2025 Seattle Flute Festival
with Conor Nelson
Festival Sponsor: Carolyn Nussbaum Music Company
Guest Artist Sponsor: Powell Flutes
Saturday, April 12, 2025
Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church
7500 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
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THIS IS A TICKETED EVENT
$20 SFS Members | $30 Non-Members | FREE Patron Members
$10 Performing Flute Choir Members | FREE Attendees 5th Grade and Under
All performers receive free admittance to their performance only.
Performers under 18 receive one free guest ticket to their performance only.
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SPECIAL OFFER: Volunteer for 2 hours (or more!) and receive FREE admission to the 2025 Festival! Sign up for volunteer shifts HERE, then contact membership@seattleflutesociety.org to arrange your free admission.
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Festival Schedule
The complete program for Festival Events is available HERE
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~ 9:00AM - DOORS OPEN ~
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9:30 - Commercial Exhibits Open (Exhibit Hall, Lower Level)
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Beat the crowds and come visit our commercial exhibits when they open! The exhibit hall will be open from 9:30am until 3:30pm. This year's commercial exhibitors include:
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Altus Flutes
Brannen Brothers Flutemakers, Inc.
Burkart Flutes and Piccolos
Carolyn Nussbaum Music Company
FluteWorks Seattle
Verne Q. Powell Flutes
William. S. Haynes Company
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9:30-11:00 - Flute Choir Showcase (Sanctuary, Upper Level)
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Flute choirs from the Pacific Northwest share performances of favored repertoire. This year's featured choirs are the Seattle Flute Society Flute Choir, ah tempo flutes, River Winds Flute Choir, Flûtrange, and the Capitol City Flute Club Flute Choir.
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View the program for this event HERE.
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10:00-11:00 - Masterclass with Guest Artist Conor Nelson (Tree of Life Room, Lower Level)
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2025 Guest Artist Conor Nelson presents a masterclass on solo repertoire for high school students.
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View the program for this event HERE.
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Special Thanks to Powell Flutes for their sponsorship of Dr. Nelson.
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11:15-12:15 - A Tribute to Kristine Anderson (Sanctuary, Upper Level)
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Pianist Kristine Anderson, who died last year, was a beloved member of the Seattle flute community. She accompanied generations of Horsfall contestants, played in studio recitals across the area, and collaborated with many SFS Guest Artists. The Seattle Flute Society pays tribute to Kristine's life and musical legacy in this recital.
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View the program for this event HERE.
12:30-1:30 - Community Sight-Reading Session (Tree of Life Room, Lower Level)
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Join some of Seattle's professional flutists for chamber music sight-reading. All ages and levels are welcome - we will have music appropriate for everyone to play in a supportive, low-stress setting! (And feel free to bring your favorite duo, trio, or quartet!)
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2:00-3:00- Horsfall Winners' Recital (Sanctuary, Upper Level)
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Winners of the 2025 Frank & Lu Horsfall Competition perform their prize-winning pieces! The 2025 Adjudicators were Adam Eccleston (Upper Division) and Leonard Garrison (Lower Division). More information can be found on our Horsfall page.
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View the program for this event HERE.
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3:30 - Commercial Exhibits Close (Exhibit Hall, Lower Level)
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Make sure you visit our commercial exhibits before they close!
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3:15-3:30 - All Members Meeting (Sanctuary, Upper Level)
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Our annual All Members Meeting includes 2025 SFS Board Elections, a preview of the 2025-2026 SFS Season, and the Flute Festival Raffle drawing!
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3:30-4:30 - Guest Artist Recital (Sanctuary, Upper Level)
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We are thrilled to present Conor Nelson as our 2025 Flute Festival Guest Artist! Mr. Nelson will be joined by pianist Lisa Bergman for an inspiring recital to bring this year's festivities to a close. ​
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View the program for this event HERE.
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Special Thanks to Powell Flutes for their sponsorship of Dr. Nelson.
2025 Powell Guest Artist: Conor Nelson
Praised for his “long-breathed phrases and luscious tone” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Canadian flutist Conor Nelson is established as a leading flutist and pedagogue of his generation. Since his New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, he has frequently appeared as soloist and recitalist throughout the United States and abroad.
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Solo engagements include concerti with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Flint Symphony, and numerous other orchestras. In addition to being the only wind player to win the Grand Prize at the WAMSO Young Artist Competition, he won first prize at the William C. Byrd Young Artist Competition. He also received top prizes at the New York Flute Club Young Artist Competition, the Haynes International Flute Competition as well as the Fischoff, Coleman, and Yellow Springs chamber music competitions.
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​With percussionist Ayano Kataoka he performed at Merkin Concert Hall, Tokyo Bunka Kaikan Hall, and Izumi Hall. A recital at the Tokyo Opera City Hall that received numerous broadcasts on NHK Television. Their CD entitled, Breaking Training was released on New Focus Recordings (NYC). His second CD, Nataraja with pianist Thomas Rosenkranz is also available on New Focus. He has collaborated with Claude Frank on the Schneider concert series in NYC and appeared at numerous chamber music festivals across the country including the OK Mozart, Bennington, Skaneateles, Yellow Barn, Cooperstown, Salt Bay, Look and Listen (NYC), Norfolk (Yale), Green Mountain, Chesapeake, and the Chamber Music Quad Cities series.
A respected pedagogue, Dr. Nelson has given master classes at over one hundred colleges, universities, and conservatories. Prior to his appointment at UW-Madison, he served as the flute professor at Bowling Green State University for nine years and as the Assistant Professor of Flute at Oklahoma State University from 2007-2011. His recent residencies include Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea, the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China, the Conservatoriode Música de Puerto Rico, and the Associação Brasileira de Flautistas in São Paulo.
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He is also a regular guest of the Texas Summer Flute Symposium and has been the featured guest artist for eleven flute associations across the country.
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He received degrees from the Manhattan School of Music, Yale University, and Stony Brook University where he was the winner of the schoolwide concerto competitions at all three institutions. He is also a recipient of the Thomas Nyfenger Prize, the Samuel Baron Prize, and the Presser Award. His principal teachers include Carol Wincenc, Ransom Wilson, Linda Chesis, Susan Hoeppner, and Amy Hamilton. Conor is a Powell Flutes artist and is the Associate Professor of Flute at UW-Madison where he performs with the Wingra Wind Quintet.