Piano Lessons in Richmond, CA

Instruments: Flute

When did you decide to become a professional musician? Was it a gradual decision or was there a defining moment for you?
I decided to become a professional musician during my sophomore year of high school, when my private teacher helped me first realize that I wanted to pursue music as a career. Once I had made that decision, I have never looked back and I have put my all into pursuing music ever since. My parents have always taught me to give 110% to everything I want to accomplish in my life, and I have done that and more with music. The work that I put into my musical career never feels like a chore because I enjoy it so much, and I cannot wait to see what my future holds.

Does music run in your family? Tell us a little about your musical family members.
My grandmother used to play the baritone horn, the harp the piano, and sing when she was younger. When I was a child, I have wonderful memories of going over to her house and playing on her grand piano for hours on end. She would sit next to me and help teach me how to play it. I also remember going to church and listening to her sing in the choir, and I always felt so inspired. When I go to visit her now, I still will sit down at her piano and play just like I used to. She is really the only musically inclined family member I have, but she has always been such a big inspiration for me.

What is your favorite style/genre of music to play and why?
My favorite genre of music to play is world music, specifically music that explores the influences of outside cultures. I fell in love with world music very early on in my musical career, and I am also very interested in ethnomusicology. I find such beauty in the musical style of cultures outside of America, and each time I have the opportunity to learn a new piece inspired by a new culture I get very excited and research everything there is to know about this style of traditional music, the traditional instruments used, and I listen to many recordings of people playing this style of music on both traditional and modern instruments so that I can best represent the culture in my performance of the piece.

If you play more than one instrument, how did you decide to start playing the second? (Or 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc)!
I also play the guitar, which I began when I was in the sixth grade. I started to play the guitar after I began flute playing, because I have always been a huge fan of 80s metal music and when I was 11 years old I envisioned myself playing lead guitar in a rock band. I begged my parents for a guitar and guitar lessons, and I ended up joining a rock band of my own through the Detroit School of Rock and Pop Music in high school. I also played in my middle and high school jazz bands on guitar, and although I don't play it much anymore, I still really enjoy picking it up every once in awhile to strum some chords and sing a cover of a song I love.

If you weren't a musician what do you think you'd be doing instead?
I would absolutely be pursuing a career in the arts, most likely as a creative writer or a journalist. The arts have given me such joy throughout my life, and it has been such an amazing outlet for me to express myself freely and develop my own voice in the world. I love writing, and I love sharing my thoughts and ideas with others. I currently write a monthly column in the Southeast Michigan Flute Association monthly newsletter, and I also write and submit music-related articles to additional flute and music publications in my free time for fun.

What is your dream piece to perform and why?
My dream piece to perform is the Concerto for Flute and Orchestra by Joan Tower with an orchestra. I first heard this piece played with an orchestra by one of our doctoral students when I was in my undergraduate, and it was the most electrifying and exciting piece I had ever heard in my entire life. I absolutely loved listening to every second of it, and I immediately bought the score after the performance. I have not had the opportunity to perform this piece yet, but I have begun to learn it and I am very excited to program it on a recital in the near future.

If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
I have a Bachelor's Degree in Music Performance from Bowling Green State University with a minor in Entrepreneurship. I chose Music Performance because I fell in love with performing and I really wanted to devote myself to learning how to play the flute really well so that I could perform and share my love for music with audiences. I chose to pursue a minor in entrepreneurship to gain the business and networking skills I need to freelance as a performer and as a teacher, and my minor in entrepreneurship helped me to develop my website "Playing Without Pain" that I run as a form of non-profit and use as a source to connect collegiate musicians with resources to treat and prevent performance-based injuries.

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