A native of Newfoundland, Canada, Elizabeth Janzen currently serves as Associate Director of the School of Music at Texas A&M University – Kingsville, as well as Associate Professor of Flute. She performs as 2nd Flute/piccolo in the Victoria Symphony Orchestra and is a Burkart Artist. Her playing has been hailed in the New York Times as “…athletic, graceful…” and she has established herself as a prominent musician, teacher and clinician across Canada, the United States and Mexico.
Elizabeth began her flute studies at the age of eleven, and her passion for music soon propelled her to a national competition level. She pursued formal studies at the University of Toronto, with Susan Hoeppner and at the Manhattan School of Music, where she completed her Master and Doctorate degrees with Linda Chesis. In 2007 she was invited to be the first flute fellow in The Academy, a prestigious post-graduate program developed by Carnegie Hall, the Weill Music Institute, and The Juilliard School.
As a winner of New York’s prestigious Artist International Competition, Elizabeth gave her debut recital at Carnegie Hall in 2005. Her performance, which included a world premiere by J. Mark Stambaugh, was praised in the New York Concert Review for the “…velvety tone radiating from her flute…” and her “…impressive technical abilities…flair and wit with the musical phrase….” Also that year, Elizabeth was featured as the soloist in Pierre Boulez’s “…explosante-fixe…,” conducted by the composer himself. She has since given solo performances in Canada, the United States, Korea and Mexico, and has performed as guest soloist with the Kingsville Symphony Orchestra, the Victoria Symphony, the Chelsea Symphony, the Corpus Christi Wind Symphony and Texas A&M Kingsville’s Concert band and Wind Symphony. She has also performed as soloist and chamber musician at many national and international conferences, including multiple appearances at the National Flute Association Conference, the College Music Society Conference, the Mid-Atlantic Flute Convention, and many more.
As an orchestral musician, Elizabeth has had the privilege of working on both contemporary and period music with some of the world’s most recognized conductors, including David Robertson, Sir Simon Rattle and Sir Christopher Hogwood. She has performed with the Corpus Christi Symphony, Laredo Philharmonic, New Haven Symphony, Haddonfield Symphony and the Chelsea Symphony, and is presently 2nd flutist in the Victoria Symphony, Texas. As a chamber musician, Elizabeth has toured across the US as a member of The Fireworks Ensemble, an amplified contemporary chamber ensemble and internationally as a member of the ACJW Alumni Ensemble including eengagements in Canada, Japan, India, Germany, Korea and Mexico. She currently performs as a member of the Vista Trio, a flute, saxophone and piano ensemble.
Equally devoted to her work as a teacher, Elizabeth’s students have been invited to participate in prestigious programs including the Imani Winds Festival, the NFA Collegiate Flute Choir, the Brevard Festival and the BUTI-Tanglewood Festival. In addition to her current appointment, she has served as a flute teacher, chamber coach and teaching artist for many acclaimed institutions, including the Manhattan School of Music Precollege, The Diller-Quaile School of Music, the New York Summer Music Festival, the New York Philharmonic, and Carnegie Hall. For more information, please visit www.elizabethjanzen.com.