Credo Flute 2015 was a huge success in its inaugural season.  Bonnie Boyd, Tadeu Coelho, and I were especially thrilled to have Wally Kujala join us for a special session.  Pictured below is Peter Slowik, Director of Credo, along with flutists Lauren Asimakoupoulos, Jean Lee, and Izzy Hance, my stalwart assistant.  Twenty-seven flutists joined us on the campus of Elmhurst College for a week of learning and exploring music and faith together.  It was an inspired time.  More news to come!

On August 14th, I had the great opportunity to perform alongside Myrto Korkokiou, Lindsey Goodman, and Wendy Mehne on a fabulous program at the NFA Annual Convention in Washington D.C. titled “Art and Technology”.  We were joined by our esteemed composer/collaborators Jonathon Kirk and Roger Dannenberg.  This was a program that truly stretched the boundaries of our artform, creating new sounds through manipulations of the instrument and extended techniques together through the filter of electronic music.  Memory of a lifetime!

The NFA Quarterly, summer 2015, featured my article, “Collaborative Play” celebrating the process of commissioning new repertoire.  Collaborations between composer Huw Watkins and flutist Adam Walker, composer Gabriela Lena Frank and flutist Mary Kay Fink, and composer Behzad Ranjbaran and flutists Jeffrey Khaner are featured.

Flute Talk, January 2015, featured my article and interview with acclaimed composer and Pulitzer Prize winner Shulamit Ran.  Ran also created the new work for flute and piano in celebration of the Chicago Flute Club’s 25th anniversary Birds of Paradise which was premiered at the National Flute Association’s Annual Convention in Chicago.  

I’m thrilled to release my first solo CD through Innova recordings!  Featured collaborators include Chicago’s finest musicians pianist Jeffrey Panko, and flutists Karin Ursin, Janice MacDonald, and Susan Saylor.  The repertoire on this CD comprises the majority of Schwantner’s major works for flute, all of which are substantial, aesthetically innovative, and push the technical range of the player to the limits.  Composer, Cynthia Folio, writes:

“The four pieces on this CD were written over a span of three decades and, as Schwantner remarks, ‘highlight my continuing fascination with the flute’s ever engaging world. Flutist Jennie Oh Brown and her brilliant musicians present exciting and compelling performances that display a virtuosity marked by deep musical insight and intelligence.’ Whether you are hearing his flute music for the first time, or are already familiar, you will enjoy the “sonic worlds” that he has created for the listener.”

Join me for my album launch concerts with Picosa on November 5th and 14th, when we will be presenting works from the album as well as chamber music by Joseph Schwantner Consortium 1 and Taking Charge, featuring guest artist percussionist Peter Ferry.

Join me and faculty members from the Music Department for our fourth annual Summer Music Academy, June 6 – 11, 2016, on the beautiful campus of Elmhurst College!  Students will be able to work with applied music faculty, attend music production sessions, and study theory and composition.  Visit our website for details: http://www.elmhurst.edu/music/202014661.html