I’m on a roll with TV and Movie themes now! We started filming this last year and only recently came together after I finally stopped touring. Please remember to subscribe to my YouTube Channel.
NEW VIDEO! Game of Thrones Flute Cover
June 21, 2016 By
I had been wanting to film this for a while, but since I was on the road from November thru May, everything was just too hectic to film. I felt very excited when everything fell together quickly for the recording and video shoot. Within days, I had the finished product.
Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel for more videos.
NEW VIDEO! Lady of the Lake by Viviana Guzman
June 11, 2016 By
Lady of the Lake performed & composed by Viviana Guzman
In the Tales of King Arthur, “Vivian” was Merlin’s Mistress, the Lady of the Lake, and the bearer of Excalibur. This video fuses this ancient myth with my own autobiographical story of going from being unable to walk, growing up in body casts, and undergoing multiple surgeries…. to performing in the stages of the world with my Magic Flute…. my Golden Sword. I hope you like it!
Flutes by the Sea Bali 2016
April 25, 2016 By
Flutes by the Sea in Lovina, Bali
Flutes by the Sea 2016 Bali
I have always had a soft spot for Bali and especially Ubud. I have been making a yearly pilgrimage to Ubud every 2 years for the last 13 years or so. There are so many artisans that live and work in Ubud. I especially love the Hindu and Buddhist mix of temples, and in particular, the ceremonies that are offered throughout the day with incense and offerings. All this makes for a bewitching setting with beautiful and enchanting people. And it is for all these reason that I decided to offer the first ever Flute Masterclass in Bali.
Flutes by the Sea at Munduk Waterfall
The ocean provides a wonderfully inspiring and relaxing backdrop for any creative spirit; we arose from the sea and it resonates within us still. I have always been attracted to the sea, and feel I am a sea creature who cannot be separated from my home for too long; it calls to me. This is why I created Flutes by the Sea Masterclasses in my home town of Half Moon Bay, CA. I wanted to attract fellow flute lovers and show them the power the energizing waves can exert over their creativity. Through the years, Flutes by the Sea Masterclass star teachers have included Carol Wincenc (Juilliard School), Jill Felber (UC Santa Barbara), Andrea “Fluterscooter” Fisher, Alice K. Dade (University of Missouri) and Barbara Siesel.
Lovina Beach, Viviana Guzman Photography
Balinese Beauty
This year was expanded to include a seminar in Bali, Indonesia with Jane Rutter, Fluterscooter and myself rendezvousing with our students at that tranquil island in the west of the Pacific. Flutes by the Sea Bali started off with a session of swimming with the dolphins and coral reef snorkeling before the first note was played in flute class. Every day there was a different activity, from bathing at the breathtaking Munduk Waterfall; visiting the Batur, Bratan and Agung Volcanos; feeding the monkeys at the top of the mountain; to feeding the tropical fish at the bottom of the ocean; petting snakes, iguanas, and rabbits; and visiting the tropical deer who live on Menjangan “Deer” Island.
Rice Paddies in Ubu, Viviana Guzman Photography
We also visiting Buddhist and Hindu Temples and saw numerous timeless and serene rice paddies. In the afternoon flute classes we covered topics from vibrato, tuning, building technique to phrasing, tapering and memorization. After our week long stay in our oceanfront hotel in Lovina, we moved to the artistic and now famous (due to the movie Eat, Pray, Love) town of Ubud. Here, Australian flute sensation Jane Rutter joined us and offered daily afternoon masterclasses focusing on the special phrasing and warm-up techniques that she learned from her French Conservatoire masters, Jean-Pierre Rampal and Alain Marion. The class finished with a special performance that we all took part in at the Jodie O’Shea Orphanage in Denpasar. The children are appreciative of music and quite lively, with the inner beauty that seems to be imbued in the Balinese and which is the real reason Bali is such a paradise on earth.
Half Moon Bay, California–Flutes By The Sea July, 2016
Last year, our FBTS whale watching expedition in Half Moon Bay / Monterey Bay was so successful that we have decided to make a repeat the journey this year for those who would like to get up close and personal with our cetacean friends, or who would simply like to hone their fluting skills in a spiritually rich setting.
We are very excited to have the following joining us this year:
Masterclass Faculty
Julien Beaudiment, Former Principal of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Principal Flute of the Lyon Opera, Flute Professor at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Lyon.
Alice K. Dade, Former Principal Flute of the Swedish Radio Syjmphony Orchestra, Guest Principal of Seoul Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic, Assistant Flute Professor at the University of Missouri School of Music.
Viviana Guzman, International Soloist, 2014 GRAMMY Nominated album, TEDxBerkeley Speaker, performed in 125 countries, Co-Founder The Flute View Magazine, Founder & Director, San Francisco Flute Society
Andrea “Fluterscooter” Fisher, International Soloist, Founder, Fluterscooter flute bags, Co-Founder The Flute View Magazine, Juilliard School Entrepreneurship Lecturer
Jane Rutter, International Soloist, Australian Flute Sensation, Australian Grammy ARIA Nomination
The classes run from July 7 to 9, 2016 in the always beautiful Half Moon Bay, California, just a half hour from always offbeat San Francisco. See FlutesbytheSea.com for full details and early-mermaid / merman discounts and full details of the events and purchase tickets here.
Brian in Lovina Beach Hotel
Flutes by the Sea with Krishna
Soloist with Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra
October 14, 2015 By
Sometimes my life spins so rapidly, I have a hard time catching up with it, much less thoroughly absorbing and milking every glorious moment. I just came across this “old” video footage (2013) of my arrangement for flute and orchestra when I performed it with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Olivier Ochanine. The whole experience was golden for me from all the people I met, everyone who shared with me, from the orphaned girls, to the wonderfully talented and kindhearted musicians, and the Ambassador of Chile who graciously housed me during my stay. I was speechless after my trip there, but as I was whisked away onto the next glorious stop, I didn’t have much time to really absorb it all. Thank goodness for this video and all the wonderful pictures that remain as gleaming tokens along my glorious path.
My arrangement of CZARDAS by Vittorio Monti with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Olivier Ochanine.
Flutes by the Sea Masterclass 2013
September 3, 2013 By
From the moment I chose Half Moon Bay, CA as my residence, I knew I wanted to host Flute Events on the coast. Half Moon Bay is a little treasure with the murmuring ocean, the thriving city of San Francisco, the affluent Silicon Valley and busy SFO airport, all within an hour’s drive. In addition, the California coast is one of the most beautiful places on the planet and so much resembles my home country, Chile’s coastline. After being based out of here for 16 years whilst touring extensively, I decided I needed to find more of a balance between being at home and being on the road. Launching Flutes by the Sea Masterclass was one of my ventures while trying to attain my goal.
I felt so honored when International Recording and Touring Artist, Carol Wincenc, accepted my invitation to come teach the course with me. Additionally, our Flute Stars Concert featured Fluterscooter, Jane Lenoir, Janelle Barrera, Barbara Siesel & Keith Torgan of Green Golly and Kris Palmer. We had the wonderful participation of the following Flute Choirs: Magic Flutes, Pamela Ravenelle, Director; Bel Canto Flutes, Gail Edwards, Director; Crowden Summer Music School Flute Choir, Laura Scarlata, Director; The Orioles, Gala Yaroshevsky, Director; Flutes by the Sea Flute Choir, Janelle Barrera, Director. And the whole event was generously sponsored by Brannen Brothers Flutemakers, Altus Flutes, Lori Lee Flute Repair, Bernhard Hammig Flutes, West Valley Music, Gary Lewis Flutes.
The goal behind Flutes by the Sea Masterclass was to present a supportive cadre of talents from across the world. Stemming from the belief that we can learn something from everyone, FBTS was designed for students to learn from each other, for flute choirs to share with each other, and for the performers at the evening concerts, to shine the best possible light.
The Flutes by the Sea Masterclass commenced with a sublime performance of the Magic Flutes Orchestra, directed by Pamela Ravenelle, featuring works by Mozart, Debussy and de Falla. They graciously invited me to play the Mozart Flute Concerto in G Major, Andante with them.
Some of the unique offerings at Flute by the Sea were “Meditation for Performers” Class which took place alongside the gentle lull of the magnificent Pacific Ocean. Another unique component were the Business of Music Lectures which were delivered by our flute vendors. We were even presented with the opportunity to participate in the locally shot documentary film, “Sunset Piano” with will be released next year.
I offered the morning classes and International Flute Soloist and Juilliard Professor, Carol Wincenc, taught the afternoon classes. There was a Flute Market every day which featured a different Flute Vendor: Brannen Brothers Flutemakers, Altus Flutes, Bernhard Hammig Flutes, Gary Lewis Flutes, Green Golly Project, Fluterscooter, Lori Lee Flute Repair, West Valley Music and Joy of Music.
The evening concerts commenced every evening at 7pm which opened with a Flute Choir: Magic Flutes (Pamela Ravenelle), Crowden Summer Flute Choir (Laura Scarlata), Xtreme Flutes (Pamela Ravenelle), The Oriole Flute Choir (Gala Yaroshevsky), Bel Canto Flutes (Gail Edwards) and Flutes by the Sea Flute Choir (Janelle Barrera).
Special evening performances featured the Guest Artists: Carol Wincenc, Viviana Guzman, Barbara Siesel, Fluter Scooter, Janelle Barrera, Kris Palmer, Jane Lenoir, accompanied by pianists: Frank Levy, Mahani Teave and Dmitriy Cogan.
The 100+ participants included ages 6 to 76 and represented Singapore, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Los Angeles and even Easter Island! Best of all was the terrific sense of camaraderie that developed between all who participated. It is with the spirit that as a Group We Are Stronger that FBTS was created. And it is with this same goal that it will continue.
Flutes by the Sea
photo: Lars Howlett
Flutes by the Sea Poster Ad as seen in Flute Talk Magazine
June 2013 Newsletter
August 7, 2013 By
Canadian Flute Convention
July 25, 2013 By
with William Bennett
From start to finish the Canadian Flute Convention was both a complete success and as well as a source of great inspiration. To think that Samantha Chang launched this epic dream and was able to seamlessly execute this tremendous undertaking is uniquely meritorious.
I landed in Toronto after sleeping 4 hours on the red-eye flight and took a cab and arrived at Appleby College in Oakville, Canada at 8am. I was one of the early arrivals along with Di Zhao of Di Zhao Flutes and his lovely wife. The campus was beautiful, peaceful and on an enchanting lake. I rested up and then rehearsed with my outstanding accompanist, Richard Shaw. I presented my Extended Techniques from Tango to Beatbox Workshop, which was sponsored by Altus Flutes. I get such a kick out of introducing flutists to beatbox as it seems to instigate the most amusing noises. In no time we were all rolling with laughter. I performed that same evening in a split recital with the dazzling Niall O’Riordan after which the breathtaking virtuosity of Jean-Louis Beaumadier (France) and his brilliant pianist Jordi Torrent (Spain) performed. That night I passed out with exhaustion.
with Mina Ghobrial
The following day I was invited to participate in the panel discussion moderated by Jamie Thompson and the participation of Christopher Lee, Spencer Capet, Ron Korb and Samantha Chang. I attended riveting performances by Sarah Jackson, Trevor Wye, Christine Earlander Beard, Carla Rees, Sue Hoeppner, Magnum Trio, Sarah Jackson, Mina Ghobrial, and William Bennett. In addition, there were Exhibitor Showcases, Lectures, Masterclasses, morning Warm-ups, Reading Sessions, Panel Discussions, Workshops and several ensemble performances including Singaporian Director’s Shao Jian Huang’s Freemont Flute Ensemble from San Bruno, California.,
I was so busy running from one event to another that I wasn’t able to listen to everyone and I was only able to visit half of the Flute Market: Liz Pritchett of Altus Flutes, Forbes & Yola Christie of Windward Flutes, Kate Steinbeck of Abell Flute Company, Lenny of the Lopatin Flute Company, Finley of Haynes, Geraldine of Nagahara, flutist/composer Carmen Liliana Marulanda, Arista Flutes, and Ringo Chan of the Hong Kong Flute Centre. The Closing Ceremony was touching as we gathered and played the Canadian National Anthem on Canada Day which was eloquently conducted by Samantha Chang.
with Niall O’Riordan & Richard Shaw
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed what turned out to be a most triumphant and historic Canadian Flute Convention. I enjoyed the various performance venues, the weather, the Canadians, the dorms, the Appleby Campus (food offered delightful vegan and gluten-free alternative meals), and especially the international participation of all the various flutists including Mark Dannenbring, Peter Sheridan and Ringo Chan who flew in all the way from New Zealand, Australia, and Hong Kong, respectively. Most of all, as the founder of the San Francisco Flute Society & Festival, I give an especially warm and hearty standing ovation to Samantha Chang who’s vision and hard work enabled us all to experience a most enchanting First Canadian Flute Convention.
My Tango to Beatbox Techniques Masterclass
Tour of Chile
July 10, 2013 By
My first stop on this grand adventure was 30 minutes outside of Temuco, Chile. After spending the night on the airplane, I landed in Santiago and hopped onto a night-bus that ended up in Temuco, Chile the following morning. A white mini-van came to pick me up at the bus stop at 7am and took me to Mahani’s Mom’s house in the beautiful Chilean countryside outside of Temuco. The house was filled with performers from Easter Island as they had had a fundraising event the night before I arrived. The house was full of sleeping performers. I found a bed, and continued sleeping, too. We all woke up and had breakfast together. Two of the younger girls, 9 & 11 I had shared breakfast with turned out were musicians, so we went to the piano room to play music together. They were two of the current students enrolled in the Music School Mahani Teave has started on Easter Island.
Mahani and I rehearsed that day in this bucolic Chilean countryside. It was heaven. That night I was so enthralled with the evening sounds that I decided to sleep with the window open. To my horror, I woke up with a spider just above my head. I still don’t know what kind of spider it was, except that it really gave me an enormous and itchy bite that lasted the rest of the tour and to this day is still not fully healed! Nasty was this spider’s middle name!
TV interview in Concepcion, Chile
The following morning, we took the bus into Valdivia where we were to perform the following evening. We were met at the bus stop by Florangel and Jorge whom had approached me via Facebook. They had graciously offered to host me in a Masterclass for their students at the Conservatory in Valdivia. They were such warm, fun and generous people. It was such a pleasure to hear their students some of whom were some of the finest in the world! Who knew that there was such a vibrant Flute Community in Valdivia, Chile!
Our concert took place the following day after my Masterclass. I was impressed that both the Masterclass and the concert were announced separately and with large color pictures in the newspaper. This really helped bring in our terrific audience. It was a great theater, we had a great turn out, and we got a standing ovation. It was so wonderful to be back on the stage in Chile with such a wonderful musician. Mahani is not only a fantastic, sensitive musician, but a magnificent woman with a glorious heart.
Newspaper Diario Austral Valdivia, Chile
Next, I boarded the plane to my birth town Concepcion where I was picked up by my Aunt and Uncle Carmen and Eugenio. It was such a joy to see them both again as they are such warm and kind people. I hadn’t seen them for over a decade as I hadn’t performed in Concepcion since I played there with the orchestra. After Mahani arrived, we were interviewed on the morning TV show, and the newspapers. The day of the concert I held a Masterclass at the Conservatory in Concepcion.
The concert was so very well received that we got rhythmic applause! I hadn’t heard that kind of response since I played as a soloist with the orchestra in Khabarovsk, Russia. We played our encores and then some of the students from the University of Bio Bio surprised us by performing music from Easter Island in honor of Mahani. She felt so inspired that she started to dance. Then an audience member Enrique Icka jumped on stage and joined her. Soon enough, I was dancing, too. What a magical exchange it was. Thank you Concepcion!
El Mercurio Social Column
The following day, we took a bus back to Santiago after which we were scheduled to perform for The President of Chile and his Authorities in Viña del Mar. This was quite the Gala Event complete with red carpet, TV cameras, and fancy cobalt blue lights, all of which took place in the newly renovated historic Hotel O’Higgins. We even made into the Chilean Newspaper socialite page. It was all very cool.
Ten days after my initial spider bite, finally, I found some time to go visit with a doctor when we were back in Santiago who put special creams on it and gave me some antibiotics as the bite was looking worse than ever. It was amazing to me how fierce those little insects can be. More than anything my wound itched like crazy and after the doctor placed the healing Duraderm patch on it, I felt a bit of relief. It was really a lesson on assuming a very Zen-like attitude in spite of yielding to scratch the itch. My motto became: Observe. Release. Resist. I wondered if this lesson needed to be transferred to other areas of my life.
Viviana & Mahani Concert
Our days were filled with more interviews that lead up to our concerts in Valparaiso and Santiago. The concert in Valparaiso was in the Universidad Technica de Santa Maria, my father’s Alma Mater. I had performed there previously 7 years prior. The campus is alluring as it overlooks the enthralling Valparaiso Harbor. The best part of this concert is that so many friends and family came. After the concert it was like a real homecoming for me. It was so nice to see so many familiar faces.
A few days later we performed for the bank executives of the Banco Santander at the MAC Museo de Artes Contemporeano, the MOMA of Santiago. This event was also filmed in this magnificent building. And our final concert was held at the Escuela Moderna. Immediately that evening was my flight home. By then, 3 weeks later, my spider bite was still not much better. In addition, that morning, I woke up with a severely stiff neck.
In hindsight it was probably my body that was rebelling and pleading for some time off. My dilemma is always the fact that I ADORE touring and performing; so much so that I’ve turned into a Super Road Warrior. I remember that during our demanding Asian Tour, Mahani was the one who’s health started caving towards the end of our stay in China. Touring is not for sissies that’s for sure. Nevertheless, I always learn so much from traveling and performing. I gain such inspiration from the cultural exchanges, and all the smiling people I meet along the way. I rested the day I got home and then embarked on my next adventure.
Viviana, Teamai, Mahani & Yoli
p.s. An extended THANK YOU and shout out goes to Mahani’s beautiful, meticulous and super organized sister, Teamai Teave for making this Tour of Chile especially wonderful, fruitful, comfortable and above all, JOYFUL!!!! VIVA TEA!!! VIVA MAHA!!! LAS QUIERO MUCHO!!!!
Universidad Santa Maria Theater, Valparaiso, Chile
