best flutist

sags_3 · Post by **sags_3** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 6:18 pm

I distinctly remember going to masterclass of William Bennet's and nearly falling asleep. People were so bored they were walking out. At the Royal Academy of Music in London where he teaches his masterclasses go on from 9/10 till 5/6.
Thats not to say hes not a good flautist.

sidekicker · Post by **sidekicker** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 7:46 pm

When I was a teenager I participated in a week long Bennett masterclass. "Wibb", as he is often referred to in that environment, is a really delightful person with a fresh personality and a unique perspective on many things. The only thing I didn't like was that he tended to become quite predictable after the first few hours -- making for a pretty long week

. I did learn a lot (mostly because I was still pretty young), but most of that was on the very first day since he seemed to take pretty much the same approach to everything rather than building on what was already there. In the end, everyone sounded just like him (or tried to), rather than each player blossoming into their own unique flute personality. He's a brilliant flutist, though, and I greatly enjoyed the impromptu concerts he and Clifford would give almost every evening.

SK

Serpentine · Post by **Serpentine** » Tue Apr 17, 2007 6:08 pm

musical_Kat wrote:i'm really surprised that no one so far has mentioned Susan Milan.

She's not that good any more. Her skills have faded with age.
I have a friend who is taught by her, and he said she is a good teacher but not as good as she used to be

musical_Kat · Post by **musical_Kat** » Wed Apr 18, 2007 5:48 am

Serpentine wrote:
musical_Kat wrote:i'm really surprised that no one so far has mentioned Susan Milan.
She's not that good any more. Her skills have faded with age.
I have a friend who is taught by her, and he said she is a good teacher but not as good as she used to be

Oh really? That's really disappointing! I guess all of the recordings I have of her are from the 80's and early 90's. Still.....she must be listed with the greats for her body of work and the fact that she was once really amazing. You can't really knock her for getting old. It's going to happen to all of us and i'm sure that with that aging her priorities have changed. There is nothing wrong with choosing family time over flute time!

sidekicker · Post by **sidekicker** » Wed Apr 18, 2007 7:02 am

I've never been a big Milan fan, old or young. Similar to Galway, most of her playing sounds the same regardless of what period of music she is performing. I happen to have a strong personal preference for flutists willing and able to play with a wide variety of style, color, etc.

Having said that, I very much agree that she deserves a high place in our flute history, especially considering the stiff competition she had during her more golden years from her male counterparts (particularly a bearded Irishman

). To stand out against that backdrop is a tremendous accomplishment that commands great honour.

SK

Buttercup · Post by **Buttercup** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 5:35 am

sags_3 wrote:I distinctly remember going to masterclass of William Bennet's and nearly falling asleep. People were so bored they were walking out. At the Royal Academy of Music in London where he teaches his masterclasses go on from 9/10 till 5/6.
Thats not to say hes not a good flautist.

Sorry, thought it was talent and not a personality contest

sidekicker · Post by **sidekicker** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 7:15 am

Buttercup wrote:
sags_3 wrote:I distinctly remember going to masterclass of William Bennet's and nearly falling asleep. People were so bored they were walking out. At the Royal Academy of Music in London where he teaches his masterclasses go on from 9/10 till 5/6.
Thats not to say hes not a good flautist.
Sorry, thought it was talent and not a personality contest

I don't think he was talking about personality. I may have missed it, but nobody here has suggested that Bennett is anything but a charming person and talented flutist. The point made by sags, I think, which was made more overtly by me, is that it's easy to become bored by a teacher who uses exactly the same techniques on every student. Bennett, in my experience and observation, tries harder at getting people to sound like him than he does helping them maximize their own strengths to become a unique flutist in their own right. A teacher who cannot do the latter, in my book at least, lacks talent in that area and the masterclass setting makes for a somewhat boring and unproductive experience. That's probably why people were getting up and leaving. It's like watching the same movie 3 or 4 times; at some point there's nothing more to get out of it.

We already have one William Bennett, and he's wonderful; we don't need 1,000 more.

SK

Phineas · Post by **Phineas** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 7:46 am

Sidekicker

I agree. There are many teachers with the same problem. I could almost tell who the teacher is by listening to the student play. When I use to teach, I would rarely even pull out my instrument to play. WHY? It really is not important for the instructor to play, but to help the student develop!

Phineas

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 10:52 am

I agree as well. My 'summer' professor is somewhat like that, but it is actually good for me. Her strengths are my weaknesses, so she helps me improve a lot.My 'school year' professor focuses on helping me be unique by having me interpret the music my way, then she helps me make it better, but still in my style.

So, between the two, I am doing okay. Although, one is not nearly as demanding as the other one, and I dont feel as if I am progressing as much under her guidance, so we have discussed teaching methods that work well for me. That way, next semester, I will feel as if I am improving more under her instruction.

emauler · Post by **emauler** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 8:21 am

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Marina Piccinini. I've heard her live several times and its just amazing. Her CD's don't do her justice. Her tone is so powerful and her technique is incredible. If you have the chance, go to her masterclasses, totally worth it. You'll learn more from her in 20 mins than in a year with other teachers.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 10:09 am

WOW! What an old thread! I had forgotten all about this!

What two years can do to someone's taste in music.....

Galway isn't even remotely near my favorite flutist anymore. I like his recording of the Nielsen Concerto, but other than that I have come to dislike his sound. Too bright for my taste. He wasn't my favorite then, but he was still in the top 4-5. Now my "top 5" faves are Christina Jennings, Marina Piccinini, Carol Wincenc, Jeanne Baxtresser and Jim Walker.... OH! And Pahud is amongst them. So top 6 I guess....
W-O-W.

::shamed::

::thought "light bulb" comes on:: I just realized something. All of my favorites [with the exception of Walker and Pahud] are connected: Jennings and Piccinini both studied with Baxtresser and Wincenc when they studied at Juilliard. That's why they have so many stylistic similiarities. Go figure...

DivaricationOfMind · Post by **DivaricationOfMind** » Wed Mar 11, 2009 12:16 pm

I'd have to say my favorite flutist are, in this order:

Maxence Larrieu
Amy Porter
Emmanuel Pahud
Denis Bouriakov

Maxence Larrieu's sound never ceases to move me. The texture of his tone and the control he has over his sound is to die for in my opinion :] When ever I'm looking to help someone appreciate the flute I send them Larrieu's Hungarian Fantasy by Doppler and it always woos them without fail.

What I love about Amy Porter is her robust and passionate sound. You can find a few videos of her playing on youtube and if you've never given her a listen...I highly recommend it :] She also has amazing stage presence, she always looks as stunning as she sounds!

and of course, we can't forget Emmanuel Pahud. My favorite thing about him is his wide spectrum of tonal color.

Denis Bouriakov is a pretty young flutist, but, he's an extremely talented individual. He has a beautiful frothy sound and he puts a nice degree of grit and edge in his playing. He also has videos on youtube, a good handful actually.

Alkatji · Post by **Alkatji** » Thu Mar 12, 2009 7:18 am

hi there im new (both at the flute and at fluteland)

Not sure yet who are my favourite players but Im usually more sensitive to the groove than to the "purity of sound" or technic
here is my little selection:

first I would suggest two awesome flute players and composers from France:

Malik Mezzradi aka Magic Malik:
www.myspace.com/magicmalikorchestra
&
Ji Mob:
http://www.myspace.com/jimob
both are fantastic check them out this is worth it

Malik is THE virtuoso, he must come from Mars or something

I also feel in love with bansuri flute (but who doesnt). here are 2 amazing young masters

Deepak Ram (fusion and classical indian music )
http://www.deepakram.com
&
Shashank (classical indian music)
http://www.shashank.org/av.html

I also love the classicals

Roland Kirk, Eric Dolphy, Herbie Mann bossa novas, some of Paul Horn recording, the cubans, Orlando "Maraca" Valle, Jane Bunnet...and many more

There so many great flute players to discover...its amazing, it seems endless

and i havent even started to listen to classical flute music yet!!!

yesheford · Post by **yesheford** » Thu Apr 23, 2009 2:37 pm

Shakuhachi: Watazumido
Jazz: kirk,dolphy,
Classical: too subjective:Pahud has a killer tone...

myflute · Post by **myflute** » Thu Apr 23, 2009 6:00 pm

Alexandra Grot is pretty amazing.