Emma Phelps | Flutist

Emma Phelps (she/her) is a multi-faceted flutist, having a career in performance, education, arts administration, and research. She believes that music can lead people to a deeper understanding of themselves and the world, and aspires to connect people to deeper emotions through artistic experiences.

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Emma teaches privately through her own flute studio in Greensboro, NC and at Ravenscroft School in Raleigh. She regularly works as a flute clinician for over 20 schools across Guilford, Alamance/Burlington, and Winston-Salem/Forsyth School Districts, working with over 225 flutists on fundamentals, audition preparation, effective practice techniques, and more. She has also served as a Private Flute Instructor for the UNC-Greensboro Summer Music Camp and UW-Whitewater Summer Music Camp.

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She maintains an active freelance career as a soloist, chamber musician, wind ensemble and orchestral musician. She loves to perform pieces that are meaningful and intentionally programmed, with many performances taking place in new and collaborative settings. Emma works to amplify under-represented voices and themes in her performances. She has collaborated with multiple composers to bring new works to life through recording sessions and world premieres, and has contributed to consortiums for chamber works involving the flute. She has a passion for making intimate connections within the community through her performances, having performed at artistic events, comedy shows, farmers markets, and coffee shops. Emma has performed at NFA Conventions with the UNC-Greensboro Flute Ensemble and UW-Whitewater Flute Ensemble, was the winner of the 2022 UW-Whitewater Concerto Competition, and performed at Carnegie Hall with the UW-Whitewater Wind Ensemble in 2020.

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She is also active as an arts administrator, currently working with the Greensboro Symphony Youth Orchestra, serving on the Membership Committee for the NFA, and on the Board of Directors and committees for RAFA. She loves serving her community and making high-quality music education accessible, and she has organized multiple collegiate flute events and clinics while at both UNC-Greensboro and UW-Whitewater. She helped bring multiple guest artists to UW-Whitewater, including José Valentino Ruiz, Stephen Clark, Bart Feller, Alexa Still, and Jim Walker, among others. She also helped organize flute days that helped young flutists gain access to knowledge on topics like sight-reading, audition solos, and scales. She has also interned at the National Flute Association and Mid-Atlantic Flute Conventions.

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Emma earned her Master of Music in Flute Performance and a Graduate Certificate in Musicology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and her Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She is grateful to her teachers Dr. Erika Boysen, Dr. Cristina Ballatori, Dr. Timothy Hagen, Heather Zinninger, and Jennifer Taylor. Outside of music, Emma enjoys traveling and hiking, reading, and spending time with others and her cat, Yanaba.