The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, the BSO performs most of its concerts at Boston's Symphony Hall and in the summer performs at Tanglewood.
The National Flute Association (NFA) is the largest flute organization in the world, with roughly 5,000 members from more than 50 countries. It is an association in the United States with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. Members include soloists, orchestral players, jazz and world music performers, teachers, adult amateurs, and students of all ages.
The New Philharmonia Orchestra of Massachusetts, or the New Phil for short, is a 75-member mostly non-professional regional orchestra based in Newton, Massachusetts, U.S. It was founded in 1995. The New Phil performs in at the First Baptist Church in Newton, and on occasion at Mission Church in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood, as well as other locations in the region.
Timothy Hutchins is a Canadian classical flute player.
Jeanne Baxtresser is an American flutist and teacher. She is most notable for her position as principal flutist of the New York Philharmonic for over 15 years, she decided to play the flute when she was only nine years old, as an author, and as a professor and master teacher. Previous positions include professor of flute at the University of Montréal, The University of Toronto, Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, New England conservatory and Carnegie Mellon University. She received the National Flute Association's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006. She has been credited with "upholding an increasingly higher standard of artistic excellence for the flute."
Alexa Still is a New Zealand-born flutist based in Oberlin, Ohio, where she is Professor of Flute at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Lorna McGhee is a Scottish flutist and teacher, who since 2024 helds the position of Principal Flute at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She served as Principal Flute of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 2012 to 2024. In addition, she is an Artist Lecturer in Flute at Carnegie Mellon University. Past positions include co-principal flute of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and associate professor of flute at the University of British Columbia. She is currently a member of a flute, viola, and harp ensemble, 'Trio Verlaine' with her husband, violist David Harding and harpist Heidi Krutzen. McGhee is known for her "luscious tone colors and dynamics."
Doriot Anthony Dwyer was an American flutist. She was one of the first women to be awarded principal chair for a major U.S. orchestra. She was the principal flute for the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1952 until 1990. She was second flute for the National Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She was an adjunct professor of Music at Boston University.
Frances Blaisdell was an American flautist, widely recognized as one of the first female professional flautists. She held positions with the National Orchestral Association, the New Opera Company and the New Friends of Music. In addition, she was the first woman to appear as a soloist and wind player in concert with the New York Philharmonic. In addition to playing, she also held teaching positions at the Manhattan School of Music, New York University, Dalcroze School, Mannes School of Music, and Stanford University where she taught for over 35 years. Blaisdell's teachers included Georges Barrère, Marcel Moyse and William Kincaid.
Marina Piccinini is an Italian American virtuoso flautist. She is noted for her performances of compositions by Mozart and Bach, and has performed with many of the world's top orchestras and conductors.
The Symphony No. 8 by Walter Piston is a symphony dating from 1965.
Thomas Daniel Nyfenger was an American flutist and teacher known for his "intense and caring emotion for the flute" and described as “a thorough professional who programs interesting music and is not above having a good time while playing it.” He taught at the Yale School of Music, played piccolo for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and held many part-time playing and teaching positions throughout his career.
Valerie Coleman is an American composer and flutist as well as the creator of the wind quintet Imani Winds. Coleman is a distinguished artist of the century who was named Performance Today's 2020 Classical Woman of the year and was listed as “one of the Top 35 Women Composers” in the Washington Post. In 2019, Coleman's orchestral work, Umoja, Anthem for Unity, was commissioned and premiered by the Philadelphia Orchestra. Coleman's Umoja is the first classical work by a living African American woman that the Philadelphia Orchestra has performed.
William Morris Kincaid was an American flutist and teacher. He is known for his work as principal flute of the Philadelphia Orchestra for almost 40 years, teaching at the Curtis Institute and being a guiding force in the creation of an American School of flute playing.
Leone Buyse was the Joseph and Ida K. Mullen Professor of Flute and Chair of Woodwinds at Rice University's Shepherd School of Music. Prior to a full-time career teaching, Buyse spent over 22 years as an orchestral flutist, including a decade from 1983-1993 as Principal Flute of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops Orchestra. Other orchestral positions include Rochester Philharmonic as solo piccolo and second flute, and assistant principal of San Francisco Symphony. In addition to the Shepherd School, she has held faculty positions at the New England Conservatory, Boston University, University of Michigan, as visiting professor at the Eastman School of Music and numerous summer festivals including the Tanglewood Institute. Her primary teachers include Marcel Moyse, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Michel Debost and Joseph Mariano.
Bonita Boyd is an American flutist, soloist and pedagogue. She has been the Professor of Flute at the Eastman School of Music since 1977, when she succeeded her mentor Joseph Mariano. Her primary teachers include Mariano, Maurice Sharp of the Cleveland Orchestra, and Roger Stevens of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In 1971, she became the youngest principal flutist of a major American orchestra after winning the positions of principal flute with the Rochester Philharmonic. Following this position, her Alice Tully Hall debut was received as "a great success" and subsequent tour performances harkened her comparisons to Jean-Pierre Rampal and Sir James Galway. Boyd was Principal Flutist with the Aspen Festival Orchestra, Chautauqua Symphony and Filarmonica de las Americas.
Amy Porter is an American flutist and pedagogue. American Record Guide calls her a "charismatic and highly skilled performer." She is currently Professor of Flute at the University of Michigan. She is in international demand for solo and chamber work, having been featured on National Public Radio and PBS' Live from Lincoln Center programs. She previously held the position of assistant principal flute in the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. She received both Bachelors and Masters of Music degrees from Juilliard School of Music where her primary teachers included Samuel Baron and Jeanne Baxtresser. She pursued additional study in Austria with Alain Marion and Peter-Lukas Graf. Porter is a William S. Haynes Flute Artist.
Elizabeth Rowe is an American flutist and leadership coach, known for being the principal flutist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 2004 to 2024 and for a gender discrimination lawsuit.
Helen Campo is an American flute virtuoso. She has held the flute chair on nine Broadway shows, including the long-running hit Wicked. Campo has recorded extensively for films, television, and albums, including the 2005 Grammy-winning cast album of Wicked.
Lois Elizabeth Schaefer (1924–2020) was an American flutist and piccoloist. From Yakima, Washington, Schaefer dedicated her education and career to playing the flute. Most notably, she spent the majority of her career as principal flute and piccolo of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Schaefer sat on the board of the National Flute Association as well as being a faculty member of the New England Conservatory of Music. Her decades-long music legacy made her a trailblazing musician for women and contributed to the success of BSO's flute section.
