s “La Valse” featuring Peggy Lyon on piano.

The Broomfield Symphony performed to a packed Broomfield Auditorium, just minutes from my home. They played an enjoyable selection of pieces by Haydn and Tchaikovsky to an enthusiastic audience. The second half of the program featured solo pianist David Korevaar playing Rachmaninov’s 2nd Piano Concerto. David’s passionate playing and flawless technique had me riveted, and his inspiring performance elicited a standing ovation from the audience at the end of the concert.

Settled in Colorado

During my first few months here in Westminster, CO I have been getting to know local musicians in the Denver and Boulder areas. I am now available to play for weddings and events both with solo flute and piano, and in various ensembles. I am also currently accepting new flute students. In addition to this, I am working with folk songwriter and guitarist John Matthews and along with other local musicians to record several CDs featuring his original music. John describes his music as a mix of folk, country, rock and pop. He has unique and fresh approach to his music writing, and each CD and song has a different flavor. I am writing the flute and keyboard parts and recording them at Swallow Hill Music Association in Denver, CO. We are planning to release a folk style wedding CD in the spring of next year, and I am currently working on some folk rock songs for a future CD.

The National Flute Association Convention in Charlotte, NC

Just before I headed out to my new home in Colorado, I attended the National Flute Association’s annual convention, held in Charlotte, NC this year.

I attended numerous masterclasses and competitions,  and a number of educational classes that featured topics ranging from correct breathing to beginning lessons on a Baroque flute. I was particularly inspired by William Westney’s class “How can a wrong note be perfect”.  His premise is that music should be fun, but the way we tend to teach music leads students to aspire for perfection  rather than playing their instrument with life and expression.  At the exhibits, I got to try out different flutes including Celtic flutes, Chinese flutes, and contrabass flutes.

I also saw a number of concerts including several flute and cello concerts, a French music concert, and a concert given by the Charlotte Symphony Flutists that used fascinating modern techniques to create unique sounds. One of my favorite concerts was Trevor Wye’s “50 Variations on the Carnival of Venice for 60 flutes and piano”  where he showed us how to make a flute out of a carrot, played a flute made out of a human bone, and played on his own creations that lit up in humorous ways as he played.

The day following the convention, I attended an inspiring masterclass  given by Jean Ferrandis, who focused on playing the flute with a relaxed and natural posture as if you were saying “hello” to a friend. The convention was inspiring and refreshing and I’m glad I took time to attend even though I was busy with the move.

Moving to Colorado

My music business is going to be changing in a big way very soon because my husband, Tom, and I are moving to the Denver, Colorado area. Tom is accepting a great job opportunity there and I am ready to begin this new adventure with him. It is with great sadness however, that I leave all my students, their families, and my and friends and colleagues in music. You will be missed more than you can know! If you are in the Colorado area and reading this, then know that I am thrilled to be coming to your beautiful state. I have vacationed there in the past and feel blessed to be able to call it my future home. I can't wait to explore the opportunities in music awaiting me there!

Mosteller Mansion – Hickory, NC

This Saturday I enjoyed playing flute for a wedding at Mosteller Mansion with a wonderful harpist, Jennie Eggleston. It was my first time playing with Jennie and working with her was a pleasure. Jennie's blog about her performances inspired me to write about my own performances in the future as well.

Our Saturday drive to Mosteller Mansion became very stormy with impressive clouds and wind. Because of the rain, we played our prelude indoors as the wedding guests waited out the bad weather. Just in time for the wedding ceremony, the rain stopped and the bride and groom enjoyed a beautiful outdoor wedding like they had planned. The attendants stood on an elegant curving stairways encircling the bride and groom for a grand effect.

The bride chose a combination of hymns and classical music for the prelude, and traditional music for the ceremony:

Prelude ~ Praise to the Lord, Fairest Lord Jesus, On Wings of Song (Mendelssohn), Finlandia (Sibelius), Ode to Joy (Beethoven), Largo (Handel), Sweet Hour of Prayer, Entr’acte from Carmen (Bizet), The Way That He Loves (Mercer), Air from Water Music (Handel), Arioso (Bach) Seating of Grandparents and Mothers ~ Trumpet Voluntary (Purcell) Attendant’s Processional ~ Canon in D (Pachelbel) Bridal Processional ~ Ave Maria (Bach) Recessional ~ Simple Gifts (American Traditional) Postlude ~ Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring (Bach)