For Shannon

This post will be short.

This week, I learned that a friend from high school, band, and flute choir had passed away. Her name is Shannon Bahk, and we played together for many years.

Today is her funeral.

Shannon had cancer, and she had been undergoing various treatments for a few years. Earlier this summer I learned that she had decided to halt the treatments. She told me this herself, as our other friend Marilyn was pushing her wheelchair into a room at the flute convention, for a concert. I had to turn away and cry a little, and Marilyn did an excellent job of pulling me back. I don't think Shannon noticed. She has been so strong, so brave: I didn't want her to see me without a smile. I tried.

Shannon worked so hard at everything: she pushed herself academically, she worked with young people, and she cared about people. She always wanted to know how I was, and truly listened to the answers. I'd heard her play the flute for so many years, but I really heard her playing match her spirit at one flute concert a few years ago: she had achieved a pure tone that was as beautiful as it could be. I was proud of her, and happy to hear it.

Some of us from the flute choir will be playing for her later this afternoon, and though we didn't have much time to put it together, the six of us will do our best to play as beautifully for her as she deserves. Right now I'm trying to focus on getting everything ready, covering all the bases, making sure I have everything, including a working flute (I had to make an emergency stop at the music store this morning to address a couple of funky keys. Brendan at Morey's Music Store came through and was able to rush the repairs, and my flute is perfect now). I'm going to stop writing now so I can go warm up for a little while. I'm trying to concentrate on these things because I have a job to do. I have sometimes (not often), with my playing, felt the beauty of the moment, and sometimes, other people have too. I'm hoping today is one of those times. For Shannon.

Some photos, and Thanksgiving greetings

Hello, everyone! I wanted to thank those of you who attended our concert last Thursday. It was a little early this year for our holiday concert but so nice to see you all in our audience.

I put the call out for our friends and family in attendance to share their photos with me, and so far I have received just two "fan photos." I'll post them below. We'd love if it anyone else at the concert would share their photos with us.

I'm not sure when our next season will begin yet, but as soon as I receive word from the Culver City Adult School, I'll let you know.

If you have any questions about our group, please email CCFC.Info@gmail.com.

Wishing you all the very best at Thanksgiving, and in the coming holiday season,
Irene

Louise, Sara, and Danny

Top Row: Sara, Louise
Bottom Row: Chuck, Roberta

Holiday concert soon!

Please join us at our next concert!

When: Thursday, November 17, 2016 at 8:00 p.m.
Where: Culver City Middle School, Room 1
4601 Elenda Street
Culver City, CA 90230

Of course, you are invited to join us after the concert for treats and visiting with the flutists.

If you have any questions, please contact CCFC.Info@gmail.com.

We look forward to seeing you!

Register for our next session now!

Have you heard? Our class is starting tomorrow, September 15, 2016, and the Culver City Adult School is ready to process your registration!

The details are as follows:

First Session (5 weeks)
September 15 - October 13

Second Session (5 weeks)
October 20 - November 17

You can register by contacting the Adult School as follows:

In person: 4909 Overland Ave., Culver City CA 90230
By phone: (310) 842-4300
By email: ccas@ccusd.org
On the internet: http://ccas.ccusd.org/

Any questions? Email ccfc.info (at) gmail.com.

Free Concert at LACMA Friday, September 2, 2016

If you'd like to see Hubert Laws at LACMA for free tomorrow night, click here for all the details!

http://www.lacma.org/event/hubert-laws

Gala Concert: Night 1

In my rush to post something yesterday, I neglected to mention that there would be an evening concert, which I, of course, was planning on going to.

Every night of the convention has it's capper, and each night is different. It's been awhile since I've been to a convention - I think the last one I attended was in Albuquerque, New Mexico - but I assumed the gala concert tradition would stand. 

Last night's theme was "Jazz Extravaganza," and the show started with Jim Walker. Jim Walker was (of course you know this) the principle flutist for the LA Philharmonic, but he's also had many outstanding achievements in jazz. In high school, my band teacher Mr. Nazzaretta made a tape for me of various flute music and things I needed to hear, and "Free Flight" was definitely on it.

His performance last night was Latin Jazz, and he played with his new musical partner (I don't know much about this), Jose Valentino.

(As a side note, I hope Jose Valentino turns out to be a relative. I really, really hope so.)

They also performed with a percussionist (and fine flutist himself) Giovanni Perez. 

The thing I wasn't prepared for was the recorded backing track they used, and the honest truth for me, and in my own opinion, is that I was disappointed. The flute playing was superb. The three of them were great performers. But combine the amplification of the flutes with the funky Latin disco beats, and I wasn't thrilled.

After intermission, though, things got much better, because Nestor Torres and his amazing band hit the stage.

Yep: band.

He brought a bass player, keyboard player, drummer and percussionist with him, and they were great.You know me and drummers: Anderson Quintero was fun to watch and listen to. I'm not familiar enough with his music to tell you what pieces he played EXCEPT they did a beautiful, bittersweet version of "Over the Rainbow," which I loved. There is more than one version of him playing this out there, so I won't provide a link (because it's late, and I'm tired, and you can probably find it quicker than I can, including inserting the link), but I recommend you check him out. It was great.

After the concert, my friend Julie, who had worked until 6 or 7, arrived so I went down to check her in and give her a key, make a long phone call, and then she and I talked for a while, and then I went to bed, excited about the next day, and ready for more.

Hello from the Flute Convention - Day 1

Hello from the convention!

I left Long Beach this morning, after picking up a delicious breakfast burrito and iced coffee at Lazy Acres, around 8:30. Traffic was surprisingly light, heading south, and though I regretted not following through on my original plan of taking Amtrak, it was an easy drive.

We just got home from a trip to the Santa Cruz area last week, and I did most of the driving, and not being in the car for six hours is a good thing. Long Beach to San Diego is simple.

I stopped once, at the Vista Point (I think there's only one), to look at the ocean, take a selfie, to discover there are no trash cans, and a sign asking us to not feed the birds and squirrels (everyone was). It was a short stop.

Once I arrived in San Diego, I checked in to the hotel. My friend Julie made the reservation months ago, and graciously allowed me to be her roommate for this convention. I say "graciously" because she doesn't arrive until late tonight, so here I am, hanging out in "our" room, all by myself. It feels a bit luxurious. This trip will comprise the longest time I've been away from Jules since he was born. We've been apart for a night at a time, but that's all. And... today is Patrick's birthday. I'm feeling quite lucky today.

After I checked in, I moved the car, and came up to our room. I've been to another convention here in San Diego, which was at this same hotel. That time, my room was in one of the little bungalow type rooms they have. This time we're in the "tower." It's an old hotel, it gets just a 2 star rating on Yelp, but it's fine. Normally for conventions you're not in your room much anyway.

I dropped off my bags and went downstairs to check in for the convention, and the first thing I did was head to Carolyn Nussbaum's shop in the exhibit hall. I've decided I'd like to buy a new flute this year, but in order to do that, I have to, at a minimum, sell my Goosman headjoint. They're helping me to do that. We'll see if I get a good price for it. After that, I'll look at flutes. I guess I could be doing that now but after playing a few in the exhibit hall, I started feeling a bit overwhelmed. It's noisy in there and I haven't exactly ironed out in my mind what I want.

I also took my student model flute to Yamaha to have them check it out. A technician looked at it and thinks it's in good shape, and is a nice flute (for a student). He was amazed at the old style of case it has. I discussed purchasing a new case for it (I want one that says "Yamaha" on it, otherwise I would've bought one at Carolyn Nussbaum), but it would need to be ordered, and I can do that at home.

I ran into some friends (Ronna! Kathleen! Patty! Patrick! Javier! David!), and then I went to my first concert.

So first things first: I will try my best to link to the pieces and performers I actually see at the convention, but if it's not possible or if it just takes too long to track down, I will post performances by other people, just so you know what the music sounded like. If anybody reads this and sees that I made a mistake or neglected to credit the right people, please make a note in the comments section. Thanks!

The concert was called "Flute Quartets and Trios" and there were some standout performances.

The first ensemble was called "Quarternity Flute Quartet." I arrived a little early for the concert, and so got to hear them warming up. The piccoloist got my attention right away. Her name is Cynthia Rugolo, and according to her bio in the convention book, she is a former player in the "President's Own" United States Marine Band. Her piccolo playing was superb. She writes about playing for President Obama's inauguration, here. It's really interesting. I really enjoyed a piece they played called "Celtic Spirit," by Bill Douglas. Here's a totally different group performing the first movement.

A highlight from the concert was a group called "Emissary Quartet." They performed a piece called "Levada," by a composer named Heike Beckmann, which they arranged. Here's another totally different group performing this amazing piece.

There were other great moments in the concert, but I have a feeling if I write everything down here, I'll be spending more time typing than doing anything else.

After the Quartets and Trios concert, I headed to my second concert of the day: "Music for Flute and Percussion." I really had no idea what to expect. There weren't many people in the audience, and boy, what a shame. All the performances were wonderful. I really liked hearing the flute + marimba duos. What an interesting, perfect combination.

The performers started out great (Iktus Duo, please check them out, and definitely listen to "First Concerto" by Lou Harrison; link on their site), and somehow kept getting better.

Another group I really liked was "Dauphine Street Duo." This was my first time hearing flute and marimba, and I think I fell in love. They played a beautiful piece called "Kembang Suling." This is not them, but this is the piece.

So, then Caballito Negro took the stage. They had everyone's attention because this tiny woman (her name is Tessa Brinckman) was playing an enormous contrabass flute. The first piece they played was called "This is Like Jazz," by Ivan Trevino. It was fun, and had some spoken word and a lot of great rhythm and marimba playing. I thought they played it with a lot of humor and interest. This is actually a recording of them playing the piece.

But what killed me was their next piece: That Which Colors the Soul. I have to take a second and mention the name of her partner: Terry Longshore. He played marimba, tabla, something called "handsonic" and singing bowls, and he did the spoken word portion. He was great, and I really loved his playing. Anyway, I think they wrote this piece, and I can't find a recording or video but it was really beautiful. They both played the bottles, and then Tessa played flute while Terry continued with a variety of instruments, and it was very enchanting.

After the concerts, I headed up to our room to write all this down, take a bit of a breather from all the hubbub, and hopefully connect with some friends for dinner. I'm starving. That burrito was hours and hours ago.

Meet the flute choir: Sara

I've asked flute choir members to answer a few questions about themselves, so that our readers could get to know us a little better. Please allow me to introduce: Sara!

When and why did you start playing the flute?
In 2003 I was working as an elementary school principal and I read an article in the L A Times about a principal who started playing the cello with the school beginners. It seemed like a neat idea, so I checked with our school music teacher, rented a flute and got started. Sometimes (!) it was busy in the office and I would forget, so I asked the other flutists to pick me up. So these little fourth grade girls would come into the office and say to my secretary, "We're here to pick up Mrs. Fields for flute!" Everybody got a kick out of it.

When did you join the flute choir? Why?
I really enjoy ensemble playing and am friends with a couple of members. I had been to several flute choir concerts, but as an adult beginner I wasn't sure I could handle it. About a year ago I asked Patty and she suggested I give it a try.

Have you played in any other flute choirs or ensembles? 
No. 

Where else do (have) you perform(ed)? I belong to Delta Kappa Gamma, a society of women educators, and we put together a small chorus each year for our state convention. This year I played a flute part along with the chorus and piano, at one of the events.

Do you play any other instruments? 

I played a little folk guitar years ago as a young mom.

What are your other hobbies or interests? 

I'm a reader, love travel, attend concerts and opera performances. 

Is there any overlap between those things and music? 

Yes in my love of opera, musical theater and classical music.

Describe your family's musical interests and abilities. 

My sons played instruments in middle school/high school, my sister has played classical guitar, viola and cello. 

Does this inspire you? 

Sure! 

What else inspires you? 

 Other than music, the world of nature.

Who is your biggest fan? 

 My little granddaughter Violet.

Which famous musicians do you admire (doesn't have to be just flutists!)? 

Mozart, Bach, Puccini; Gustavo Dudamel; trumpeter Alison Balsam.

What was/is your favorite piece to perform? To listen to? 

I performed an excerpt from Handel's Messiah, which is one of my favorite pieces of music. Others: Mendelssohn's Octet, Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, anything by Mozart or Puccini; Bizet's Carmen

Who were/are your flute teachers? 

Paul Witt and Andy Pascoe at the school. Privately, only Patty.

What are your fondest musical memories? 

Listening to recordings of show tunes with my parents, and attending chamber music concerts with my husband.

Do you get nervous during a performance? 

Sure, but as a school principal I learned not to show it. 

How do you handle mistakes? 

Just go on.

What do you practice? 

Whatever I am working on from my lessons, plus flute choir music. 

How often? 

I have to take the 5th on this one. Safe to say, not as much as I should.

What advice would you give new flutists? 

Keep at it, it gets better. And definitely participate in ensemble lessons.

What advice would you give new flute choir members?
Pretty much the same as above. These are the stages I have gone through each term:

• First sight reading - OMG I will never be able to play this thing
• After sight reading all the music, triage - the pieces I'm pretty sure I will be able to play, and the ones I will never be able to play
• After a couple of weeks of practice - hmm, these pieces sound pretty good; this one I can only play if the tempo is eight times slower than the composer intended
• A week before - gradually getting more of the music into my fingers.
• Then somehow at the performance, the mistakes don't show, the ensemble sounds good and it's a huge rush

Elite Synchopation, by Scott Joplin

This? Was fun.

Piccolos:
Julie Gelfand
Irene Palma

It's concert time!

Join us for our next concert! This concert will feature smaller ensembles, as well as the full choir in performance.

When: Thursday, June 16, 2016 at 8:00 p.m.
Where: Culver City Middle School
4601 Elenda Street, Room 1
Culver City, CA 90230

We hope you'll stay for refreshments and conversation after the concert.

See you soon!

It's time to register!

Hello, everyone!

It's time to register! The Adult School has updated their website (http://ccas.ccusd.org/) with our class information. The next session will begin Thursday, April 14, 2016. 

Register online here: http://asonline.ccusd.org/onlinereg/
By telephone: (310) 842-4300
In person: 4909 Overland Avenue, Culver City CA 90230

If you have any questions, email CCFC.Info@gmail.com for more information.

Hope to see you soon! 

Concert Information, Soundcloud Update

Hello, everyone,

Our last concert was a chance for us all to remember and talk about, and offer music in honor of Sandra Nixon, one of our members who passed away. Follows is the text from the program, written by our conductor, Patty Sikorski.

March 17, 2016
8:00 p.m.

In Remembrance of Sandra Carter Nixon

Sandy Nixon has been a fixture in the Culver City Flute Choir, almost since its inception. She played with us for 28 years, having joined us in 1988. Back then, she played the C flute exclusively, but over the years, she acquired more instruments of the flute family, due to her unceasing desire to learn and grow as a musician. She played the piccolo, alto flute and bass flute, along with her C flute, always cheerfully and efficiently covering any part that was asked of her.

Along with her talents on the flute, Sandy was also an accomplished pianist, having played that instrument even longer than the flute. And, as a school girl, her first instrument was the string bass. Coming from a family of eight children who all studied instruments, she clearly took her music very seriously.

Back in 1991, the Culver City Flute Choir began doing performances at the retirement home(s) of Sandy’s mother, Mrs. Willie Carter. Wherever she went, we followed, with Sandy performing for her mother and friends, both on flute and piano. It was always a treat for all of us.

Sandy is missed by all of us in the flute choir for so many reasons. Not only was she a dedicated, accomplished musician, but she was an amazing woman of great character, in ways too numerous to mention here. Though she can no longer be seen or heard here with us, she definitely lives on in our hearts.

Our performance pieces tonight reflect her great love of the classic composers, as well as some classic hymns. When left to choose the music, such as during Summer Flute Choir at my house, Sandy would almost always go for the tried and true. Fitting for Sandy, to be sure.

Program

American Hymn Medley (Traditional, arr. Jicha)
Intermezzo (Brahms, arr. Davis)
Menuet and Ballet from Petite Suite (Debussy, arr. Ben-Meir)
Just a Closer Walk with Thee (Traditional, arr. Carter)
Were You There (American Folk Hymn, arr. Holcombe)
“The Magic Flute” Overture (Mozart, arr. Nourse)
Air from “Suite in D" (Bach, arr. Christensen)

Culver City Flute Choir

Conductor:

Patty Sikorski

Piccolo:

Irene Palma

C Flute:

Nina Bradley, Sara Fields, Loretta Gaffney, Carol Inge, Howard Lichtman, Elaine Miller,  Judy Miller, Irene Palma, Roberta Rohwedder, Ronna Shpall

Alto Flute:

Julie Gelfand, Charlotte Hansen, Carol Inge, Howard Lichtman, Michael Okamoto, Roberta Rohwedder

Bass Flute:

Julie Gelfand, Marilyn Holmes

Many thanks to Patty for all her hard work with us, and to Michael Okamoto for the audio recording. And, special thanks to Lee Miller for his many years of dedication to filming our concerts. 

You can listen to this flute concert at https://soundcloud.com/groups/culver-city-flute-choir.

Save the Date: Remembering Sandy Nixon

Please join us at our next concert as we remember our beloved friend Sandy Nixon with some of her favorite composers: Mozart, Brahms, Debussy, and Bach.

When: Thursday, March 17 at 8:00 PM

Where: Culver City Middle School
4601 Elenda Street, Room 1
Culver City CA 90230

We hope you will stay for refreshments and conversation after the concert.

Sandy Nixon played bass flute, C flute and was a talented pianist.

We're here!

Hello!

I'd like you all to know that the Adult School is offering us as a class again, and we've started as of last week. If you are interested in joining us, email CCFC.Info@gmail.com or contact Culver City Adult School by calling (310) 842-4300.

We've just started out new session, and are planning our next concert. We would love to hear from you, and to see you at our concert.

All the best, and a belated Happy New Year to you all!