Flute Unscripted

Linda Chesis, renowned flutist and professor at the Manhattan School of Music, shares more about overcoming performance anxiety and how it almost made her quit playing the flute altogether as a young flutist. She elaborates on how she draws upon her past experiences to help her students find their own unique path and talks more about her interest in art history informing her multidisciplinary perf...

Flute Center of New York presents Flute Unscripted with Caity Massoud, featuring Kaori Fujii. Kaori talks about her childhood in Tokyo and her journey to becoming a prize-winning flutist and philanthropist. She gives some insight into what it takes to be the Founder and President/CEO of her non-profit, Music Beyond. *Previously Published on 4/19/2021 -- Flute Unscripted Online ☆ Website: https://f...

Flute Center of New York presents Flute Unscripted with Caity Massoud, featuring Marc Grauwels. Marc covers a range of topics, from balancing and parenting during the pandemic to finding your unique musical voice. - Flute Unscripted Online ☆ Website: https://flutecenter.com/pages/flute-unscripted ☆ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flutecenterofny/?hl=en ☆ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Flu...

Flute Center of New York presents Flute Unscripted with Caity Massoud, featuring Eric Lamb. Previously recorded on May 13, 2021. Eric Lamb discusses his path to becoming the artist he is today. From his start in the International Contemporary Ensemble to his solo performances of 17th and 18th-century repertoire, Eric shares why he has never been afraid to think outside of the box and follow his he...

Flute Center of New York presents Flute Unscripted with Caity Massoud, featuring Ian Anderson. Ian Anderson discusses his relationship with the flute over the years and his plans for the future of live music. [Recorded on March 15, 2021] -- Like and Subscribe so you never miss an episode! Flute Unscripted is available on iTunes, Libsyn, Soundcloud, Spotify, Youtube or Google Play: https://mailchi....

Welcome to Flute Unscripted , a podcast dedicated to gaining insight into the lives and minds of some of the most famous and influential flutists from all over the world. -- Here’s more about me, your host, Caity Massoud: First and foremost, I’m a flutist. I grew up in New York in a musical family, and was the first to pursue music as a career. I studied flute performance in college and earned my...

Mark Sparks is the Principal flutist of the St. Louis Symphony, is a captivating soloist, an in-demand teacher, and an avid writer. Mark started in the Canton Symphony Orchestra, then the Caracas Symphony in Venezuela, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, and Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Mark has continued to push himself as a musician to stay at the top of his game. With him, it see...

Christine Davis is the Principal Flutist of the Buffalo Philharmonic. Christine has performed as a soloist with the BPO and has been featured on an extensive and impressive list of recordings. As such, Christine has been rooted in the community in Buffalo for decades and is invested in sharing the knowledge she has gained over the years with her students. 

Flutist and educator Keith Underwood is a flute guru. Flutists of all ages and abilities flock to him for his advice and to unlock their hidden potential. Keith’s methods are sometimes unusual- he makes use of breathing bags, chop sticks, rhythmic shakers, and spirometers, just to name a few. His out-of-the-box techniques have proven to be effective in addressing the issues of the modern flutist a...

Dr. Heidi Kay Begay is a flutist, teacher, and host of the podcast Flute 360. Having so much in common already, Heidi had the brilliant idea of getting together to chat about podcasting and its role in the flute community. We got to talking about our struggles as hosts, the lessons we’ve learned from our guests, and the realities of putting together an episode every week.

Mindy Kaufman joined the New York Philharmonic after winning her audition for the flute and solo piccolo chair in 1979 at the age of 22. Her audition in the final round was full of snafus that could’ve thrown her off, but Mindy relied on the hard work she had put in to her preparation and rolled with the punches- and she ended up winning. Since then, she has performed a slew of concerts and chambe...

When she won the audition for Second Flute in the New York Philharmonic in 2012, Yoobin Son became the first ever Korean to join the woodwind section. Getting to know more about Yoobin and learning about her start on the flute, it ultimately didn’t seem so surprising that this highly motivated, dedicated, and persistent flutist would someday become a member of the New York Phil. 

Alison Fierst is the newly appointed Associate Principal Flute of the New York Philharmonic. Before landing her dream job, Alison completed her Bachelor degree at Carnegie Mellon University with Alberto Almarza and she went on to start a degree at Manhattan School of Music in the orchestral performance program. Alison ultimately gave up her spot as a student of Robert Langevin’s at MSM to become h...

Robert Langevin is the Principal Flutist of the New York Philharmonic. Robert believes the future of music lies in the next generation of up and coming musicians and that young people offer something exciting and invigorating to an orchestra. He is particularly passionate about the Orchestral Program at Manhattan School of Music and takes his students under his wing to competitively train and even...

Lew Tabackin got his start in public school in Philadelphia, felt like a misfit studying flute at the Philadelphia Conservatory, and ultimately found his footing after picking up the tenor saxophone. Lew has come a long way and had a varied career since: he graduated, served in the Army from 1962-65, met his wife (jazz pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi), moved to California in the 1970s, and formed their b...

Judith Mendenhall is the Principal Flutist of the American Ballet Theater Orchestra and is on faculty at Mannes and the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College. In 2016, she received the Distinguished Teaching Award from The New School, where she is chair of the wind department. Her many accomplishments include performing as a recitalist, chamber and orchestral musician in the United State...

Stephanie Mortimore is the Principal Piccolo of the MET Opera Orchestra. Stephanie’s busy career of performing was almost derailed just a couple years ago when she was diagnosed with focal dystonia. She was kind enough to give an interview so I could learn a little more about her and brave enough to share her journey so far as a successful working musician with focal dystonia.  

Dr. Ellen Ochoa is an engineer, former astronaut, retired Director of Johnson Space Center,  and classical flutist. She was the first Hispanic woman to go to space in 1993 and even brought her flute along. You can find video and photos of Ellen playing her Haynes flute aboard the near weightless environment of the shuttle Discovery. Through her missions and numerous discoveries, Ellen has continue...

Every flutist knows who Linda Mark is. And yet, there is not much information out there on this pianist's beginnings. When she moved to New York after college she did the grunt work of knocking on doors, making cold calls, and asking teachers if they needed a pianist for their studio. That’s exactly how she met Julius Baker and his mentoring, teaching, and inclusiveness of her would end up shaping...

Katie Althen, or @katieflute if you follow her on Instagram, is an up and coming young flutist with big dreams and big talent. Katie grew up in Pennsylvania and her unsuspecting parents, who enrolled her in different sports, dance, and music lessons, watched on as her passion for the flute and for sharing her gifts with others took over and led her study at some of the top conservatories in the na...

Greg Pattillo has always been an unconventional flute player. From his days at conservatory to his brief stint as Principal Flute, Greg was always looking for something more and for a way to really connect with his audience. Everything really seemed to fall into place for Greg when he moved to New York City, started performing in the subways, and founded his group, Project Trio, with Eric Stephens...

Whether Ransom Wilson is in front of an orchestra as a soloist or leading a group as a conductor, he is proud to be serving music and the vision of its composers. At the start of his career, Ransom knew he wanted to be a soloist just like his idol and teacher, Jean Pierre Rampal. He was immediately picked up by management, toured, and recorded albums. As Ransom began to feel disenchanted with the...

Jake and Gabe Fridkis are the Flute Bros—literally brothers that grew up loving music and following their dream to become professional flutists. And dreams do come true. With Jake’s position of Principal Flute of the Fort Worth Symphony and Gabe’s recent win of the Assistant Principal seat, they are the first all sibling principals section in a major symphony wind section.  

Poised, gracious, and sincere: these are just a few words that describe flutist Christina Jennings as both a person and a performer. It is no surprise that students flock to the University of Colorado Boulder to study with the Associate Professor of Flute. Christina is invested in a holistic approach to flute playing and in fostering community.  

There are a lot of things that make Flutronix special. Allison Loggins-Hull and Nathalie Joachim are a flute duo changing the perception of what the flute can do and how it can sound through new compositions, exploration of genres, and use of electronic music. Together, Flutronix has released four albums, has collaborations and broadcasts around the world, and recently kicked off their two year re...