Our Flute Festival was an amazing success! See you again in 2024!
Congratulations to our Collegiate YAC Winners!
1st Prize
Taylor Francis
Taylor Francis strives to encompass all facets of music in his career. As a performer, he has given many notable performances, including Carl Nielsen's Concerto for Flute and Orchestra alongside the Bowling Green Philharmonia. He currently performs with the University of North Texas Symphony Orchestra. Taylor has performed in masterclasses across the country for world-renowned musicians such as Amy Porter, Sarah Jackson, Leone Buyse, Alberto Almarza, and Mario Caroli.
Chamber music also plays a large role in Taylor’s career. As a member of the Borderlines Trio, he won first prize in the Douglas Wayland Chamber Music competition. In May 2019, the trio completed a tour of Michigan that allowed them to perform and educate hundreds of middle and high school students. He is also a member of the Verismo Wind Duo. Along with clarinetist Gretchen Hill, this ensemble regularly holds summer community outreach performances at nursing homes and senior living facilities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In 2021, Taylor became a founding member of Azure Family Concerts Pittsburgh. This ongoing organization presents concerts of the highest quality in an “all behaviors welcome” environment to families who are living with autism.
As an educator, Taylor currently serves as a Teaching Fellow for the University of North Texas. He was previously the advanced flute mentor for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Ensembles. Through this organization, he helped to train the Detroit area’s top high school aged flutists in orchestral performance.
Taylor has earned his Master of Music in flute performance from Carnegie Mellon University and his Bachelor of Music in flute performance from Bowling Green State University. His primary teachers include Lorna McGhee, Terri Sundberg, Alberto Almarza, Conor Nelson, and Donald Bohannon-Gauthier. He is currently in pursuit of a Graduate Artist Certificate with Terri Sundberg at the University of North Texas.
2nd Prize, Lorien Britt
Lorien Britt is a freshman undergraduate at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Classical Flute Performance and studies with Linda Chesis. She is originally from Dallas, Texas, where she studied flute with Claire Johnson. Lorien was a member of the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra for three years as part of its flute choir and premier symphony orchestra. She was also an active member of her high school ensembles, church music ministry, and both state and national flute organizations. Lorien received the Outstanding Performer distinction at the Texas State Solo and Ensemble Contest every year she has been in attendance. In 2022, she was a member of the Texas Music Educators Association 6A All-State Philharmonic Orchestra. She has performed for several world-renowned flutists, such as Jasmine Choi, Paul Edmund-Davies, Alison Fierst, Lorna McGhee, Marina Piccinini, and James Walker. Most recently, Lorien was selected as a finalist for the Flute Society of Greater Philadelphia Collegiate Competition and will compete in the final round in March 2023.
3rd Prize, Andy Hankes
Andy Hankes is a passionate young flutist in his second year at the Eastman School of Music. Andy is pursuing a degree in flute performance, and studies with Bonita Boyd as well as Anne Harrow. At Eastman, he has performed with the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra and Eastman Wind Orchestra. He is also a member of the Mousai Wind Quintet, a performing chamber group. In the past, Andy has held principal flute positions in the Dickinson College Orchestra, as well as the Harrisburg Symphony Youth Orchestra. As a soloist, he has performed with the Carlisle Town Band as the featured young solo artist, and performed the Ibert Concerto at the Mt. Gretna playhouse as a First Listen soloist. Andy has attended numerous summer festivals including the Sewanee Summer Music Festival, and the Interlochen Arts Camp, in which he was a member of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra. Andy has also attended Orford Music Academy, Interlochen Online, and the Oberlin Flute Academy. He has performed in public masterclasses with Demarre McGill, Marina Piccinini, Alexa Still, and Nancy Stagnitta. His previous teachers include Jocelyn Goranson, flute professor at Messiah University.