Three Costa musicians shine at Flute competition

By Kayla Samimi
Staff Writer

Six winners, three honorable mentions and one judge. Of the 28 musicians who competed for these titles, Mira Costa musicians took home three.

Freshman Emily Angstreich, junior Tanner Yamada and senior Lexie Yee competed on Apr. 24 in the 14th Annual Flute Competition at Cal State University Long Beach. Angstreich won an honorable mention with her performance of “Conertino” and Yee received one for her piece “Khachaturian”. Yamada performed “Cancan Sonatine” and won third place.

“I decided to do the competition because as an aspriring flutist, I am always looking for ways to put my playing to the test against others,” Angstreich said. “I chose my piece because it was challenging and I could really reach my full musical potential.”

All three flutists are currently part of the Costa marching band. Yee and Yamada are also part of the Wind Ensemble, while Angstreich plays in the Costa concert band.

“I was so proud of Yamada, Yee and Angstreich when they were recognized at the competition,” private flute instructor Shannon Christianson Rivera said. “They are all not only talented musicians but they have earned these awards through their self discipline and motivation.”

The competition consisted of two categories that were judged separately: the middle school and high school divisions. Angstreich performed in the middle school division that included students from seventh to ninth grade. Yee and Yamada competed in the high school division that consisted of students ranging from 10-12 grade.

“I did the competition last year and since it was such a good performance experience, I decided to do it again this year,” Yee said. “One of the most important parts about competitions like this one is getting feedback and then using it to become a better musician.”

Prior to the event, all contestants were required to fill out a form and email it to the competition’s coordinator Long Beach flute instructor Darren Thaves. The coordinator chose the first sixteen students who sent in their application for the high school division along with the first twelve in the middle school division.

“The purpose of this competition is to supply a goal for flutists to work toward, to give performance opportunities for young players, and to provide professional level instruction that will help them to improve,” Thaves said.

All contestants competing in the high school division performed in California State Long Beach’s gym while the middle school category performed in smaller classrooms. Each performance had a 15-minute period where the judge, current Long Beach flute instructor Rena Urso-Trapani, critiqued.

“It was clear that each performer’s practice time was spent focused on good fundamentals, carefully working all of the details out in their solos and preparing well with their private teachers in order to dial everything in,” Urso-Trapani said. “Ultimately, it’s all about having a good work ethic and being honest with yourself.”

In the high school division, first place received $200, second place received $100 and third place received $50. The middle school winners received $100, $50 and $25. The competition also gave out two honorable mentions for each category.

“It was a great honor to place in the competition and I am so happy that I was able to perform,” Yamada said. “Competitions like these are what help me and musicians like me improve the most.”