Flutist Linda Chatterton with Diverse Voices

VIRTUOSO FLUTIST LINDA CHATTERTON RELEASES NEW CD, "DIVERSE VOICES ’Äì AMERICAN MUSIC FOR FLUTE"

A new CD of performances by flutist Linda Chatterton, with pianist John Jensen, has just been released on her own independent label (LC8032). "Diverse Voices -- American Music For Flute" features works by Aaron Copland, Lowell Liebermann, Paul Schoenfield, Edie Hill, and Roberto Sierra. With her remarkable technique and expressive personality, Ms. Chatterton imbues this music with a huge variety of colors, effects and textures.

The contents of the CD (total timing: 52:18) is as follows:

Aaron Copland - Duo for Flute and Piano

Flowing (5:24)

Poetic, somewhat mournful (4:44)

Lively, with bounce (3:16)

Lowell Liebermann - Sonata, Op. 23

Lento con rubato (10:08)

Presto energico (3:20)

Paul Schoenfield - Achat Sha'alti (3:28)

Paul Schoenfield - Ufaratsta (2:00)

Edie Hill - This Floating World (8:50)

Skylark

Harvest Moon and Tide

Winter Solitude

Petal Shower

A Wild Sea

Roberto Sierra - Sonata No. 1

Fast (3:59)

Expressive (3:18)

With gusto (3:28)

About her new CD, "Diverse Voices - American Music for Flute," Linda Chatterton says that the repertory "showcases what I am passionate about as a musician: sharing the many "diverse voices" of contemporary music ’Äì if Aaron Copland can still be considered contemporary! -- with audiences; pushing the artistic extremes of what the flute can do, from the technical fireworks of Lowell Liebermann to the pastel shadings of Edie Hill; and connecting with people through music, whether it is in the concert hall or in listeners' living rooms."

Ms. Chatterton's upcoming performances include a 20-city U. S. concert tour in March, 2010, featuring selections from this new CD. She will also perform in New York City in August, 2009, as part of the National Flute Association international conference, and will perform the world premiere of a concerto by Native American composer Brent Michael Davids (based on the Plains Indian "love flute" used for courtship rituals) and a flute and pipa concerto by Chen Yi (dates to be announced).

About the Repertory

Aaron Copland's (1900-1990) Duo was commissioned by students and friends of Philadelphia Orchestra flutist William Kincaid in his memory, and was completed in 1971. The Duo certainly seems to encompass many hallmarks of Copland's style, from the pastoral, expansive mood of the first movement to the mournful and introspective feeling of the second movement to the joyful and almost jazzy exuberance of the third.

Lowell Liebermann's (b. 1961) two-movement work showcases the flute's ability to create sinuous melodic lines and invoke a broad palette of tone colors as well as display the instrument's dazzling technical capabilities.

Paul Schoenfield (b. 1947) Achat Sha'alti and Ufaratsta are Schoenfield's arrangements of two selections from his Six Improvisations on Hasidic Melodies for solo piano, which are themselves derivations of music he improvised at Hasidic gatherings in the 1980's. The texts of the original songs are from Psalms and Genesis.

Edie Hill (b. 1962) "This Floating World" is a collection of five musical illustrations of the Haiku by Basho as translated by Robert Hass. Edie Hill often uses extra musical material ’Äì such as these elegant images -- as a means of generating structure and color in her music.

Roberto Sierra (b. 1953) Although the three movements of the sonata differ in terms of mood, tempo and character, they are based on the same two four-note groups. The low and high registers of both instruments are used to create mood and convey the very expressive nature of the music. The sonata ends with a joyful montuno-like dance (montuno is a rhythmic-melodic pattern used in salsa music) where the flute becomes not only melodic, but also an instrument capable of producing incisive rhythms.

About Linda Chatterton

A flutist with an equal flair for the dramatic, lyrical, powerful, or playful, her range of repertoire perfectly reflects the varied facets of her solo, chamber music, and concerto performances. The Minneapolis Star Tribune, commenting on a live performance by Ms. Chatterton, wrote that she "ushers listeners into a dreamy world buoyed by smooth melody line and radiant timbre."

A Yamaha Performing Artist, Ms. Chatterton has toured throughout much of the country as well as in Germany and the United Kingdom. She has performed in New York at Carnegie and Alice Tully Hall, was a featured recitalist on the prestigious Dame Myra Hess series in Chicago, and has been heard on the Minnesota Public Radio and National Public Radio networks. Ms. Chatterton has performed with numerous groups including the Minnesota Orchestra and the Dale Warland Singers, and tours regularly as a duo performer with both harp and piano. She is also a member of Trio Callisto (with harpist Min Kim and cellist Sally Gibson Dorer). As a concerto soloist, Ms. Chatterton has given many performances of the Lukas Foss Renaissance Concerto.

A 2008-2009 recipient of a $25,000 McKnight Foundation Artist Award, Ms. Chatterton also has garnered prizes and awards from the Jerome Foundation, the Minnesota State Arts Board and the American Composers Forum.

In addition to her concert schedule, Ms. Chatterton retains an active studio where she teaches a wide range of students including those who request professional coaching. She also is highly regarded for her insightful master classes, and she serves as a mentor to music students at the University of Minnesota's College of Liberal Arts. Ms. Chatterton also presents a motivational program, "It Sounded Better at Home!" based on her extensive work on the psychology of optimum performance. "It Sounded Better at Home!" will be released as a book in late 2009.

Ms. Chatterton received her Master of Music degree from the University of Minnesota and her Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music as a scholarship student of Bonita Boyd. Ms. Chatterton has played a Yamaha 881 flute since 1986. She has recorded on the CBS Masterworks, Innova, and Gothic labels, and has also independently released five compact disc recordings.