Research Catalogue

I left my native Australia at the age of 24 to specialise in the baroque flute, in the hope that I would one day  make my living as a performer of 18th century music on historical flutes. I studied at the Koninklijk Conservatorium of The Hague as a student of Barthold Kuijken and then at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis as a student of Anne Smith, specialising on the renaissance flute. Both periods of study were revelatory for me. Since then I have travelled more than I ever dreamed I would, playing historical flutes from the renaissance to the late romantic periods. My musical imagination has continued to expand and my love of music, for itself, and for the life it has given me, has never diminished. I have experienced many facets of the musical profession: orchestral playing, chamber music, solo recitals, artistic leadership of ensembles, programming, writing about music, and a recent debut as a conductor. And I have accompanied many young aspiring flutists on their own journey to becoming professionals.

My musical interests are broad but I have specialist experience in the flutes of the 16th and 17th centuries. I am also interested in the social history of music, the history of musicians in society and in the relationship of music to text. I speak several languages and believe that languages can give you the keys to understanding many many things about music. Alongside my musical life I am interested in questions of justice, equality, ethics and law. I have two children with my husband and partner of more than 20 years, oboist Ofer Frenkel.

I believe in a pursuit of music that enables the flourishing of the whole personality, and reject structures which tend to confine and narrow the spirit. For my students I aim above all to see them grow in confidence and artistic self-determination, built upon mastery and an ever-deepening understanding of the music they love and the music they play.