College Age Musical Experiences
I attended Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. I took private lessons with Jeanne Timm who had studied with Joseph Mariano at Eastman and learned a lot from her.
L. Bruce Jones, the former LSU band director, taught the conducting classes to undergrads and had a big influence on my conducting. I was a member of the LSU marching band. In my freshman year we won Chevrolet’s competition for the All-America College TV Band and was invited to play in the East West Shrine Bowl game in San Francisco. LSU was also invited to play in the Orange Bowl in Miami that year so we marched in the Orange Bowl parade, did a half time show for the Orange Bowl and then flew to San Franscico for the East West Shrine Bowl. I wasn’t expecting it to be so cold in San Francisco and the field was so muddy that people lost their shoes!
Adult / Post College Musical Life
Giving Private lessons.
I gave a few private lessons while in college but starting regularly giving private lessons after I got married and resigned from my Food Stamp position. I still continue to give private lessons at my home to adults and students of all ages.
Taking private lessons.
After I moving to Virginia and before I got married, I studied with Thomas Perazzoli who was the assistant principal flutist with the National Symphony. I also played in the McLean Symphony for a few years. After my children we grown, I spent several summers attending Tadeu Coelho’s masterclasses and I still continue to attend summer masterclasses at Wildacres Flute Retreat with Gӧran Marcusson. Tadeu’s classes have been so helpful in teaching me how to teach and how to practice. I currently study with Toshiko Kohno, retired principal flutist with the National Symphony. Her insights into the orchestral repertoire have been so helpful in learning those challenging pieces after I became principal flutist with the Piedmont Symphony. She has overall elevated my playing greatly. I am so grateful to have had such good teachers.
Introduction to Flute Choirs.
Mr. Addison Lightfoot, the band director at Fauquier High school, asked me to lead the after-school flute sectionals. At the first rehearsal, he gave me Anne McGinty’s flute choir arrangement of the Bach Toccata. I told him we would at least need an alto flute to play the music and he was able to get an alto flute for us, and a few years later a bass flute. Although I knew a little about alto flutes, I had never played one. I ended up conducting flute choirs there for about 25 years and ended up also leading flute choirs at the other two high schools in the county. Mr. Lightfoot was a terrific mentor to me. When I was asked to start a band program at Fresta Valley Christian School, he encouraged me to do so and I did that for about 2 years. I also started an adult flute choir in Warrenton, Virginia but had to resign after I took the church job.
Church Music.
I conducted children and youth vocal choirs at my church for many years and later was asked to be the music director at my church. I served in that position for 8 ½ years, overseeing a staff of 5 musicians and directing the youth and adult vocal choirs and youth handbell choirs. I took my youth vocal choir on 5 choir tours to such places as North Carolina, Chicago, New York and New Orleans. Currently I conduct the adult handbell choir at Greenwich Presbyterian Church and have been doing that since 2008.
Piedmont Symphony Orchestra.
After resigning from my church job, I joined the Piedmont Symphony Orchestra located in Warrenton, VA. It soon became a semi-professional orchestra with paid principals and I became the principal flutist around 2008. Highlights of playing with the orchestra has been playing the alto flute solo in California Dreamin’ with the PSO rock band, and performing John Rutter’s Suite Antique and Mozart’s Flute and Harp Concerto as a soloist with the orchestra.
