Get to Know Me
Most oboists have interesting origin stories.
I wouldn't have started the oboe if my piano teacher at the time hadn't insisted that I had the personality of an oboist. I had no idea what an oboe was, and I was scared that it would look and sound ugly. I wanted to play the clarinet!
Luckily, my piano teacher convinced me that playing the oboe would make me stand out. In sixth grade, I was the only oboist in my middle school, and I enjoyed the attention. Today I'm so grateful that my teacher convinced me so play the oboe instead of the clarinet! I'm also grateful that my students now come to me with oboe as their FIRST choice.
I struggled a lot with my reeds.
For most of my grade school years, my mom spent a lot of time researching different reed sellers and trying out reeds from many different brands.
There were so many times that I became so frustrated at the oboe. Sometimes, seemingly out of nowhere, my tone would sound weird and it would feel hard to make a sound. If only I knew that the majority of the time, it was the reed!
Oboe reeds are notoriously finicky, and I don't want them to cause any more stress for my students than they have to. Because of this, I make reeds specially for each of my students. Since I know how each student plays, I can tailor reeds to their strength level. If a reed isn't up to par, I will also adjust it during weekly lessons so that students have working reeds for the upcoming week.
In addition to making reeds for my students, I sell oboe reeds and oboe cane throughout the country. You can check out my reed website, PNW Reeds. I also post educational reed making content through my Instagram account, @pnwreeds.
I'm so lucky for the opportunities the oboe has brought me.
After growing up playing the oboe in school band and youth orchestra, I decided to keep music in my life. I received my Bachelor of Music degree at Indiana University, where I studied with Linda Strommen and had the opportunity to be a part of one of the biggest collegiate oboe studios in the country. Some years there were 27 of us, ranging from freshmen to doctoral students! I made some of my closest friends in this studio, and am still close with many of these oboists today.
I later came back home and received my Master of Music degree at the University of Washington, where I studied with the Principal Oboe of the Seattle Symphony, Mary Lynch. Playing in the ensembles at UW brought me across the world when the UW Wind Ensemble went on tour in China.
Today, I feel very lucky for the different communities that I've become a part of because of music. In addition to seeing my oboe students weekly, I play with the Ladies Quintessential Quintet, which is a part of the Ladies Reeding Society. I've gotten to perform around Seattle in groups such as the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra and the North Corner Chamber Orchestra. I also am the Program Coordinator with the Seattle Girls Choir.
Check out some clips of past performances here!
