New York Flute Fair 2024
Focus Forward: On Track for Success
Sunday, March 24, 2024 • 9:00 am - 8:00 pm
Guest artist: Marianne Gedigian
Location: The Allen-Stevenson School, 132 EAST 78th Street, NYC
(one block from the 77th Street stop on the 6 train)
Join us for a full day of concerts and classes (including a mastery class and gala recital with Flute Fair guest artist Marianne Gedigian), workshops, exhibits, the NYFC competition, and more!
Marianne Gedigian’s appearance is made possible in part by the Wm. S. Haynes Co.
PROGRAM BOOK SCHEDULE FLYER CORPORATE SPONSORS
Interested in volunteering?
Check the "volunteer" box when you register, email Volunteers Coordinator Mary Brust, or add your name to the sign-up sheet.
Admission (note that the listed fees include the preregistration discount)
NYFC member: $50 ($10 higher at the door)
Non-member: $70 ($10 higher at the door)
Full-time student: $25 ($5 higher at the door)
Non-flutist family member attending with a full-time student: $10
Non-flutist guest: $50 ($10 higher at the door)
Senior citizen, age 65+: $25 ($5 higher at the door)
Teacher bringing 3 preregistered full-time students: $40 (teacher must preregister)
The single fee covers the entire day's events.
About Flute Fair guest artist Marianne Gedigian
Marianne Gedigian joined the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University as professor of flute in fall 2023. She previously held the Butler Endowed Professorship in Flute and was a University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin Butler School of Music. Ms. Gedigian performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for over a decade, including several seasons as acting principal flute. As principal flute with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra and acting principal flute with the Boston Pops, she has performed on dozens of recordings with the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops Orchestras. She has also been heard on several of John Williams’ movie scores, including Saving Private Ryan and Schindler’s List.
EVENTS (arranged by starting time)
10:00 am
The Body of Sound: This workshop introduces physical movements and exercises that are connected with tailored, exploratory flute warm-ups to create mobility, ease, and resonance. Morgann Davis teaches at Millersville University of Pennsylvania and Franklin & Marshall College and is a certified yoga and mindfulness meditation instructor.
Modal Flute Warm-up: Laura Lentz will introduce her new book Modal Flute Warmup: Sound Discovery and Color Palette Expansion. Come try some excerpts.
Flute Playing at Kaufman Music Center–From A to Z: Kaufman Music Center students in its youngest ensemble, ages 5 to 9, through middle and high school years, to the very active Adult Program, will present three works by living composers along with some old favorites.
Fused: Pop Ideas + Classical Sounds: Meghan Bennett, Assistant Professor of Flute and Director of Woodwind Studies at New York University, explores the world of pop artists and their music. With documentaries and interviews featuring Nina Simone, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, and Céline Dion, she takes a creative look into the connections between music, thought, feeling and society.
11:00 am
Young Musicians’ Roundtable: Caroline Sonett-Assor, director of Mannes Prep and coordinator of NYFC’s Young Musicians Contest, invites flutists ages 6-18 to participate in a flute choir reading session. Flutists will be led through group warm-ups and improvisational activities and will put together a piece of music. Meet new friends, make music, and enjoy a tasty treat!
Exploring the Power of Play in El Sistema: Adam Eccleston, principal flutist of the Portland Columbia Symphony, has taught and directed El Sistema programs in the U.S. for many years. This session will explore teaching fundamentals for middle schoolers found in El Sistema programs that will deepen connections with students in large classrooms as well as private studios. He will discuss cultural relevance in repertoire choices as well as strategies with neurodivergent music students. This is an activity-based session.
Hoff-Barthelson Music School Flute Choirs: The junior and adult flute choirs of the Hoff-Barthelson School in Scarsdale, conducted by Joseph Piscitelli, will play works of Beethoven, Chopin, Mozart, and Mascagni. Donna Elaine Jobe will conduct the Hoff-Barthelson High School Flute Choir in an all-Mozart program.
Flamenco Music and the Flute: Flamenco singer and flutist Alfonso Cid, with guitarist Ricardito Sánchez, will introduce a selection of traditional Flamenco songs and rhythms, and will show how the flute can be incorporated into this Spanish art form.
12:00 noon
Performance Anxiety: What is it and how can you solve it? What if anxiety doesn’t have to run your life, or affect your performance? This interactive work-shop with flutist and human software engineer Kristen Gygi will explore the roots of anxiety and empower you with some of the most leading-edge and potent techniques for resolving all degrees of fear.
So You Want to Study Flute in College?: What are strategies for organizing the various essays and pre-screenings that you have to create for each school? What questions should you ask in your emails to different studios? What are the judges looking for in your auditions? In this panel, recent graduates Jackie Traish, Michael Alampi, and Stephanie Pizza will reveal their tips, tricks, and experiences going through that very process. Their discussion will be followed by a Q&A with NY flute teachers Judith Mendenhall (Queens College, Mannes), Meghan Bennett (NYU), and others who will describe the qualities they are looking for in prospective students.
Young Musicians Contest Winners Recital: Come hear the stars of today and tomorrow, the winners of the Flute Club’s contest for young flutists up to age 18.
You CAN Improvise: An improvisation workshop with Haruna Fukazawa and Gene Coleman on flute, and Shu Odamura on guitar. Ms. Fukazawa is a multi-time winner of the NFA Jazz Flute Big Band audition. Her quintet’s album Departure had a release at the Blue Note New York and was featured on the cover of Hot House Jazz Magazine.
1:00 pm
What Exactly Is a Flute? Sit back and gawk as a man who makes musical instruments out of anything—sneakers, wastebaskets, colanders, hoses, etc.—shows how it’s done. Skip La Plante invents, builds, composes for, performs on, and teaches with musical instruments built from trash for the American Festival of Microtonal Music and elsewhere.
Klezmer Flute with Adrianne Greenbaum: The inimitable Adrianne Greenbaum will talk you through the history of klezmer while performing tunes from the flute’s presence in the 1900s to contemporary compositions of her own. You will hear beautiful, historic works performed on simple system and Boehm system flutes and piccolos.
Songs My Mothers (and Fathers) and Daughters (and Sons) Taught Me: With many years as a researcher, teacher, and humanitarian in Africa, and experiences growing up in a large inner-city family during the civil rights period, Richard Donald Smith illustrates in a performance lecture how both continents have influenced his sense of what makes good music. For several decades, he has served on the instrumental music faculty at the United Nations International School.
2:00 pm
UpTown Flutes: The professional ensemble UpTown Flutes presents an eclectic and energetic program of contemporary music by Piazzolla, DeLise, Anže Rozman (Medusa), and Goin’ Uptown by Valerie Coleman, written for UpTown Flutes.
The Collaborative Process and the Prokofiev Sonata (Making Difficult Repertoire Easier): Flutist Hristina Blagoeva and pianist Miles Massicotte of Virginia State University explore strategies and techniques to enhance the collaboration between flutists and pianists, especially when rehearsal time is short. The lecture will explore the Prokofiev Sonata as a collaborative piece and provide general principles and best practices to help flutists and pianists achieve a successful collaboration and performance.
3:00 pm
Unleash the Power of the Flutist’s Body—The Timani Method: Christine Moulton introduces a comprehensive system of movement understanding designed by and for musicians. This workshop covers standing and sitting with ease, restoring stability and power, and how to use the arms to hold and play the flute free from pain or discomfort.
Ensemble Reading Session: Back by popular demand, Jayn Rosenfeld will lead a flute choir sight-reading session. Bring C flutes, piccolos, and alto flutes.
A través de la Naturaleza Humana (Through Human Nature): Flutist Darwin Cosme Sánchez and pianist Anna Keisserman play works by Amanda Harberg, Valerie Coleman, and Samuel Zyman. These works represent the stages of human nature: sorrow and the path of healing, thoughtfulness, and unity.
4:00 pm
A Mission to Commission: Margaret Swinchoski, principal flutist of the NYGASP orchestra (NYC) and a founding member of Palisades Virtuosi, has commissioned more than 100 works by such composers as Paul Moravec, Eric Ewazen, and Melinda Wagner. She will share her experience commissioning new works and give advice on getting started with this exciting aspect of your career.
Echoes of Phoenicia: The Spirit of the Ancient World in Contemporary Flute Music: Lebanese composer Sami Seif presents a riveting blend of Western and Arabic flute music, featuring his Miniatures from Phoenicia (dedicated to Mary Kay Fink), followed by an exploration of unique composition techniques including the “trill gliss” and microtones, demonstrating the rich cultural fusion in contemporary flute music.
4:30 - 6:00 pm
NYFC Competition Finals: Listen to the six finalists chosen by the judges from the morning’s semifinal rounds. Past winners of the NYFC Competition have gone on to major solo and orchestral careers.
6:00 - 7:00 pm
Mastery Class with Marianne Gedigian: Our guest artist works with Chris Boyadjiev on the Dutilleux Sonatine and Nikka Gershman on Telemann’s Fantasia No. 8 in E Minor and Elliott Carter’s Scrivo in Vento. Coordinator: Jessica Taskov.
7:00 - 8:00 pm
Gala Artist Recital with Marianne Gedigian: Marianne Gedigian performs a recital of Telemann, Dvorak, Roxanna Panufnik, Fauré, Still, and Prokofiev, with pianist Eliza Ching.
ANNUAL FLUTE FAIR EVENTS (all day)
EXHIBITS:
Flute vendors and makers, music publishers, and other members of the music industry will exhibit their products. This is the perfect opportunity to shop for a new flute or look for newly published music.
TAG SALE & FLUTE FAIR TABLE:
Visit the tag sale for bargains on used music, CDs, vintage LPs, artwork, and other flute-related items. Everything is priced to sell! There will be a silent auction of some special donated items. Contributions are welcome—clean out your closets and bring us your duplicate Kuhlaus and the pieces you no longer play. The NYFC table sells CDs and publications by NYFC members and guest artists. NYFC members may sell up to 10 items at the exhibit table. Members wishing to sell items may bring them to the table beginning at 9:00 am and must collect unsold items by 5:30 pm. Contact Nancy Toff at nancy.toff@oup.com for more information.
RAFFLE:
Win a lesson/career counseling session (your choice) with guest artist Marianne Gedigian. Tickets are $10 for 1 ticket, $25 for 3 tickets, and $50 for 7 tickets, and can be purchased when you register online or at the fair.
Overview of past NY Flute Fairs here.
A searchable archive of flute fair programs from 2014 and later may be found here.
