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Although it may seem a bit trite to try to condense the history of such a prolific work, let alone the composer behind it, I wanted to stick our toes just a bit into the history of one of the most famous flute concerti, Mozart’s Concerto No. 2 for flute in G Major, K. 314 (285d). If you haven’t played it yourself, chances are your ear […]

Our composer of the month for May is the illustrious Philippe Gaubert, who was also a respected conductor and flute performer as well as composer of flute music. Considered by some to be a “weekend composer,” he nonetheless wrote several pieces that are still staples of the flute repertoire today. He was considered one of the top Fren […]

I hope everyone has fun plans that keep you safe–and cool!–for the 4th of July holiday tomorrow! In honor of the holiday, I thought I would pass along some history on piccolo’s most famous solo: The Stars and Stripes Forever, by John Philip Sousa. Even if you don’t know it by name, you probably recognize the famous […]

This past Sunday, I had the honor of playing in a flute choir for the memorial service of former professor of flute at Butler University, Loretta Contino. Although I never studied privately with her, her legacy was still very strong at the time that I attended Butler, and I heard so many share their personal stories of the impact that she […]

Here’s a link to a really cool video I just came across on youtube of Robert Dick and Greg Pattillo improvising.  I thought it would be appropriate since we have Eric Lamb’s clinic on extended technique coming up. 
Check it out!

This video from 1949 shows Eugene Ormandy conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra.  The flutist playing is William Kincaid, who was my teacher’s teacher. 
Video here
As I was watching the video, it struck me that Ormandy addressed the orchestra, saying “Gentlemen.”  In 1949, there were no women in this orchestra.  In f […]