September equinox

Happy equinox everyone! You might be asking yourself, what exactly is an equinox? It means both Northern and Southern hemispheres will receive equal amounts of day and nighttime and the Sun is at zenith over the Equator. This kind of balance pleases me.

A bunch of awesome things are happening currently! Life is so cool!

For the next month I’ll be playing 7 shows a week for Zach Scott Theatre as they officially open The King & I this Wednesday! The last couple weeks have been full of rehearsals and preview shows, and I’m super excited for the upcoming champagne opening as I get to drink free champagne after the show! Woo! The set design is incredible, the costumes are out of control glam & glittery, and I’m very pleased to join fearless musical director Allen Robertson in the pit again for this big production.

Austin psych-rock band Sungod played their final live shows this past July and I was super jazzed to join them onstage for some spacey jams. You can check out photos from our show at the North Door at Brooklyn Vegan. The self-titled LP is slated for release in November and you can listen to a track off the new album here–really happy with “fully engrossing flute melodies.” Yay flute jams! These guys work tirelessly recording and I’m super happy with how this record turned out.

Last month I organized a week-long flute camp for incoming beginner students and we had so much fun! Our week together included a lot of basics, some fun activities, introductions to rhythm and note reading, and the kids were left inspired for the new school year and motivated to practice! These kids make me absolutely LOVE what I do. In a world where gratification is instant and everyone is staring endlessly into blank computer and phone screens, getting to truly connect with students and make them excited about music is pure joy. Music is so cool you guys!

 

Exotic Forest

As summer sets in and upcoming gigs still seem very far off, I’ve decided to take up saxophone lessons. I recently acquired an instrument and have been messing around at home, it still sounds pretty terrible but it’s exciting learning something new!

My friends in the Austin psych rock band Sungod have been experimenting with delay and tape loops, and recently released a new album of sprawling drone, synth driven space rock, and cosmic beats, all tightly knit around this cool little Sun Ra cover that I played on, Exotic Forest. The other songs are wildly eclectic and evolve unexpectedly, starting with a rambling blues inspired jam, moving through drone, pulsing techno beats, minimalism and tape loops. I had a lot of fun recording with these guys and am way excited for some upcoming shows with them later this summer! Be on the lookout for upcoming dates. Check out our take on Sun Ra: http://ssssssungoddddd.bandcamp.com/track/exotic-forest

I teach for a fantastic non-profit, Anthropos Arts, that funds lessons for at-risk and low-income students across the Austin, Texas area. Through this program students receive private lessons free of charge, and play concerts at venues across Austin alongside other students and with professional performing musicians. My students totally rocked out at Stubb’s and I couldn’t be prouder! Check out pics from our concert below:

Hello Friends!

As I (finally) finish up my Master’s degree at the University of Texas at Austin, I’ve been encouraged (or perhaps more accurately, assigned) to update and improve my website. My new updated site includes upcoming events, pictures from past events, and this brand new blog! What year is it? How late am I on the blogging trend?

Tonight I’m gearing up for a performance this weekend with UT’s Gamelan Ensemble, where you can witness me and many others playing various metallophones and gongs and such. Gamelan groups have always fascinated me, and getting to participate in this ensemble this semester has been super fun. Flutists should get to play percussion instruments more often!

I had the absolute pleasure of witnessing the Mozart Requiem Undead earlier this week, put on by the Golden Hornet Project, the Texas Choral Consort, and the Fusebox Festival. The audience sat outside on the lawn at the historic French Legation Museum as we listened to a fresh re-interpretation of Mozart’s funeral mass, which was never completed due to his untimely death. Each movement featured a different composer’s rendition and there was a wide range of performers including full choir, orchestra, mega percussion, guitars, bass guitar, drum-set, synthesizer, electronics, and organ. I remarked to a friend that I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen that many people at a classical music concert in Austin. DJ Spooky’s movement began with bass pounding through the speakers and I must admit, it got my booty shaking and I had to strongly resist the urge to stand up and dance.

Mozart Undead Requiem

This to me is a sign that the face of classical music is truly changing and striving for more inclusion–forget the rules! Those old rules of classical concert halls, where audiences are silenced and heavens forbid there is clapping between movements, is a tired and stodgy formality that no longer serves the public at large. The audience loved the music and I spoke with several colleagues afterward who all expressed enthusiasm at being a part of such an inventive program. Classical music is alive, people.

It is these events in life that make music so powerful and moving.