Two Premieres & Performances

Wilderness Act Performance Series Premieres on Sunday at 3pm!
On Sunday, September 28 at 3pm two of my compositions will be premiered at the Outdoor Activity Center, 1442 Richland Road, Atlanta, GA 30310, by Chamber Cartel as part of the Wilderness Act Performance Series to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act. I attended 3 days in the field at preserves associated with the Western Atlanta Watershed Association: Beecher Hampton Nature Preserve, Bush Mountain Outdoor Activity Center and Cascade Springs. Based on my experience visiting these beautiful nature parks on the heart of Atlanta's West End I created "Watersheds" for flute, alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, piano, and percussion and "Mimic" for two piccolos. I will be there for the premieres conducting (Mixed meter, yikes!) "Watersheds" and performing with flutist Jessica Sherer on "Mimic". Stick around after the premieres to hear Thomas Avery's composition as well as works by artists Kris Pilcher, Mollie Taylor and poet Rev. Marti Keller.

85th Birthday Celebration of Composer Charles Knox at GSU 
I will be performing two pieces by Composer Charles Knox as part of his birthday celebration on September 30 at 8pm at Georgia State University's Kopleff Center. I will perform "Music from the Outer Edge" with Perimeter Flutes and "Familiar Objects Seen in a New Light" with clarinetist/composer Dr. Nick Demos, violinist Dr.Christos Galileas, pianist Raffi Besalyan, and cellist Yannis Tsitselikis. Do you ever google people you are suppose to work with and feel a bit out of your league? Yeah, I'm having that moment right now. Time to practice!

Halloween Flute Duet!

So maybe I got ahead of myself posting about the Christmas Flute Duets the other day. Never fear! I managed to find some time and crank out a flute duet for Halloween. The best familiar tune I could think of (that was in public domain) was Funeral March of a Marionette by Charles Gounod. Like many people, I was really only familiar with the theme played in the Hitchcock TV series. So when I dug around and found the original piano piece, I was surprised to find so much more to the work. That's why I love doing these simple arrangements. It makes me do score study. It flexes my composition skills in a different way. I have to to pay attention and figure out what is most important. How does this piece work? How will it translate? Hopefully, things rub off when I write my original pieces. For right now, enjoy this arrangement and hopefully some time soon I'll record it and eradicate that awful MIDI rendering:

http://www.spottedrocket.com/FuneralMarch.html

Christmas Music for Flute Duets!

Oh yes, its about that time of year where I start touting all the Christmas Music I've arranged for flute duet. I know its only September, but they time you factor in search engines finding this article and the prep time musicians need to get their Christmas Music practiced and in a Christmas program for the season it makes me start peddling them in September. Actually, I work on them all year - even when I'm not in the mood. I'll put on QVC's Christmas in July programs and I get the courage to start putting a few more arrangements out.

I originally made my first few flute duet arrangements out of frustration. I had some really talented students who wanted to sight read Christmas music in their lessons, but the majority of the duets out there are ridiculously easy. Not a challenge at all. So I tried to make some challenging ones which included changing meters from simple to complex, and also playing in the higher register. I posted my first one "Silent Night" on a flute forum, and I took my dogs on a walk. When I got back, I had a half dozen orders waiting on me. So I did a few more. I have arrangements of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", "Jingle Bells", "Silent Night", "Coventry Carol", "What Child Is This?", "O Come, O Come Emmanuel", "We Three Kings of Orient Are", and "Pat-a-Pan"

Not only did the arrangements help my students get some extra practice while having fun, but we were able to have extra money for our Christmas that year - not to mention how it helped build my skills as a composer. So every so often, I'll arrange a few more. I even did some Easter Flute Duets as well as Wedding Flute Duets. All this duet arranging got me thinking - I should write an original flute duet using extended techniques that I love, like beatboxing. Chatter for flute duet was born.

I'm grateful that teaching my students led to arranging which led to writing an original composition I'm proud of. Who would have thought? Now go buy my Christmas Music for Flute Duet :) Did I mention they work for violin as well?

Keep On Keepin' On

Mikey (1997-20014)

Let's just say this summer has been less than stellar for the Chamberlains. We've had a lot of emotional and financial kicks in the gut (our beloved kitty dying, car accident, lack of commissions, and student drop off for the summer), but there's been some really wonderful moments too (5 year anniversary, trip to see the in-laws in beautiful Pennsylvania weather, visits to local parks, lots of composing, etc). Luckily, its been nothing we can't handle, and in 30 years we'll laugh about all the nuttiness this summer has offered us. The one thing we have learned is that we must keep on keepin' on. We doing everything right, its just every once in a while we're going to hit some obstacles and we've got to get around them.

There does seem to be some light at the end of the tunnel. I'm just starting to get a trickle of student returning from the summer, and even a couple of new students. I'm starting to get notifications about compositions of mine being performed by others, and I am looking forward to deciding what I would like to compose for in the future. The good thing about not having any commissions lined up is that I can choose what I would like to do, but keeping in mind to compose for friends. Nothing makes me more frustrated than composing a piece that sits on a shelf never to be performed.

As I wrap up this composition for the Wilderness Act Performance Series, what's next? I use to have a hard Nick Demos' blog posts have confirmed what I have always feared is true. You have to keep thinking ahead. I can't be all Scarlet O'hara and worry about it tomorrow or I'll find myself with nothing to work on next.

Checking out Bush Mountain for WAPs

time thinking about another composition beyond the one I am working on, but the past year and

I know (hopefully) starting in September my schedule will ramp up in the teaching and performing department which will lead little time for composing. At least not the hours I got to spend this summer. I'll be lucky to get two hours a day. Projects I would like to work on, because I've had requests, are a flute choir piece and another band piece. So hopefully, by the end of the year I'll have a couple new compositions ready for premieres.

In the meantime, while income is not what we would like it to be, its doable. I'm thankful that the only sacrifices we have to make is that we can't travel or buy the extras. We just keep paying the bills and think of creative free ways to spend our time together (thank you, Ingress, state parks, and the library). If we keep on keepin' on the work will pay off and things will get rolling again. Hey, its the summer. It's all a part of being a freelance musician.

Summer Doldrums

Sailors and pirates feared that area near the equator of the earth call the Doldrums where there was no wind for the ship's sails to capture and move forward on the journey. Freelance musicians have a time of the year where the gigs, students, and therefore money dries up. That time is called the Summer Doldrums. Little or no money comes in, but you still must press forward and pay your bills. Most times, you can limp by with teaching summer camps, playing weddings, or a trickle of dedicated students that will continue lessons over the summer. I've been lucky with most students sticking through the summer, and usually I have a big composition project that will help us stumble along until we reach the glorious horse latitudes of September.

This summer has been different for me. A majority of my students have been able to go to various away camps, go onto college, or visit the grandparents. My effort to find a commission for the summer has been unsuccessful. I expect this June's paycheck from students will be the lowest of the year. Luckily, we anticipated a hard month, and we made sure we had no credit card debt...until the cat got sick and the hubs was in a car wreck (he's fine!) all in the same week, last week.

It happens. Life decides to see what you can take. So we're taking it. It's helped make a lot of decisions for

us. For example, I won't go to the National Flute Association Convention this year, we won't take a vacation, and we had to sell some stock options to cover the bills. This should get us through the next two months if I can maintain my student load, and hopefully the kiddies come back soon - and if ASCAP could dump a nice performance royalty check in my bank account this month, that would be great.

At least things are stable and I don't have to get another job, for now. I'll just keep writing and hope to sell some music. Maybe I'll get a gig. Maybe I'll get new students. It's all part of living on the edge in a freelance world. I'll keep waiting, and maybe some air will fill the sails of our tiny ship. In the meantime, I'll be on a hardtack diet made of peanut butter sandwiches and tap water for the summer, but it's still worth it! Avast ye, mateys!

If you enjoy my nautical writing, you might enjoy my nautical composing. Listen to "Nautica" for solo piano.

Being Available

We've all done it. We all at some point waited by the phone for that job offer, that person we met the night before, gig, or the potential to hang out with friends. We end up waiting and waiting, and no one called. We got nothing out of it besides catching up on "Mad Men", and as fun as that is, its not the same as being out and living life or making things happen. Sometimes we have to stop waiting for the next best thing and just go out and make things happen on our own. Sometimes we might miss out on that phone call, but I've learned the greater risk is doing nothing.

 I'm at that point right now. I'm in between commissions. I have a lot of potentials, but nothing committed. Summer is upon me. Students are taking off for the summer to travel and go to camp. Performance opportunities always dry up for me in the summer since I am not in a pops orchestra or do a lot of weddings. So I better look for something to do, on my own. It may not make money immediately, but it could. Its certainly better than waiting around for something to happen that might not. I could sit around and wring my hands in anticipation or I can sit down and compose something I might not get to otherwise. It's rare that I find myself in that situation where I say, "I wish I hadn't committed myself to this gig, now that so and so called me for something better". But it is starting to happen, especially within the last month. I had to give away 3 paying gigs to do 3 low or no pay gigs. Sure, I think I should reduce the free pay gigs unless its something incredibly unusual that I haven't done before and I have a lot to gain professionally or musically. I also know its best to be out doing rather than staying at home not doing. I just have to evaluate what's on my plate each time an opportunity makes itself known. I will say, it does sting to get a call from an orchestra to sub where the flute section is fabulous and loveable. On the other hand, that orchestra didn't select me on the audition so I did get to turn them down - to play a free gig I had committed to months in advance. At least the free gig was a benefit concert and we performed my music. Regardless, it was bittersweet. I just keep saying to myself, "It's a good problem to have." It doesn't mean its always easy to make those decisions, but its time reevaluate what jobs I take - free, low, or otherwise.

 So here I am, at a crossroads. Do I wait and hope for Mr. McDreamy to call me, or do I buckle down and write that flute and piano piece I've been meaning to write for the past 20 years? I think it might be time...

A Year After a Performance

I do enjoy looking forward to recordings of past performances. Some more than others. It's like getting a report card. Sure I felt good or even bad about a performance, and then I can listen to the recording and get a reality check. Was it as bad as I thought, or was it as good as I thought. Could my mistakes be perceived?

Another reason I like to get a recording is I get to relive the enjoyment I may have gotten out of performing a piece. I love playing, I really do. I love it more when I get to play with friends. It's like going on a roadtrip with your pals where there's a fabulous party at the end. The recording is the souvenir from that trip. You can look back and remember what a good ride that was, even if you broke down in the middle of nowhere. You can get something out of every trip for better or worse.

In May 2013, I performed a couple of works for the Terminus Ensemble recital at the end of an already packed month of gigs, commission deadlines, and performances. I was beat. In fact, the hubs and I were going on a long overdue vacation the next morning. I was performing two pieces that had their own emotional and technical demands. It was a challenge, but a challenge I knew I couldn't pass up on. In the end, I knew I was going to be a better musician because of these pieces. I just got the videos this morning.

The first piece I performed on the recital has been the most challenging piece I have had to work on in a long time, "Echolalia" by John Anthony Lennon. Parts of this piece scared me. There was a lot of room for interpretation on this piece and I only had one recording to go by. Luckily, like in all Terminus Ensemble pieces, the composer lived in Atlanta and I had met him before. So when in doubt, call the composer. As a performer, I do enjoy meeting the composer and talking. At the very least, I'll get to know the composer a little better and verify what's on the page. I know not all performers like to do that, but I like to have that line of communication available.

John was kind enough to carve out some time out of his end of the school year obligations at Emory University to meet. When I arrived at his office, I assumed I would just play the piece in his office and I'd get some words of wisdom, but he grabbed a music stand and said "It will sound much better in the stairwell."  He was right. The swirling reverb of the stairwell added in a new factor I hadn't thought about. I knew the definition before meeting John was the often pathological repetition of what is said by other people as if echoing them. I felt there was some repetition in the figures of the music, but the reverb really brought it home. So what did we know about the performance venue? I knew it was a church, but that didn't mean it was a stone walled cathedral that would ring for days. So we had to go with a different plan, which I am glad we did. In the recording, it didn't come across as extreme as the stairwell. Looking back on the recording I wish we had ramped the reverb up electronically more. But I am happy with the performance. It came a long way from when I first got it. I hope I get to perform it again in the future. It's one of those few pieces I get to play where all the work is worth the effort. It is a beautiful piece.



After I had a sigh of relief from performing "Echolalia" and was able to get over the post performance jitters, I had to get my mind right to perform an emotional taxing piece, "Twenty-One" by Tim Jansa. In August of 2010, conductor Robert J. Ambrose and his wife, flutist Sarah Kruser Ambrose, lost their son Zachary after twenty-one weeks of pregnancy. In memory of their child, Robert and Sarah asked composer Tim Jansa to write a piece for flute and accompaniment – originally for piano – which Sarah herself would be able to perform in memory of her son. Sarah had already premiered the piece, and there had been another flutist who had performed the piece as well. Sarah is a flutist in Atlanta, and someone who I know and admire. Naturally, I discussed the performance of the piece with Tim and Sarah. Performing a piece like this is always tricky. You want to be emotionally involved in the piece, but you have to keep from crossing that line into letting it break down the performance. (Soprano Anne Bird had a great blog post about this years ago -like a decade ago- and I always think about it while perform - I can't find it! UGH!)

The good thing about performing this piece, is that I had a pal who had my back on piano - Ipek Eginlioglu. There was a a moment when I was feeling, and not thinking. I nearly missed my entrance, but I got a reassuring look from Ipek that kept me from derailing.(You can catch that look at 4:43) Now that's a friend who knows when you're head isn't in it and can bring you back to the present! This girl had a lot to deal with that day. There were keys on the piano that were not quite working. She dealt with it like the pro she is.




So what is good about seeing a video of yourself performing and not just hearing an audio? Well I can find a lot of complaints, but what you never give much attention to is the pre and post performance action. Like that I am so floppy when I recognize my colleagues. It looks like I am not excited about working with them, but I'm just awkward, and not a touchy feely person. So I need to work on that. I need to channel my inner diva and look like I feel instead of just trying to get off the "stage" as fast as possible. My playing issues, I won't tear a part in public, but I'm not gonna like, I got some things to work on. I'll always have things to work on. That's part of the fun of it all. Pushing myself out of my comfort zone.

It was an incredibly rewarding experience. The crowd was small, but that was a good music making day. I'm looking forward to our concert on the 27th where I get to perform with my buddies again.

New Things

I am not a creature of habit. I rarely like to repeat myself. I love to experience and try new things, especially when it comes to music and travel. Perhaps that's why I love to perform new music and compose. I like to try and experience music I have not heard before and even better, when it has never been performed before. The past few months have been a healthy dose of repetition and new things. Over the past year I have traveled to Hartford, CT 3 times. Don't get me wrong, Hartford is a neat town filled with fabulous musicians (courtesy of the Hartt School) and friends. Luckily, I've been to Hartford 3 times because I've had 3 different premieres - "Trajectory", "Elasticity", and "Stridulation". Otherwise, I wouldn't have gone to hear the same piece performed. I try to go to all my premieres. I'll even try to go to repeated performances if its a place I've never visited before and I can swing the money for the travel. Any excuse to travel, even if it might be some remote college town in the middle of a corn field - say Missouri, but that's another blog post.

So what does a girl do when she can't come up with the finances to travel to glamorous places? Well she tries all sort of new things in town. I decided to get out of my comfort zone and teach a workshop at the Atlanta Flute Fair called "Beatboxing to a Better Bach". I am by no means an expert in beatboxing. I leave that to Greg Patillo, but I use it in my music and I do have the basic understanding. So teaching a group of beginner beatboxers wouldn't be beyond my scope, right? Sure! It went well to my surprise. I certainly succeeded in getting EVERYONE dizzy. So by the end of the workshop I'm sure no one could remember anything.

Sometimes I'll even try things I probably have NO business doing, like conducting a musical's orchestra. Sure I had to take orchestral conducting in college and I have to conduct the church choir every once in a while, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't qualify me as a legitimate conductor. Somehow, I find myself saying, "Sure, I'll do it. As long as you understand I've never done this before." So I conducted my church's annual fundraiser musical. This year it was "The Music Man". I thank my lucky stars that its a musical with only 3 tempos: March, Ballad, and waltz. I was also behind a screen with the orchestra, so I'm sure I wasn't distracting anyone, and every orchestra left the pit with two eyes every show.

Now because each time this year I've tried something new, I decided to go WAY out of my comfort zone and make a fool of myself at the same time this week. I have no shame, and I'll try anything to spice up my musical life. Since I was little - 9 maybe? - I've owned a jaw harp. I've never done much with it except annoy my family on long car rides. (The jaw harp was foolishly bought by my parents on a 9 hour car ride from St. Louis, MO to Savannah, GA. They never thought I'd figure it out. It took 10 minutes. 8 hours and 50 minutes of jaw harpin' with popular 80's tunes on the radio!) So when a buddy of mine in Mercury Orkestar asked a group of percussionists I was standing with if any of them played jaw harp, I pounced! I've already had one appearance this past weekend, but on Friday at 7:45 at Smith's Old Bar I'll play 50 cents' "In Da Club" with Mercury Orkestar on jaw harp for 500 Songs for Kids. I do it for the kids, people!

 So what's next? What am I gonna do to keep it all interesting? Well I really don't know. I'm finishing up a commission for Clibber Jones Ensemble which has been a new composition challenge, but I'm sure I need to find my next scary and ridiculous challenge. I'm open to suggestions. Summer is a perfect time to do crazy things, at least I can blame the heat.

Clibber Jones Ensemble Commission!

I am one of 9 composers who are being commissioned by the Clibber Jones Ensemble. I will write a 7 minute piece for the band, but they ensemble is in the process of raising money so we can all get a little bit of money for our efforts. Clibber Jones is a fabulous group of musicians that I have had the pleasure of working with in the past. Please donate a few bucks to our cause!
Yes, that's me jamming out on tambourine with the Clibber Jones Ensemble :)

Debut at the National Flute Association Convention

On Thursday I make the journey with my flute quartet, Perimeter Flutes, to New Orleans for the National Flute Association Convention. I have a small confession, I've only been to one flute convention and that was 2 years ago. I am was never interested in going until I decided the convention 2 years ago in Charlotte, NC was too close to miss out on. Now I'm hooked. There's so much good stuff going on and you get to see all your long lost flute friends, and meet the ones you've been stalking online. This year I'm not just an audience member, I am performing and two of my compositions will be performed.

On Thursday, August 8, at 12:30pm,"Tamar" will be performed by a group who all met on Twitter, myself included. The musicians are Tammy Evans Yonce, Meerenai Shim, Alexis del Palazzo, and Kathy Farmer (who was gracious enough to fill in for me!) It was a last minute addition to the program, so unfortunately I might not be in attendance. I'm gonna try my best to get there in time, but I don't know if it will be physically possible. I think this will be the 5th ensemble to sink their teeth into "Tamar".


On Saturday, August 10, at 2:45pm, "French Quarter" will be premiered by Perimeter Flutes. This is where I make my debut performing at the NFA Convention. Nothing like performing your own flute composition for a bunch of flutists to really add an interesting sense of pressure. I'll let you know how it goes. Hopefully it will interest other flutists who might want to perform it or commission me to compose something for them.

Another big part of what I am looking forward to is seeing all the people. Mainly, I'm looking forward to old friends, commissioners (new and old), and fast friends I've made with like minded flutists. The four days I'm at NFA will be crammed with performances, sight seeing, and most of all good times with friends. Let's just hope I can stay awake for all of it to enjoy it all.

I wish I could say when I get back home from convention I could rest up, but that doesn't look like it will happen. I will cram all my students into a short 3 day work week and head back up to Connecticut to hear Cuatro Puntos premiere "Elasticity". Seriously, its Christmas in August for me.

Remembering the Fearless Whistler

By the time I arrived in Athens, GA to audition for admittance into the University of Georgia's School of Music, I already had my heart set to attend the University of Central Florida. Then I met Dr. Ronald Waln, and I knew instantly he was the teacher for me. My audition was a lesson, not a tryout unlike the rest of my auditions. I walked into his studio ready to begin my audition, but he excused himself to run to the restroom. He was missing for 20 minutes when he popped back in and asked me to run my scales. When I was done he asked, "Could you play those again? You played them much better when I wasn't in the room." He got it. His teaching style was about encouragement and growth, not about testing or pressure. When my audition was over he walked me back to my mom who was frantically driving loops around the gigantic campus since she didn't know were to park. He waited with me until my mom drove up dodging the mob of students crossing the street during the change of classes. Once I got back into the car I said to my mom "I thought I wanted to go to UCF, but now I'm not so sure."

 Dr. Waln was coming to a close of his teaching career when I started my freshman year. I was going to be the last graduating class he taught, but he still obviously enjoyed teaching and performing. I'll never forget his first faculty recital my freshman year. He played "The Fearless Whistler" for solo piccolo by Michael Isaacson. When this 70 year old man picked up his music stand and ran across the stage for the sake of performing the piece up to full theatrics, I knew I made the right decision to go to UGA. He understood the balance technique, work, and fun. Its something that has stuck with me through the way I work and how I teach.

 UGA's School of Music was tough. The freshman class was 95 people, and by junior year I think we were maybe 30. The rumor was that the School of Music had the highest drop out rate. It wasn't uncommon to see someone breaking down in the student lounge. I was struggling. In fact, at the end of my sophmore year I dropped by Dr. Waln's office to tell him I was dropping my music major and going to be a single major in Graphic Design if I could get in. I thought Dr. Waln would say something like, "I understand, and that's probably a more stable career anyways." But instead he said, "That would be a big mistake, and I think you should keep at it another year." Somehow I came out of that studio still as a music major, and from that time on I had a different attitude. Everything indicated I should pack it on out, but someone from the inside believed in me even when I didn't. Everybody was telling me no, but this person who listened to me for at least an hour a week was telling me that I had what it took to get through this. At first I thought he was nuts. But when someone had been teaching as long as Dr. Waln you have to believe him. It got easier from there.


I lost touch with Dr. Waln when I graduated, something I regret. I did exchange some emails with him within the last couple years and he seemed his usual upbeat self, carrying on about his wife, the house, playing bassoon again and traveling. I doubt he remembered me out of the sea of flute students he taught over his life, but I'll remember him always and hope to keep his upbeat disposition when I perform and teach.

Reliving "Rabbit Tales"

I was commissioned in 2011 to compose a children's opera for the Atlanta Opera's first ever commission. I spent the summer of 2011 composing all day most every day and had the best time. It was one of those projects that I was glad I finished because that meant I was closer to hearing a performance, but I was sad that I would no longer work on the opera. It was just too much fun composing that hour long opera for children.

The past couple days I got to relive that feel by making clips from the DVD of the final dress rehearsal in October 2011. The opera was performed over 70 times, and hearing the dress rehearsal was a reminder of how a performance ensemble can evolve in that time. Don't get me wrong, I was more than happy with the dress rehearsal, but I caught some of the last performances in 2012 and it was amazing to see/hear how comfortable the singers got with the complicated text and 7/8 time signatures that some were skeptical the singers would ever get comfortable with. They just made it seem easy. I wish I had a video of the later performances to show how the opera evolved.

Madeleine St. Romain was the librettist who had the overwhelming task of finding a way to make a 45-50 minute story out of thousands of B'rer Rabbit stories. We had quite and enjoyable time working together, and I think we both agree that this section of the opera is our favorite text-wise and musically. We knew this song did not progress the story, but it was a part we fell in love with. We even made a pact that we would make compromises on any other section, but we would fight to the death for this song to stay in. Luckily, it never was an issue:



I love the next section mainly because of what the stage director Park Cofield and music director Michael Spassov did to make this section hang together. This song could have easily gotten tedious because of the repetition, but the added "camp choreography" and the added accelerando really made me happy. This collaboration was much appreciated!



What can I say about the cast? They were fabulous and an incredible fit for each role. I didn't necessarily know who was going to be performing these parts when I was composing, but I had seen Baritone Wade Thomas performing in Atlanta Opera's production of "The Ugly Duckling" as the Big Bad Wolf, and that always stuck with me when I was composing "Rabbit Tales" and I hoped that the Atlanta Opera would be able to cast Wade as King Lion. You can see why below:



I think the cast did really well with the ensemble singing, and I especially love the last segment because of their interaction, the stage props, and that I could legitimize eating pie while I was composing the "Pie" song.



I have some serious admiration for the singers and pianist for this production. This was a high energy opera with lost of text, music, and stage direction to remember. Sometimes they performed the opera 3 times or more in one day after traveling a couple hours all before noon wearing crazy costumes. This was an amazing collaboration. I don't really collaborate because the opportunity like this rarely comes along for me, but if all collaborations went like this I would do it everyday. And of course none of this wouldn't have happened if the Atlanta Opera's Education Director Emmalee Iden hadn't had the story idea and been an advocate for me to be the composer. It's really an experience that I will look back on as a pivotal moment in my career and life.

Busy...an understatement

To say that I've been busy would be a huge understatement, but let's see if I can fill ya in on what I've been doin since my last post in JANUARY!

1. Doin a little performing with Mercury Season as always.

2. "Chatter" has been performed a few times by 4 different ensembles. (Including a group in Slovenia). Love this performance by Matt and Mary at the Hartt School:



3. "Tamar" has also gotten quite a few performances by different ensembles (including my own Perimeter Flutes)

4. Performed at the Atlanta Flute Festival and Jacksonville State University Flute Festival with Perimeter Flutes. Including trying out a contrabass flute for the first time (see video below)!

5. World premiere of "Trajectory" at the Women Composers Festival in Hartford, CT by Dahlia Flute Duo and Pablo Issa Skaric. Which included a snow delay (picture below)

6. Performed some killer new flute music by Tim Jansa and John Anthony Lennon at Terminus Ensemble concert.

7. Commissioned and completed: "Whitsun" for clarinet and organ, "Byzantium" for Wesleyan School Middle School Concert Band, "Elasticity" for Cuatro Puntos, and "French Quarter" for Perimeter Flutes.

8. Won the 2013 Areon Flutes International Composition Competition and now get to write a 12 minute flute trio to be premiered by Areon Flutes in their 2013-2014 season!

So what's next?
Well lots of things. I get to attend four premieres, which is the most exciting about composing. I get to work with the ensembles and sometimes (lately most of the time) I just get to show up and hear someone do the heavy lifting of making the piece happen. I also get to travel! 3 out of the 4 premieres coming up will require me to leave Hotlanta if I want to hear it live and hang with the performers. Any excuse to travel! I am even in the middle of having my passport renewed just in case I might get the opportunity to hear "Elasticity" in Bolivia, but that's another can of worms.

Right now I have one main mission, and that is to roll up my sleeves and get to work on the Areon Flutes commission. I suppose I also need to has out the details of performing "French Quarter" at the National Flute Association Convention in August in New Orleans! It's been busy, the good kind of busy and I hope the next 6 months keep the momentum going!

Two Commissions at the Same Time!

I hope everyone's 2013 is off to a great start! This year is showing some promise, and I have the first ever two commissions due about the same time.

One commission is from the Wesleyan Middle School Band in Norcross, GA under the direction of Dr. Ruthie Colegrove. Ironically, across the street where I spent 5 years working as a web designer. The piece will premiere on May 9th.

Another commission is from a high school/college friend, Helen Saile, who premiered many of my clarinet "pieces" when I was in studying composition at UGA. She will be performing with the fabulous organist Brad Hughley on an incredible organ at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church in Atlanta, GA. I'm

getting a lesson on that organ next week, and I am excited to hear what it can do. This piece will premiere on May 19th.

Now, how to juggle two very different things at once? That is a new challenge. I typically do one thing at a time, but it looks like I will need to find balance. So here it goes I suppose.

There's some more possibilities lined up for the year, but won't get confirmation until Feb/March on those. I'll be sure to keep you posted!

2013 Resolutions

Why is this the only 2012 picture of us together? Not this year!

Ok, so maybe I didn't accomplish any of my goals from last year, but priorities changed. We are going to make my husband's work the scapegoat here. His shifts changed and so our lives had to change, thus our goals changed. I ended up having to do some things without him, but that's ok. We were still able to collaborate on some things even if they were on an incredible small scale. At the very least I got a wonderful flute quartet that he composed for an ensemble I play in, Perimeter Flutes. I can't wait to premiere it! This year had its challenges though and we've had to roll with the punches.

Sam, world's best cuddler -  Miss you buddy!

This year we had to say goodbye to an incredible dog who I bonded with immediately and he even won over my husband. I really don't know who took Sam's death harder, me or my hubs. I'm glad Sam was a part of our lives, and I hope at some point we get another opportunity to share our home with another deaf dog. It's a totally different mind set in communication and relationship (especially for musicians), but a rewarding one. For now, we'll have to be happy with spoiling our little orphan Annie and I suppose the hub's 15 year old cat, Mikey (or tons of fun).

GSO rehearsing

Don't get me wrong 2012 wasn't a total washout. 2012 was the year for repeat performances and revisiting people and projects I have enjoyed in the past. I was commissioned to compose for the Georgia Symphony Orchestra, something I've wanted for a long time. Not only do I love writing for orchestra but the GSO is packed with friends who have a special place in my heart.  I also got to travel to hear some repeat performances of pieces that premiered in 2011, AND I got to compose for the Dahlia Flute Duo again. Looking forward to that premiere in March. If anything it was the year of repeat performances. Something I haven't really experienced in such magnitude, the main repeaters being "Rabbit Tales", "Tamar", "Chatter", and "Hopewell".

Fisticuffs rehearsal with Chamber Cartel

 2012 was also the year of participating with new ensembles: Perimeter Flutes, Chamber Cartel, and Terminus Ensemble. All three of these groups show promise and some fabulous talented people, most of whom I met this year and I hope its the continuation of some fabulous friendships and collaborations. However, I wish to NOT repeat the 5 hour performance of "For Philip Guston" by Morton Feldman. That, my friends, is a once in a lifetime experience for many reasons. Let's move onto new and exciting projects and experiences!

First photo of 2013!

So what about 2013? Well, there's already two commissions in the queue that I need to begin and one contract for a commission where the terms are agreed on, but just waiting for the administration to sign the contract. There are also 3 definite premieres on the calendar for 2013. I better get to work! I plan to compose a flute quartet, clarinet and organ duo, and hopefully more band music. There are also some personal things I would like to compose, but I'm going to keep those up in the air and see what the year brings. 2013 could end up like 2012 and my plans were not what God had in mind.

Christmas Music for flute and more!

Need some sheet music for this Christmas season?  I've arranged some!

Advanced Christmas Flute Duets that include:
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Silent Night
Coventry Carol
What Child Is This?
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Pat-A-Pan
We Three Kings of Orient Are

Do you want a solo that you can play with your pianist at Christmas? I also have an arrangement of "Away in a Manger" for flute and piano. Perfect for intermediate to advanced players. Highest note is F above the staff. Lowest note is A on the staff. Piece is approximately 2 1/2 minutes long. Great for Christmas church services!

Did you want to play something for solo flute or even bass flute? I have a solo flute arrangement of "I Wonder as I Wander". (This arrangement works well with other solo instruments as well like violin, oboe, etc) Perfect for intermediate to advanced players. Suitable for C flute, alto flute, bass flute, and violin. Piece is approximately 4 minutes long.

All these Christmas Music arrangements can be purchased using Paypal and will be delivered personally by me through email as a PDF within 24 hours! Merry Christmas!

World Premiere of "Ogeechee"

The past few weeks have seemed like some alternate reality of my life. I usually get a taste here and there of what it means to be a composer, but I think the past two weeks have seemed so surreal because that glimpse of a composers life has been a daily "routine". Over he past few weeks I have tried to balance rehearsal, travel, performances, composing, publicity, teaching, and networking. The end result is that the month has flown by and produced an amazing output of work and loads of new connections with musicians and music lovers. The challenge for the future is to keep these opportunities coming and find balance with the Chamberlain home.

I've certainly got enough irons in the fire with Perimeter Flutes, Mercury Season, Terminus Ensemble, and Chamber Cartel, not to mention all those flute students to teach and composing deadlines coming up soon, but last week was monopolized by the "Ogeechee" Premiere. The GSO only had an hour to rehearse "Ogeechee" over two days. It's amazing to see these musicians quickly work a piece over. I was incredibly happy with the performance, and it gave me further encouragement that I am on the right track. That what I love to compose and hear is working out in real life. I know these musicians as colleagues and friends, I knew what they were capable of as musicians, but it is overwhelming when I received the faith, support, and sincere support from the people I respect as people and artists.

At the end of the performance, I was asked to come to the podium to take the usual composer bow and expected the polite applause of the audience. I was unprepared when I turned around to take the bow to see people on their feet. I was unprepared for the emotional response of my parents and husband sitting in the audience. I am blessed with the love and support of a loving family, friends (two of which had commissioned me in the recent past), and a composer husband who understands everything about what I do. To see them be so excited for me and emotional after the performance was worth every note put on the page. It makes me feel that all the leaps of faith they gave me were not in vain.

I will be performing with Perimeter Flutes this week, and we'll be playing some
exciting music. Each concert is roughly an hour or less. Both concerts are free.
I hope to see you there!


September 18 at 8pm
neoPhonia
Red Clay Connections
Kopleff Recital Hall at Georgia State University
Music from the Outer Edge - Charles Knox (World premiere)
Tamar - Nicole Chamberlain
Moment's Notice by Nick Demos will also be performed by Jan Berry and Tania
Maxwell


September 19 at 1pm
Myths and Legends
Overture from Midsummer's Night Dream - Felix Mendelssohn
Legends from the Greenwood - Catherine McMichael
Music from the Outer Edge - Charles Knox
Creatures of the Enchanted Forest - Anze Rozman
Tamar - Nicole Chamberlain

Fine Arts Auditorium at Georgia Perimeter College - Clarkston
Performing full concert with Perimeter Flutes
http://perimeterflutes.com/

"Hopewell" and "Chatter" at 2012 SCI Region VI Conference

I was just notified that "Hopewell" for concert band and "Chatter" for two flutes will be performed at Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas at the Society of Composers 2012 Region VI Conference on October 5-6. You can learn more here: http://www.opsu.edu/Academics/LiberalArts/Music/Conference/

October is looking like another busy month this year!

Georgia Symphony Orchestra Commission

I finally have some exciting news. After a year of making plans, finding funding, and deciding on a concert date, I have a signed contract! I will composing an orchestra work for the Georgia Symphony Orchestra that will premiere on October 13, 2012. So I guess I know what I am doing the summer!

You can check out the Georgia Symphony Orchestra here: http://georgiasymphony.org/

Hope everyone is doing well and have a fabulous Memorial Day weekend!