UPCOMING PROJECTS
MEF/MELLIS Flute Camp, July 23-27, 2018
Dear MEF/MELLIS Flute Camp Participants and Parents,
We look forward to working with you during Flute Camp week, July 23-27. The camp is located at 2213 N. Lindsay Rd, Mesa, 85213, St. Bridget Church. Camp hours are Monday-Thursday 8:30am-3:30pm and Friday 8:30am-7:00pm. The camp concert will be held at St. Bridget Church on Friday, July 27 at 5:00pm. The concert is free and open to the public.
Ensemble placement audition: Please be prepared to play a 2-3 minute piece of music, of your choice, on the first morning of camp. This placement audition will help the camp instructors to decide what small ensemble would be best for you during flute camp week. Complete beginners do not need to play any music on the first day.
Check-in: Each camp day all campers will check-in by picking up their name tag/lanyard in Collins Hall at St. Bridget Church.
Check-out: At the end of each camp day, students’ name tags will be collected in Collin's Hall.
Lunch: Students are responsible for bringing their own lunches.
Required camp forms: You will receive several student/parent forms that must be filled out, signed and returned prior to the start of camp. You will receive the camp forms by email by July 14.
Concert Dress: Clothing for Friday's performance is dress-up clothes, any colors. Boys should wear dress shirts and ties, dress pants and dress shoes. Girls should wear dresses or dress shirts/pants and dress shoes. Please be modest in regards to neckline and dress length. Students should bring their performance clothes to camp on Friday, there will be a scheduled time to change clothes in the afternoon.
Valuables: Students will be responsible for all valuables brought to camp. It is best to leave all valuables at home.
Water: There will be breaks throughout the day but we also suggest bringing a capped water bottle clearly marked with your name.
Behavior: Please be respectful of the St. Bridget's facilities throughout the camp week. There are a few basic behavior expectations that must be followed by everyone. Adherence to these expectations will ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all. In the unlikely case that a MEF/MELLIS Flute Camp student is highly disruptive to the camp environment, Camp Director Carol Mellis reserves the right to suspend or remove a student from camp with no refund of camp fees. Students must remain active in the scheduled camp activities every camp day. Students are expected to follow directions given by camp instructors, staff and volunteers.
Students are expected to possess superior rehearsal and class etiquette. This includes no talking during rehearsals, classes, recitals and masterclasses and being on time to all camp activities.
Students are expected to be team players. They are expected to be kind and considerate to everyone attending the camp. Foul language, teasing and name calling are not allowed at the camp.
School-like behaviors are expected in regards to appropriate dress, no romantic public displays of affection, no inappropriate or illegal items such as drugs, cigarettes or chewing tobacco, weapons or dangerous items.
Students are expected to bring a pencil to camp every day.
Electronic devices may only be used at lunch and on designated breaks.
No food or drinks (except water containers with lids) are allowed in the facilities, except at lunch time.
There is no gum allowed during the camp at any time, including lunch.
Flute Camp topics include:
Tone production
Daily warm-ups
Scales
Practice Techniques
Extended Techniques
Improving Sightreading Skills
Audition Preparation
Solo Preparation
Piccolo Performance
Dealing with Nerves
Posture and Poise
"The Metronome is Your Friend"
Selecting Flute Literature
Musical Terminology
Music Theory and Composition
When, Where and How to Purchase a Flute
Improvisation
World Flutes
Careers in Music
Masterclasses
Faculty Recital
Student Solo Recital
MEF/MELLIS Flute Camp Staff:
Carol Mellis, Co-Director
Carol Mellis is a freelance musician residing in Tempe, Arizona. As a versatile flutist (classical/jazz/liturgical) and vocalist (jazz/pop/liturgical) she currently performs in concert venues, jazz clubs, restaurants, liturgical services, recording studios, and at corporate and private events. Carol often performs with M-Squared, a jazz/pop duo with her husband Mark Mellis, and with Mellismatic, a mixed-media chamber group with several members of her family. She also performs regularly with other professional ensembles including jazz combos, orchestras and chamber groups.
Carol’s career highlights include performances with musical greats Hubert Laws, Yo-Yo Ma, Mike Garson, Ali Ryerson, Jim Walker, Amy Porter and Charles Lewis; Studio flutist for 20+ Epoch/NALR recordings, A Baby’s Prayer for flute and harp, Passages by Mark Mellis and Have Yourself a Mellis Family Christmas; Mellis Family Ireland Tour; Ali Ryerson and M-Squared at The Nash, Phoenix; Duo performances in the Mayo Clinic Atrium Concert Series; Flutist for humorist Erma Bombeck’s funeral; flutist for Bruce Halle’s funeral; Flutist for Pope John Paul II’s Papal Mass, Phoenix.
As an experienced and nurturing flute instructor, Carol has taught numerous award winning private flute students. Many of her students have been accepted into Arizona All-State and Regional Orchestra/Band, Phoenix Youth Symphony, National Flute Association High School Flute Choir, summer music camps including Interlochen and college flute studios including University of Southern California. Her students have received top honors at solo competitions including the Phoenix Symphony Guild Concerto Competition and the Arizona Flute Society Solo Competition.
Expressing her entrepreneurial spirit, Carol founded the PLACe Music Academy, sole proprietorship in 1995 and Musician Enrichment Foundation (MEF), 501(c)(3), in 2004. In June 2016, she was the Artistic Director for Musician Enrichment Foundation’s Band Camp at the Tempe Center for the Arts. In June 2017, Carol was the Artistic Director for the MEF/ASU Band Camp, an exciting and innovative MEF collaboration with Arizona State University's School of Music. She will continue in this role for the MEF/ASU Band Camp in June 2018. Carol is also the Artistic Director for the MEF High School Chamber Ensembles and musical coach for the exceptional MEF H.S. Woodwind Quintet.
Carol studied classical flute with Linda Threate (Florida Symphony Orchestra); Eric Hoover, Trygve Peterson and Elizabeth Buck (Arizona State University); Geoffrey Gilbert (Royal Philharmonic and London Symphony); and Jose Corral (Phoenix Symphony). Carol studied jazz flute with Michael Kocour and Jeff Libman (ASU); Jose Corral (Phoenix Symphony); and vocal jazz with Charles Lewis (Phoenix). She received masterclass instruction with William Bennett (London Symphony and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields); Jim Walker (University of Southern California/Colburn Conservatory of Music/LA Philharmonic); Sarah Jackson (LA Philharmonic); Leone Buyse (Boston Symphony and Rice University); Ali Ryerson (jazz flutist and author of Jazz Flute Practice Method); Charles Delaney (Florida State University); Keith Underwood (Mannes College of Music); and Robert Dick (New York University).
Carol earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Instrumental Music Education in 1984 and her Master’s Degree in Flute Performance in 2016 from Arizona State University.
Rachel Mellis. Co-Director
Los Angeles based flutist, Rachel Mellis, enjoys a multi-faceted career as an orchestral, chamber, solo, and recording artist. She performs regularly throughout the U.S. and has toured internationally in Europe and Asia. She has collaborated with esteemed artists across many musical genres, including Classical, Jazz, World, Electronic, and Pop music. Notable collaborators include John Williams, Danny Elfman, Michael Tilson Thomas, James Conlon, Carl St. Clair, Seth Macfarlane, Rachel Platten, Lea Michele, 12th Planet, and Drake Bell.
As an active recording artist, Rachel’s playing has been featured on many soundtracks and albums, including on the Varese Sarabande label. She has recorded as a soloist alongside the Babelsberg Film Orchestra, the London Metropolitan Orchestra, and the Chinese National Symphony. Her playing can be heard in commercials for New Balance Shoes, Sprinkles Cupcakes, and Rick Riordan’s Trials of Apollo book series, as well as on the soundtracks of TV shows Siberia (NBC) and Complete Works (Hulu).Rachel is a featured soloist on the soundtracks of the Ori and the Blind Forest and Minecraft video games, and has appeared on screen as a flutist in Glee (FOX TV) andThe Moment (USA Network). In addition to C flute, piccolo, alto and bass flute, Rachel performs and records on many world flutes including Dizi, Shinobue, Quena, Shakuhachi, Ocarina, Penny Whistle, Fife, Bansuri, Ney, and Native American flute.
Rachel is passionate about new music and frequently performs and premiers new compositions for solo flute, orchestra, and chamber ensemble. She performs with Bridge to Everywhere, a new-music collective celebrating cultural diversity through interwoven musical traditions, and has performed with The Echo Society, a new-music artist collective combining traditional orchestral instruments with electronic music. Rachel also performed the concert premier of the music from War Horse, composed and conducted by John Williams.
Rachel's degrees include Bachelor and Master Degrees in Flute Performance from the University of Southern California, where she studied under Jim Walker and Gary Woodward. Other previous instructors and mentors include Brian Gordon, Heather Clark, Catherine Karoly, Jill Felber, Carol Wincenc, Carol Mellis, Trevor Wye, Walfrid Kujala, Marianne Gedigian, Amy Porter, Louise DiTullio, Elizabeth Buck, Thomas Robertello, and Bob Sheppard.
Stephanie Hoeckley, Instructor
Stephanie Hoeckley is an award-winning flutist and teacher in the Phoenix Metropolitan area. Recognized as a skilled performer, Ms. Hoeckley placed 1st in the Arizona Flute Society's 2017 Young Artist Competition, and has been a finalist in the Florida Flute Association’s College Young Artist Competition and Advanced Masterclass. Last year, she performed in Carol Wincenc's recital at Arizona State University; having the time of her life performing a trio with two of her all-time favorite flutists, Carol Wincenc (The Juilliard School) and Elizabeth Buck (Arizona State).
Currently, Ms. Hoeckley is pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts degree at Arizona State University where she studies with Elizabeth Buck. She holds a Master of Music in Music Performance from Arizona State University, and Bachelor of Music in Music Performance from the University of Central Florida. Her previous flute instructors and mentors include Carol Wincenc and Nora Lee Garcia. Her interests include Alexander Technique and physiology, acoustics, and performance psychology.
If after reading this complete document you are in need of more information, please contact Carol Mellis at cmellis@musicianenrichmentfoundation.org.
Other Upcoming Events:
MEF Wine and Song Social/Fund Raiser, Sunday, November 4, 2018.
MEF Chamber Ensembles Fall 2018
MEF Music Festival