Colleen Fernandez

Colleen Fernandez is a flutist and music educator who is deeply passionate about chamber music and exploring new works on the flute. Colleen is an Emerging Artist Fellow with Chamber Music Silicon Valley where she collaborates with composers and artists from the bay area in order to find ways to make classical music accessible to all audiences. In addition to her passion for performing, Colleen is also dedicated to developing the skills of flutists of all ages through her private studio at the Los Gatos School of Music.

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Colleen first discovered her niche as a chamber musician with a particular affinity for contemporary works after attending the Boston Conservatory. While in Boston, she performed in the contemporary music ensemble and performed in chamber ensembles coached by Sharan Leventhal, Tony Arnold, Gil Rose and Nico Muhly. Highlights from recent seasons include performances of Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Eastman School of Music), Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire (Boston Museum of Fine Arts and Boston Conservatory) and Ligeti’s Aventures (Berklee Words and Music Festival).

 

Colleen has also performed with various orchestras, including the Greece Symphony and MIT freelance orchestra. Colleen recently relocated to her home state of California after briefly residing in Rochester, NY. While in Rochester, she worked in the special collections and rare books department in the Sibley Music Library at Eastman and was also a casual classical music announcer for WXXI Classical 91.5.

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Prior to these projects, Colleen performed as a substitute flutist with the Fresno Philharmonic Orchestra and was principal chair of the Fresno Community Symphony. Colleen was also concertmaster and soloist of La Forza Flute Choir and Wyndfall Flute Orchestra, which performed at the 2014 National Flute Association Convention in Chicago.

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As an educator, Colleen worked as a flute coach with the Youth Orchestras of Fresno and was also the flute faculty member at the Music Camp at Sequoia Lake where she taught private lessons and directed the flute choir. She also maintained a thriving private studio. She has performed in master classes for Gergely Ittzés, Tadeu Coelho, Nicola Mazzanti, Leone Buyse, Viviana Guzman, Mindy Kaufman, Emily Skala, Valerie Coleman, Robert Stallman and Ray Furuta.

 

Colleen earned her Master of Music degree from the Boston Conservatory studying with Sarah Brady and her Bachelor of Music Degree from University of the Pacific in California where she was awarded an Excellence in Performance Scholarship and was a 2012 Concerto Competition winner. Previous teachers include Janette Erickson, Mathew Krejci and Tracy L. Harris. 

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