We’re so happy to have the opportunity to feature one of our earliest members today and we’re so happy that she’s continued her involvement with and support of FNMC’s mission to create and support new music for the flute! Ellen is one of the earliest non-board members of FNMC, she joined as a commissioning member for both works (Zhou Long and Carter Pann.) Ellen has performed French Quarter by Nicole Chamberlain and Intensity by Carleton Macy with the Tornado Alley Flutes and will participate in their performance of French Quarter at the CMS National Conference in San Antonio this weekend (October 28, 2017). Ellen has also served as a preliminary round judge for the FNMC Composition Contest.
 
Q&A with Ellen…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
Supporting composers through FNMC is a fantastic opportunity to build our repertoire. As a flutist who has dabbled in composing myself, I believe it's critical to do something new and unique in order or us to fully develop creatively as performing artists. Dancers choreograph. I've always been baffled as to why classical musicians aren't required to compose, but it's been like that for a very long time. Performing new music on the flute is essential for our art form to develop and live in the present world, and I think new flute music is embracing and honoring the audience's experience more and more.
 
Who is/are your favorite “new music” composer/s and why?
I'm fascinated by the possibilities that working with electronic media brings to our instrument and to our repertoire. I still have a lot to learn about in this arena. But, performing Road to Hana by Rob Deemer and hearing works for flute by Ian Dicke have inspired me to develop this side of my performance. I'm hoping to put together a recital devoted to exploring works with electronic and/or prerecorded sounds in the next 12 months.
 
When did you join FNMC and what attracted you to the organization?
I joined the FNMC as a commissioning member because we seek out some of the best and brightest living composers to engage in writing new works for flute. By pooling our resources, we can partner with composers with great name recognition and expand the repertoire more quickly across the globe.
 
More About Ellen…
Dr. Ellen Johnson Mosley is the Visiting Assistant Professor of Music/Flute at Morehead State University and Principal Flutist in the Cave Run Symphony. She performs across the country with the Baird Winds, Traverso Colore Baroque Ensemble, and the Tornado Alley Flutes. Dr. Mosley served as Principal Flutist of the Delano Chamber Orchestra for five seasons and has performed as a concerto soloist with the Delano Chamber Orchestra and the Concordia University Symphony. She is an active adjudicator and presenter at National Flute Association (NFA) conventions, member of the NFA Development Committee, commissioning member of the Flute New Music Consortium, and recipient of the Gunstream community engagement grant from the College Music Society. Schools that have welcomed her as a Guest Artist/Clinician include Emporia State University, Stephen F. Austin State University, Kansas State University, and the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Mosley has served as President of the Austin Flute Society, Chair of the Career and Artistic Development Committee for the National Flute Association, and Coordinator of Education and Manager of the Youth Orchestras Program for the Wichita Symphony. Dr. Mosley holds flute performance degrees from Florida State University (D.M.), the University of Texas at Austin (M.M.) and Wichita State University (B.M.). Her teachers include Eva Amsler, Marianne Gedigian, and Frances Shelly.
​www.ellenjohnsonmosley.com

Today, we’re pleased to feature Karen McLaughlin Large. Karen joined as a commissioning member during our first year (for the Zhou commission) and renewed as a commissioning member for the Pann commission. We’re so happy that she has contributed to the creation of two wonderful additions to the repertoire. Those of us who are commissioning members have received the Pann score and we feel confident that you’ll love it when you have the opportunity to hear it during the simultaneous premiere weekend (March 2-4) or soon after! Hopefully, as Karen mentions below, someday we’ll be a part of the group of flutists who supported the creation and dissemination of an addition to the standard repertoire for flute!
 
Karen has performed several FNMC Composition Contest works including multiple performances of French Quarter for flute quartet with Tornado Alley Flutes and Isolated Dance on a Bench for solo flute by Tai-Kuang Chao (at the 2015 Florida Flute Association Convention.). Karen has also served as a preliminary round judge for the FNMC Composition Contest. We were also grateful that she shared her performing talents and made a recording of Zhou Long’s Confluence for our YouTube Channel.
 
Q&A with Karen…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
I like being one of the first musicians to engage in musical conversation with the composer through a particular piece. Additionally, with each new composition, the repertoire for the instrument grows. I think of the people who couldn’t wait to perform Mozart’s newest work, or Telemann’s newest work, and think that I am perpetuating that age-old tradition! Regarding flute new music specifically, I am especially drawn to the variety of colors and effects the flute can create. I love performing extended techniques, especially for unsuspecting audiences!
 
Who is/are your favorite “new music” composer/s and why?
I really love playing Ian Clarke’s music. His balance of tonality and atonality, extended techniques and conventional playing, and free and strict rhythm is really great. I can always program one of Clarke’s pieces and know that audiences will both love it and hear something they’ve never heard before too! Zoom Tube is my go-to piece!
 
When did you join FNMC and what attracted you to the organization?
I joined FNMC as a commissioning member for Zhou Long’s Confluence. As a member of FNMC, I’m able to help expand the flute repertoire. I even have the opportunity to help decide which types of pieces and composers are commissioned! What a fantastic organization!
 
Do you have any upcoming events that you would like our friends and followers to know about?
I am presenting and performing at the CMS National Conference in San Antonio on October 26 and 28. My lightening talk is titled “Assessing College Music Skills on YouTube” and I am performing Nicole Chamberlain’s quartet French Quarter with Tornado Alley Flutes.
 
More About Karen…
Karen McLaughlin Large joined the Kansas State University music faculty in 2011 and teaches flute, music theory, flute techniques, film music, and directs the KSU flute ensemble. Dr. Large earned her Doctor of Music, Master of Music, Bachelor of Music, and Bachelor of Science degrees as well as graduate certificates in Music Theory Pedagogy and College Teaching from the Florida State University. She studied with Eva Amsler, Stephanie Jutt, and Joshua Carter (under Charles Delaney).
Dr. Large is a founding member of Traverso Colore: Baroque Ensemble and Tornado Alley Flutes. She is second flutist with the Topeka Symphony and is a member of the K-State faculty wind quintet - Konza Winds.  Dr. Large is also a member of the Florida Flute Orchestra, performing on the Sub Contrabass flute in G—one of only a few such instruments in the world. 
 
Dr. Large is the creator of the Virtual Flute Choir. Some of her other research interests include affective (emotional) responses to music, the relationship of music theory and performance, baroque flute performance practice, and romantic transcriptions for flute.
 

Alyssa (Borell) Andriotis is one of many members who joined FNMC as students at Florida State University. A strong advocate for new music, particularly of music for flute and electronics and new chamber music, Alyssa continued her membership and increased her involvement in FNMC as she completed her degree, moved to Oklahoma where she is building a busy teaching and performing career, and got married (to a composer, no less!).
 
We think many of our members will be excited about Alyssa’s current project (discussed below). She is developing a pedagogical approach to music for flute and electronics with a graded list of pieces! This sounds incredibly helpful for those who want to introduce their students to the world of flute and electronics (or who may be a bit apprehensive themselves.) The FNMC Composition Contest has introduced us to so many wonderful works for flute and electronics which we believe are highly deserving of wide performance. Hopefully, projects like Alyssa’s will help flutists feel more comfortable exploring those and other incredible pieces that incorporate electronics!
 
Alyssa has performed several FNMC Composition Contest Works including: French Quarter for flute quartet by Nicole Chamberlain, Lacquer and Grit for flute and piano by Viet Cuong, and Intensity for four C flutes with amplification by Carleton Macy. Alyssa has twice served as a preliminary round judge for the FNMC Composition Contest (Chamber Music in 2016 and Solo Flute in 2017) and performed on FNMC organized recitals at the College Music Society National Convention (San Antonio) and the Florida Flute Association Convention (twice).
 
 
Q&A with Alyssa…
 
What about new music for the flute appeals to you?
I like listening to the creativity of each individual composer and how they use the flute. I'm always surprised by the different kinds of sounds that composers are able to create on the flute--the flute's sonic abilities are always being expanded!
 
What are your favorite "new music" pieces and why?
I love any pieces for flute and electronics! Especially with live electronics, there is such an interesting interaction that happens between performer and computer that is a very unique experience and one that I hope more flutists get to discover. I'm actually currently working on a project to create a pedagogical approach to teach these types of pieces along with a helpful graded list of
pieces.
 
When did you join FNMC and what attracted you to the organization?
I joined FNMC in 2014. As flutist, we are lucky that we have a huge repertoire, but sometimes it is difficult to find quality new pieces to perform. FNMC has introduced me to some really great composers and pieces that I would never have come across if not for this group.
 
Do you have any upcoming events that you would like our friends and followers to know about?
I'm really excited to be joining the Tornado Alley Flutes for our performance at the College Music Society National Conference in San Antonio this weekend. We are performing Nicole Chamberlain's piece, "French Quarter," which is so fun! I'm also looking forward to performing with my trio (flute, cello, and marimba) on Oklahoma City Community College's campus on November 13th. We are performing a variety of new(er) works for this ensemble as well as some duets of some really exciting pieces.
 
More About Alyssa…
Alyssa Andriotis is an Oklahoma based flutist and teacher.  She is an instructor at Oklahoma City Community College and is the Flute Fair Coordinator for the Oklahoma Flute Society.  Ms. Andriotis has presented lectures, workshops, and masterclasses around the country.  Committed to promoting new music, Ms. Andriotis is a performing member of the Flute New Music Consortium.  Her areas of interest include works for flute and electronics as well as new chamber music.
 
Ms. Andriotis has appeared as soloist with the Ball State Symphony Orchestra and the University of Oklahoma Civic Orchestra.  She has performed at the National Flute Association Convention, College Music Society National Conference, Florida Flute Association Convention, and the College Music Society Great Plains Conference.  Ms. Andriotis was a Semi-Finalist for the New World Symphony for the 2013-2014 season.  She was winner of the 2012 Undergraduate Concerto Competition at Ball State University and the 2009 Wisconsin High School Soloist Competition.
 
Ms. Andriotis holds a Master of Music from Florida State University and a Bachelor of Music from Ball State University.  Her previous teachers include Eva Amsler, Valerie Watts, and Mihoko Watanabe.  andriotisflute.com