Studio Concerts & Events

• Our studio year in August starts out with a bang! About 20, chaperones, Angie the flute dog, and I have a three-day retreat by the Mt. Baker National Forest. We rent several condos and have non-stop fun, food and flutes. Every year, Donna Shin, Professor of Flute at the University of Washington, gives master classes, as does one other guest artist. We hike along the river, swim in the pool, play games, sight-read ensembles, play in a flute choir, and have a great time.

Many of my students audition for the Seattle Youth Symphony groups. This year, 16 students from our studio were in the four orchestras.

Each year, I invite one or two college professors to come to the studio to teach a master class. We have had the professors from Central Washington University, San Francisco Conservatory, University of Cincinnati College, Conservatory of Music, Indiana University, and University of Washington among others. This year, we are thrilled to host Marianne Gedigian from the University of Texas at Austin.

We love sharing our music with others, and retirement home concerts are a great way to practice our contest music and give a very grateful audience a treat. This year, various students performed at four retirement homes in our area.

Every year, 9th- through 12th-grade students from our studio audition and are chosen to participate.

Most students in 6th through 12th grade send in audition tapes to compete in the Horsfall competition in January. Students from our studio have consistently won top awards.

I serve as chairman for this woodwind competition, which started just a few years ago. Each student plays two pieces and is adjudicated. Winners take home cash prizes.

Almost all high school students in the studio participate in their local school district competition. The winner from each district goes to state. Every year, we have students from the studio who make it to the state level, and many years we have winners!

The Seattle Young Artists Music Festival is held at the end of March for all instruments in grades 5 through 12 . Students play a solo or complete program, and all of my students perform in an ensemble. Many also compete in the concerto division, and almost every year someone from the studio is chosen for the concerto play-offs. We have been lucky to have three concerto finalists from the studio.

The Mother’s Day Gala began as an “anti-contest,” a time where we could perform just for the fun of it. It has grown into the social event of the year. All students participate in ensembles. We sometimes even have one big flute choir.

I’ll never forget our performance of “The Flight of The Bumblee” with 25 students wearing antenna! The students wear costumes and perform skits, and we end with a big potluck dinner.

Other events during the year may include a Christmas ensemble party, the “recital from hell” where we do everything possible to distract the performer, hot tub parties for winners of scale and trill contests, pizza afternoons with ensemble practice, special guest events featuring visiting artists, concert attendance as a group, senior recitals, and more.