Article by Foothills Living, October 2019 Edition.
Ms. Abby Simpson Puckett teaches flute, piccolo, saxophone and piano at Music Maker Workshops and just won first prize of the National Flute Association’s Piccolo Orchestral Audition Masterclass Competition! From hundreds of applicants, it was an unbelievable achievement to win first prize.
This year’s NFA convention was held in the gorgeous setting of
Salt Lake City, Utah, tucked between mountains in the fresh,
clean air of a city famous for its civic embrace of the arts. This year’s theme, “Transforming Artistry,” reflects the many ways we channel our creative energy in bringing our inspired spirit to music and the flute. The convention’s program reflected the skill and beauty found in high-level performance, honor the legacy of artistry passed to us from our teachers, and revitalize the connections among us all as collaborators, artists, and musicians.
It takes years of growth and months of preparation to get to this
level and we are so proud of Abby. Also huge thanks to Burkart
Flutes and Piccolos for sponsoring this competition and for making world-class instruments.
Abby began her studies on the flute at age 12 in the small, rural
community of Poplar Bluff, Missouri. After only a year of playing
the flute, Abby was invited to begin private studies at Southeast
Missouri State University with Paul Thompson. While studying
with Mr. Thompson, Abby’s technical and lyrical skills developed
and allowed her to become competitive during her four years in
high school. After increasing her proficiency on the flute, Abby
also included piccolo in her studies. She competed at both the
district and state levels for flute and piccolo, winning awards and
positions in select ensembles with both instruments.
Since her acceptance into Belmont University’s School of Music,
where she began her private studies with Dr. Carolyn Treybig,
Abby has continued to excel at the flute. In the fall of 2012, as a
freshman, Abby auditioned and obtained the principal position of
the Belmont University Wind Ensemble and assistant principal/
piccolo position in the university’s premier ensemble, the Belmont University Symphony Orchestra. Abby continued to hold
the principal position in the Wind Ensemble and then held the
principal position in the Symphony Orchestra for two years.
Abby has also been a performer in the first and second
annual Instrumental Honor Recitals at Belmont, was one
of the first two Belmont students to be selected to perform
a duet arrangement of Borne’s “Carmen Fantasie” with the
Wind Ensemble, and the Vivaldi “Concerto in C Major” for
two flutes with the Belmont University Chamber Orchestra,
in addition to being a finalist in the Nashville Philharmonic
Orchestra’s 2015 and 2016 concerto competitions. She teaches
private lessons and offers audition preparation at Music Maker Workshops which is located on SE corner of 32nd Street and Chandler Boulevard. If you are interested in learning more about lessons with Ms. Abby. please contact the studio at 480-706-1224.