Private Tuition - IN-PERSON & ONLINE

I have maintained a teaching studio for a small but committed number of students over the two decades. Due to my ordinarily hectic performing and travel schedule, I am unable to give weekly lessons - but bi-weekly, monthly, or just one-off consultation lessons are available on request. I am happy to tailor lessons around the needs of the student. However - my specialities are as follows:

Tone Development

I have a proven methodology, designed to remove the mystery from producing a full, beautiful, rich flute sound across the entire range of the instrument through working on tonal flexibility, dynamic spectrum, variety of timbre and using varieties of air speed and volume, nuances and note voicing to fine tune your technique.

Finger technique and Articulation

Thorough examination and diagnosis of technical problems - with creative, individually tailored cures and fixes for your own specific difficulties. Fine-tuning of your articulation, using tried and tested methods in order to give you the tools to help yourself improve at an even greater speed.

Avant-garde techniques and Improvisation

Having studied with one of the masters of avant-garde techniques, Ian Clarke, and written several works on the instruction of the use of Extended Techniques, I am happy to give instruction and help on contemporary works and methods.

An exercise for you imagination - improvisation can give you ideas, characters, moods, and tone colours for use in your own repertoire study, as well as being a pure art form in itself.

Low Flute Teaching

I am one of the most experienced professional players of low flutes in the world - having played Bass and Alto Flutes since the young age of 12 (1992) and Contrabass Flutes since 1996 - I have decades of playing experience, and have developed a firm technique and methodology for low flute tuition. I have been in demand in the recording studio, and the concert platform playing low flutes, and have also given workshops and classes specifically on the technique of effective performance on these wonderful, sonorous instruments. 

Classes - Workshops - Lectures

I've been giving classes to groups of flute players since 2005 when I gave my very first repertoire class at a Flutewise event in Ovingdean on the South Coast of England.

Over the following years - I've given classes for literally thousands of flute students, ranging from primary school age, to high school level, to conservatoire students, right through to teachers in Music Services.

Geographically, my classes have taken me from the West Coast of the USA to the East Coast of Australia, and many places in between - including  Yale School of Music, Beijing Central Conservatory of Music, Guildhall School of Music & Drama, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Sir James Galway's Flute Festivals in Switzerland and the USA, Hong Kong Flute Centre, Boston Flute Academy, Music Schools in Kenya, China, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Poland, Portugal, Iceland, Norway, and most especially Russia where I have given four series of Masterclasses for Maestro Yuri Bashmet's Music Academies - taking me to Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Tolyatti, Kazan, Yaroslavl, Novosibirsk and Zhoukovsky.

Masterclass Teaching

I'm extremely experienced in masterclass-style teaching. In Russia alone, I have given over 150 full days worth of masterclasses since 2013. I work with children of any stage or standard of playing, through to adult amateurs, high-school whizz-kids and conservatoire students - I have worked extensively with all levels and abilities. I have been a featured artist at over 200 Flute Days and Masterclasses in the UK and Europe - and many more collaborative events with Flutewise and other flute/woodwind groups and schools. 

DEMYSTIFYING GREAT Tone

This class can run for anything from one hour - right up to a half day, and can be both in a lecture format, or completely interactive. I outline a way to essentially demystify the approach to the achievement of obtaining an objectively great flute tone across the whole of the instrument. My aim is for it to be an innovative re-examination of methodologies of fantastic flute tone production. I aim to facilitate a discussion on the fundamentals of how to achieve a rich, resonant, clear, full and vibrant tone right across the whole instrument. I have presented this workshop a few dozen times all over the UK at ‘In Service Training’ sessions for British Music Education Authorities, and have honed a session which not only shows how to achieve a great fundamental flute tone, but also how to teach it.

Whistle Stop Tour of Extended Techniques

I first presented this session at the Sir James Galway Flutes Festival at UGA, Athens, USA in June 2014 and I have since given it at events and classes in Portugal, Russia, Poland, Denmark, the USA and China including Yale University, Manhattan School of Music, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and The Beijing Central Conservatory among others. In this session, I explain, demonstrate and encourage the experimentation and production of a large selection of extended techniques for the flute in an informative, instructive and entertaining way. The techniques that are covered include: Flutter-tonguing, Harmonics, Alternative Fingerings, Multi-phonics, glissandi, Quartertones, Key-clicks, Ultra-high, Singing & Playing, with difference tones, Residual Tone, Explosive Articulation, Tongue pops, Tongue-stops, Jet Whistle and Expressive Air Blasts, Whale Sound, Non-standard/ethnic tone and Whistle Tones (hence whistle-stop!). The worksheet for the class is available for FREE here.

COLO(U)R & EMOTION

Originally conceived as an inspirational lecture for candidates for the International Towarnicky Flute Competition in Poznan, Poland in 2020 - this lecture tackles the aspects of flute-playing that I utilise when adjudicating competitions - and deals with each of the subjects in turn - and how this can expand into artistry, musicality and great flute playing!