Faculty
Sue Davies, Art
Approaching every day with an open mind and an open heart, Susan gains inspiration from her sleeping and waking dreams and embraces their capacity to connect the physical and metaphysical realms. She believes that the process of creating art connects her with a larger energy and it is through her participation as a conduit for that energy that her art achieves authenticity. During the creative process, Susan is focused on cultivating a sense of play; playing with materials, throwing around new ideas, and engaging in lighthearted conversations with other creative thinkers. Susan received formal training in painting and drawing at Gustavus Adolphus College and Temple University’s Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy. She presently lives in Buffalo, MN where she enjoys being an active flautist with a special interest in ancient Celtic melodies as well as being an artist and educator.
Meret Bitticks, Flute
Altus Artist Meret Bitticks maintains an active schedule as a soloist, chamber musician, and clinician in the U.S. and abroad while on faculty at the Music Institute of Chicago, Lake Forest College, and DePaul University. Ms. Bitticks has joined Trio Chicago and Friends for international concert tours, including the United Arab Emirates and Australia. Ms. Bitticks is a registered Suzuki Flute Teacher Trainer and in 2013 became the first flutist to receive a Certificate of Achievement for excellence in Suzuki instruction from the Suzuki Association of the Americas. A frequent volunteer at music camps in Haiti, Ms. Bitticks serves on the board of BLUME Haiti, an organization that promotes leadership through music education.
Laura Larson, Flute
Ms. Larson received her BM degree from the University of Miami and began her professional flute career at age 20 playing piccolo in the Miami Philharmonic. She won prizes in the NFA Young Artist Competition and Financial Federal Musical Showcase Competition. Recently retired as principal flutist with the Flint Symphony Orchestra, she also plays flute and piccolo with the Michigan Opera Theater Orchestra. Ms. Larson is on the adjunct applied faculty at Wayne State University and is a Suzuki Flute teacher trainer. Her CD, Jinju, is available for purchase on CD Baby, Amazon and her website, www.larsonflute.com.
Wendy Stern, Flute
Flutist Wendy Stern is a member of the dynamic and innovative group, Flute Force, winner of the Artists International Competition and recipient of numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, and the New York Council of the Arts. With Flute Force, Wendy has performed and coached chamber music in Australia, Canada and throughout the United States. As a freelance flutist in New York, Wendy has played in the flute sections of many prestigious organizations, including the New York Philharmonic, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Wendy received her Master of Music Degree from the Juilliard School, where she was a scholarship student of Julius Baker. She continued her studies with Keith Underwood in New York and began her Suzuki Teacher Training in 1994. In September 2006, Wendy studied with Toshio Takahashi at the Talent Education Research Institute in Matsumoto, Japan as a scholarship recipient of the Suzuki Association of the Americas.
Sue Davies, Art
Approaching every day with an open mind and an open heart, Susan gains inspiration from her sleeping and waking dreams and embraces their capacity to connect the physical and metaphysical realms. She believes that the process of creating art connects her with a larger energy and it is through her participation as a conduit for that energy that her art achieves authenticity. During the creative process, Susan is focused on cultivating a sense of play; playing with materials, throwing around new ideas, and engaging in lighthearted conversations with other creative thinkers. Susan received formal training in painting and drawing at Gustavus Adolphus College and Temple University’s Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy. She presently lives in Buffalo, MN where she enjoys being an active flautist with a special interest in ancient Celtic melodies as well as being an artist and educator.
Vanamali Medina, Co-Director
Vanamali Medina is an active Suzuki flute teacher in the Twin Cities area. She maintains studios at the MacPhail Center for Music and her home and teaches at Maple Grove High School, as well as giving regular workshops and clinics in other area elementary, middle, and high schools. She earned her B.M. in Performance with Distinction from St. Olaf College, studying with Kay Sahlin, and her Masters in Performance at the University of British Columbia, studying with Lorna McGhee and Brenda Fedoruk. She is a Committee Chair for the Upper Midwest Flute Association and the Membership Director for the Suzuki Association of Minnesota. Her Suzuki teacher training began at Lake Sylvia with David Gerry and she also takes daily "parent training" as the Suzuki practice partner for her two young daughters.
Laura Larson, Flute
Ms. Larson received her BM degree from the University of Miami and began her professional flute career at age 20 playing piccolo in the Miami Philharmonic. She won prizes in the NFA Young Artist Competition and Financial Federal Musical Showcase Competition. Recently retired as principal flutist with the Flint Symphony Orchestra, she also plays flute and piccolo with the Michigan Opera Theater Orchestra. Ms. Larson is on the adjunct applied faculty at Wayne State University and is a Suzuki Flute teacher trainer. Her CD, Jinju, is available for purchase on CD Baby, Amazon and her website, www.larsonflute.com.
Wendy Stern, Flute
Flutist Wendy Stern is a member of the dynamic and innovative group, Flute Force, winner of the Artists International Competition and recipient of numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, and the New York Council of the Arts. With Flute Force, Wendy has performed and coached chamber music in Australia, Canada and throughout the United States. As a freelance flutist in New York, Wendy has played in the flute sections of many prestigious organizations, including the New York Philharmonic, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Wendy received her Master of Music Degree from the Juilliard School, where she was a scholarship student of Julius Baker. She continued her studies with Keith Underwood in New York and began her Suzuki Teacher Training in 1994. In September 2006, Wendy studied with Toshio Takahashi at the Talent Education Research Institute in Matsumoto, Japan as a scholarship recipient of the Suzuki Association of the Americas.
Sue Davies, Art
Approaching every day with an open mind and an open heart, Susan gains inspiration from her sleeping and waking dreams and embraces their capacity to connect the physical and metaphysical realms. She believes that the process of creating art connects her with a larger energy and it is through her participation as a conduit for that energy that her art achieves authenticity. During the creative process, Susan is focused on cultivating a sense of play; playing with materials, throwing around new ideas, and engaging in lighthearted conversations with other creative thinkers. Susan received formal training in painting and drawing at Gustavus Adolphus College and Temple University’s Tyler School of Art in Rome, Italy. She presently lives in Buffalo, MN where she enjoys being an active flautist with a special interest in ancient Celtic melodies as well as being an artist and educator.
Vanamali Medina, Co-Director
Vanamali Medina is an active Suzuki flute teacher in the Twin Cities area. She maintains studios at the MacPhail Center for Music and her home and teaches at Maple Grove High School, as well as giving regular workshops and clinics in other area elementary, middle, and high schools. She earned her B.M. in Performance with Distinction from St. Olaf College, studying with Kay Sahlin, and her Masters in Performance at the University of British Columbia, studying with Lorna McGhee and Brenda Fedoruk. She is a Committee Chair for the Upper Midwest Flute Association and the Membership Director for the Suzuki Association of Minnesota. Her Suzuki teacher training began at Lake Sylvia with David Gerry and she also takes daily "parent training" as the Suzuki practice partner for her two young daughters.
Andrea Myers, Co-Director
Andrea Myers is a Suzuki Flute teacher and performer based in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, MN. She has completed training in Suzuki Flute Book 1-6 and Book 9 under the tutelage of Meret Bitticks, David Gerry, and Kelly Williamson. She received her Bachelor’s of Music in Flute Performance from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities studying under Immanuel Davis and has participated in masterclasses held by Keith Underwood, Ali Ryerson, Conor Nelson, Pedro de Alcantara, and Wilbert Hazlezet, After an injury in 2009, she began to study Alexander Technique with Tully Hall and it has proven to be an invaluable source of information and inspiration.
Andrea is a founding teacher of Hopewell Music Cooperative North, a nonprofit music school based in north Minneapolis which provides accessible and affordable high quality music education for the community. She also teaches within the Mahtomedi (MN) school district and at The Saint Paul Conservatory of Music.
Meret Bitticks, Flute
Altus Artist Meret Bitticks maintains an active schedule as a soloist, chamber musician, and clinician in the U.S. and abroad while on faculty at the Music Institute of Chicago, Lake Forest College, and DePaul University. Ms. Bitticks has joined Trio Chicago and Friends for international concert tours, including the United Arab Emirates and Australia. Ms. Bitticks is a registered Suzuki Flute Teacher Trainer and in 2013 became the first flutist to receive a Certificate of Achievement for excellence in Suzuki instruction from the Suzuki Association of the Americas. A frequent volunteer at music camps in Haiti, Ms. Bitticks serves on the board of BLUME Haiti, an organization that promotes leadership through music education.
Wendy Stern, Flute
Flutist Wendy Stern is a member of the dynamic and innovative group, Flute Force, winner of the Artists International Competition and recipient of numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, and the New York Council of the Arts. With Flute Force, Wendy has performed and coached chamber music in Australia, Canada and throughout the United States. As a freelance flutist in New York, Wendy has played in the flute sections of many prestigious organizations, including the New York Philharmonic, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Wendy received her Master of Music Degree from the Juilliard School, where she was a scholarship student of Julius Baker. She continued her studies with Keith Underwood in New York and began her Suzuki Teacher Training in 1994. In September 2006, Wendy studied with Toshio Takahashi at the Talent Education Research Institute in Matsumoto, Japan as a scholarship recipient of the Suzuki Association of the Americas.
Zara Lawler, Flute
A recognized leader in the emerging field of interdisciplinary performance, flutist Zara Lawler has collaborated with choreographers, composers and stage directors to create new and adventurous concert experiences. Lawler’s interdisciplinary performances, in which she plays, dances, and acts, have been created in collaboration with choreographer C. Neil Parsons, stage director Gary Race, and composers Randall Woolf, Jerome Kitzke, and Alla Borzova. Her piece E Pluribus Flutum, for up to 60 dancing flutists, was premiered at the National Flute Association’s Annual Convention in 2011. For many years, Lawler was the flutist and co-artistic director of Tales & Scales, an innovative ensemble for children and family audiences that integrated contemporary classical music with dance and theater. She earned her master’s degree from the Juilliard School, where she studied with Carol Wincenc and Sam Baron. Among competitions she has won are the Ima Hogg Young Artist Competition, Artists’ International, and the New York Flute Club. She has performed at Tanglewood, Banff Festival of the Arts, Bach Aria Festival and Institute, and the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.
Tully Hall, Alexander Technique
Tully Hall started playing piano by ear as a little girl and went on to study French horn performance at Northwestern University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She played in an opera orchestra in Germany before returning to the States and freelancing with the Albany, Vermont, Berkshire, Berkshire Opera and St Cecilia Chamber Orchestras. Having joyfully discovered the Technique, boon to all musicians, Tully trained with Missy Vineyard Ehrgood in New England for three years and has been teaching now for over 27 years. In addition to her current private practice in Woodbury and South Minneapolis, she travels to teach frequently in Virginia and Florida and is guest faculty at the Stetson University School of Music. She has taught classes and workshops at Shenandoah University, George Mason University, Catholic University, the University of Minnesota, UMD-Duluth, State University of Minnesota-Moorhead, Gustavus Adolphus College, and at 3M Corporate Headquarters. She is a member of AmSAT and served as Chair of their Professional Conduct Committee for three years. Tully loves to help performers of all levels find ease, freedom and joy in their art!
Linda Pacel, Art
Linda believes that everyone is creative and just needs direction to find which creative outlet best suits them. She has worked with every level and age group and always leaves feeling inspired. Personally, throughout her life she has continued to build on her art and business background by challenging herself to experiment. She has worked in a wide range of mediums including: Photography, Gauche-Watercolors, Acrylic Painting and Block Printing. Her most passionate aspect is manipulating color; to work both for and against one another, blending texture at times. She is also known for her abstract landscape work. Linda is an Alumni of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, since graduation she has been an active artist. Linda’s professional background includes; Shoe Designer, Furniture Designer and Buyer for a National Furniture company.
Vanamali Medina, Co-Director
Vanamali Medina is an active Suzuki flute teacher in the Twin Cities area. She maintains studios at the MacPhail Center for Music and her home and teaches at Maple Grove High School, as well as giving regular workshops and clinics in other area schools. She earned her B.M. in Performance with Distinction from St. Olaf College, studying with Kay Sahlin, and her Masters in Performance at the University of British Columbia, studying with Lorna McGhee and Brenda Fedoruk. She is a Committee Chair for the Upper Midwest Flute Association and the Membership Director for the Suzuki Association of Minnesota. Her Suzuki teacher training began at Lake Sylvia with David Gerry and she also takes daily "parent training" as the Suzuki practice partner for her two young daughters.
Andrea Myers, Co-Director
Andrea Myers is a Suzuki Flute teacher and performer based in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, MN. She has completed training in Suzuki Flute Book 1-6 and Book 9 under the tutelage of Meret Bitticks, David Gerry, and Kelly Williamson. She received her Bachelor’s of Music in Flute Performance from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities studying under Immanuel Davis and has participated in masterclasses held by Keith Underwood, Ali Ryerson, Conor Nelson, Pedro de Alcantara, and Wilbert Hazlezet, After an injury in 2009, she began to study Alexander Technique with Tully Hall and it has proven to be an invaluable source of information and inspiration.
Andrea is a founding teacher of Hopewell Music Cooperative North, a nonprofit music school based in north Minneapolis which provides accessible and affordable high quality music education for the community. She also teaches within the Mahtomedi (MN) school district and at The Saint Paul Conservatory of Music.