It’s FNMC Composition Contest season! The first deadline is only about a month away. What better time to feature the lady behind it all?! Elizabeth Robinson is the Vice President and Competition Coordinator of the Flute New Music Consortium. Perhaps we should call her the Countess of the Composition Contest. Without her incredible dedication and skill, the composition contest would not be possible. Each year, she dedicates countless hours to the competition. Elizabeth expertly manages the entries; carefully cataloging them, booking judges, communicating with the composers, and meticulously maintaining the integrity of the process.
 
Like the rest of the board, Elizabeth contributes to FNMC by leading projects outside her specific duties. She coordinated the CMS Great Plains proposal in 2016 and crafted the proposal and will act as moderator for a panel discussion at NFA this summer entitled “Keeping Score: A Conversation about Commissioning New Works.” The panel will feature composers Asha Srinivasan and Nicole Chamberlain and flutist/commissioners Nicole Riner (FNMC Membership and Communications Chair) and Jan Vinci (FNMC Artistic Advisor). Elizabeth also spearheaded the FNMC t-shirt project.
 
Elizabeth performed and/or presented on behalf of FNMC at the CMS Great Plains Regional Conference, NACWPI Conference, and the NFA Convention in Chicago. Elizabeth was a commissioning member for Zhou Long’s Confluence and renewed as a Pann commissioning member.  She has performed several works honored in the FNMC Composition Contest including; French Quarter by Nicole Chamberlain, Cycling by Panayiotis Korkoras, Van Gogh Vignettes by Greg Steinke, and Dviraag by Asha Srinivasan
 
Although Elizabeth and I have worked together on the FNMC board since the inception of the organization and I consider her a friend, we’ve never met in person. Our friendship and working relationship developed through emails, google chats, and an occasional phone call. Her wit and sense of humor never fail to bring levity to our board meetings! It turns out forming friendships is a great benefit of FNMC.
 
Q&A with Elizabeth…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
I've always had a commitment to new music. The opportunity to help create something new is an exciting one. To witness the creation of a work from inception to performance is a very gratifying process. Collaboration between artists and composers is critical as we try to advance the repertoire.
 
Describe your musical background and current activities.
I currently serve as the Vice President and Competition Coordinator for the Flute New Music Consortium. I hold the Diana Osterhout piccolo chair in the Topeka Symphony and teach academic courses at Kansas State University.  
 
When did you join FNMC and what attracted you to the organization?
I was one of the founding members of FNMC. I loved the idea of promoting new, high quality works for the flute repertoire. I was excited about building a community of flutists with similar interests, and about helping connect that community with the composition community. Several years later, it's exciting to watch those ideas turn into reality - and I'm excited to see what our future holds!
 
Do you have any upcoming events that you would like our friends and followers to know about?
I just completed a performance of Daniel Dorff's Flash! with the Kansas State University Wind Symphony, and have begun a series of commissions for piccolo, beginning with a solo work by recent competition finalist Nicole Chamberlain. I'm hoping to make announcements about the second work soon!
 
What advice can you give to flutists about approaching new music in practice?
The biggest piece of advice would be that if it is new music, the composer is likely still alive - so contact them! Start a dialogue. Collaborate with them on their new piece, and don't be afraid to speak with them and get your questions answered. In your practice, make sure it's knowledgeable practice. Analyze the piece and create informed musical opinions about what you are playing.
 
More About Elizabeth…
 
Dr. Elizabeth Robinson holds the Diana Osterhout piccolo chair of the Topeka Symphony and serves as an instructor of flute at Missouri State Southern University. An active teacher and performer, she has appeared as a guest artist throughout the midwest, teaching masterclasses and workshops ranging from Extended Techniques for Dummies to Yoga for Flutists/Musicians. She is founding member of Tornado Alley Flutes, a professional flute ensemble based in the heart of tornado alley.
 
Winner of the 2012 National Flute Association Graduate Research Competition, her dissertation Voice, Itinerant, and Air: The Solo Flute Works of Toru Takemitsu, was presented at the 2012 NFA Convention. 
 
http://www.robinsonflute.com

One of the great things about working with FNMC is how it brings together flutists from all over the country who are at different stages in their careers. For example, Emily Nazario (today’s featured member who is a MM student in Wyoming) recently performed on an FNMC program at the Mid-South Flute Festival with Katherine Emeneth and Carmen Lemoine (both professional flutists who teach flute at the college level in GA and KS respectively) and Brittany Trotter, who is a DMA student in WV. We love that these performances give flutists who might not otherwise have the opportunity to collaborate a chance to get to know one another!
 



​Q&A with Emily…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
My favorite part about performing new music is being able to interact with living composers. It is interesting what the composer has to say. With today’s technology, I can easily ask the composer about specific details of their piece(s).
 
Describe your musical background and current activities.
Currently, I am a master’s student at the University of Wyoming where I play in the symphony orchestra and wind ensemble. I teach private flute lessons in Laramie, Wyoming and remotely through Skype. My flute teacher is Nicole Riner, who introduced me to the FNMC.
 
Do you have any upcoming events that you would like our friends and followers to know about?
On Sunday May 7, 2017 at 1:00pm, I will be giving a solo recital at the University of Wyoming (which I will be live streaming on Facebook.) I will be playing quite a few new music pieces including: Honami by Wil Offermans, Flash! for piccolo and piano by Daniel Dorff, and Croatian Trio for flute, trumpet, and piano by James Stephenson.
 
 
More About Emily…
 
Emily has played with many ensembles including the Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra and Ithaca College Wind Ensemble. She performed as principal piccolo with the Ithaca College Wind Ensemble at Alice Tully Hall in 2015. Emily also attended Marrowstone Music Festival in Bellingham, Washington the summer of 2013, where she played under the baton of Gerard Schwarz and Dale Clevenger of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Emily is currently a member of the University of Wyoming Symphony Orchestra and Wind Symphony.
 
Masterclasses Emily has attended include the Anatomy of Sound Workshop (2014- Ann Arbor, MI), Domaine Forget International Music and Dance Academy (2013- St. Irene, Quebec), and The Annual Julius Baker Flute Masterclass (2012- Danbury, CT). She has played in masterclasses with Amy Porter, Jeanne Baxtresser, Mark Sparks, Susan Hoepnner, Bradley Garner, and Trudy Kane.
 
Born and raised in Olney, Maryland, Emily began playing the flute at age 10, where she participated in state solo and ensemble festivals, and honor bands. She graduated with a Bachelor’s of Music Performance in 2015 from Ithaca College, where she studied with Dr. Wendy Mehne and Mary Kay Robinson. Additionally, Emily spent a semester abroad in Amsterdam where she studied at Conservatorium van Amsterdam. She is currently pursuing a Master’s of Music Performance at the University of Wyoming under the tutelage of Dr. Nicole Riner.
 
In her free time Emily enjoys hiking in the Snowy Range close to Laramie, cooking healthy meals, and traveling to new places. 

The last year has been an exciting time with a lot of transitions and new opportunities for Carmen Lemoine! She was appointed Assistant Professor of Flute at Wichita State University, invited to teach chamber music at the Saarburg International Music Festival, and joined FNMC. Obviously, the last one isn’t nearly as momentous a life event, but we’re so happy to have her as a part of our organization! She recently gave a beautiful performance of Shawn Okpebholo’s On a Poem by Miho Nonaka: Harvard Square (the winning work in the solo flute category of the 2016 FNMC Composition Compeition) at the Mid-South Flute Festival and we look forward to her participation in future FNMC projects.
 
Q&A with Carmen…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
New music always presents not only technical challenges but also the freedom to interpret a piece of music that likely not many have heard before. Perhaps there aren’t even recordings to listen to- so a player must trust and rely on great artistry to bring this piece to life. Risk-taking is encouraged!
 
Describe your musical background and current activities.
I have a fairly standard journey of flute education: three degrees in flute performance. What I believe is not standard is my "portfolio"career: I have won auditions and performed with orchestras; I have freelanced in a metropolitan area and learned a ton of skills not taught in school; I have taught small children all the way up to conservatory-level; I've built website and even started my own podcast! I've almost done it all! I am currently Assistant Professor of Flute at Wichita State University and love every minute of it. If you are looking for a great reason to be in Germany this summer, I'll be teaching chamber music at the Saarburg International Music Festival and would love to see you there!
 
Do you have any upcoming events that you would like our friends and followers to know about?
Upcoming events include the Saarburg Festival (see above)- www.saarburgfestival.de- this summer; Mid-South Flute Convention where I'll be performing Shawn Okpebholo's beautiful and intriguing "On a Poem by Miho Nonaka"; a presentation at the Oklahoma Flute Society's annual flute festival about how to create resonance in your sound; a performance of Jonathan Newman's Concerto for
Flute with the Wichita State University Wind Ensemble; performances with the Louisville Orchestra and Lieurance Quintet; and, a performance of Lasse Thoresen's "Interplay" at the NFA Annual Convention in Minneapolis this August.
 
What advice can you give to flutists about approaching new music in practice?
My advice to flutists re: new music: start early and start slowly.
 
More About Carmen…
 
Carmen Lemoine wants to live in a world where education is free to all, pantyhose don’t exist, people aren’t afraid to be honest, Unti winery is her next-door neighbor, a train will shuttle her across town in 15 minutes, and all you need is love.
 
Until that day arrives, however, she has dedicated herself to mastering the art of the flute. Dr. Lemoine is Assistant Professor of Flute at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas. She holds positions with the Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz symphonies in California, performs frequently with the Louisville Orchestra, and recently appeared as guest principal flute with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in New Zealand. Equally at home in small ensembles of contrasting styles, she has been a member of Ensemble Mik Nawooj, a hip-hop/classical fusion group recently featured in the Wall Street Journal, and is currently a member of the Lieurance Woodwind Quintet.
 
Previous to her appointment in Wichita, Carmen introduced eager minds to the wonderful worlds of woodwind chamber music, musicianship, and music theory at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
 
In July 2016, she launched her latest project — the podcast Notes from the Audiophiles: Why Don’t I Like Classical Music?. Co-hosted with her brilliant friend Pinky, each episode delivers digestible morsels of music history in an accessible, conversational style.
 
Dr. Lemoine earned degrees in flute performance from the Eastman School of Music (B.M. and D.M.A.), where she studied with celebrated artist and teacher Bonita Boyd, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (M. M.), studying with San Francisco Symphony principal flute Timothy Day. Learn more at carmenlemoine.com.