Mary Stolper, Flute

Biography

Mary Stolper is a frequent soloist and chamber music performer who has
made guest appearances throughout the United States and Europe.

Currently, Ms. Stolper is Principal Flute of the Grant Park Symphony,
Chicago Opera Theater, Music of the Baroque and the new music ensemble
Fulcrum Point. As an active studio musician she has also played for
hundreds of TV and radio commercials.

She traveled with the Chicago Symphony for the world-renowned tour of
Russia with Maestro Solti (90) and over 15 European/Asian tours with
Maestro Barenboim and Boulez. She acted as the principal substitute for
the orchestra for over a decade.

Ms. Stolper performed with the Chicago Sinfonietta Orchestra in Vienna,
with a performance of Bernstein's "Halil" for solo flute and strings.
Also with the Sinfonietta, she performed the United States Midwest
premier of the Concerto for Flute by Joan Tower. While in Prague,
soloing with the Czech National Symphony, (Maestro Paul Freeman), she
recorded her second CD called "American Flute Concertos", on the
Chicago based Cedille label. Other recordings include Voices for
Flautist and Orchestra by Shulamit Ran, (Maestro Cliff Colnot), and her
second Cedille release called Chicago Flute Duos.

Ms. Stolper toured former East Germany with the Chicago Chamber
Orchestra and received excellent critical reviews for her performance
of the Nielsen Flute Concerto. The Nielsen Concerto was recorded with
the Chicago Chamber Orchestra on the Centar label, Maestro Dieter Kober
conductor.

Ms. Stolper's performance credits also include the following
organizations: Chicago Chamber Musicians, Lyric Opera of Chicago,
Ravinia Recital Series, University of Chicago Contemporary Chamber
Players, "Live from Studio One" WFMT radio broadcasts, American and
Joffrey Ballet Orchestras, Contemporary Chamber Concerts at Orchestra
Hall hosted by Shulamit Ran, Da Camera Chamber series in Houston, Texas
and the Old First Church Chamber Series in San Francisco. The music
"NOW" series at Symphony Center under Maestros Boulez and Colnot,
numerous concerts featuring her extensive skills of contemporary
techniques and variety of flutes.

Dedicated to the performance of music composed by women, Ms. Stolper
invited two Chicago Women Composers/Performers to perform with her at
her Carnegie Hall recital debut. Several compositions have been written
for her to show her outstanding versatility on the piccolo, flute, alto
flute and bass flute. Ms. Stolper has been a frequent guest recitalist
and lecturer on the subject of Women Composers. She produced and
recorded the flute music of Shulamit Ran, former composer in residence
for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Lyric Opera of Chicago for
the Erato/Warner Classics label.

Ms. Stolper has served on the boards of New Music Chicago, Chicago
Society of Composers, American Women Composers, Musicians Club of Women
and the artistic review panel of the Illinois Arts Council. She was one
of the founding members and a past president of the Chicago Flute Club
and has served on the board of the National Flute Association. As part
of the flute and harp duo ESPREE, she toured for five years and was the
first place winner of the very first National Flute Association Chamber
Music Competition. She has been elected to serve the term of President
of the Musicians Club of Women for the 06-08 term.

Ms. Stolper earned her Masters Degree in flute performance from
Northwestern University, where she studied under Mr. Walfrid Kujala.
She has also received instruction from Geoffrey Gilbert, Jean
Berkenstock and Edwin Putnik and Donald Peck. Performance/master
classes with William Bennett and coaching from Samuel Baron.

As a singer/actor/musician, Ms. Stolper appeared in the 1999 Pocket
Opera Company production of Don Quixote, with the character role of
Sancho Panza. Repeated again in 2000, along with the production of
"Golk" where her role was that of the President of the United States.

She has appeared in concert (06), with the Thodos Dance Company of Chicago performing the music of Shulamit Ran.

Her articles about various subjects relating to the flute and piccolo
have appeared in journals around the world, and translated into several
languages.

She is currently Chair of the Flute faculty at DePaul University in Chicago, and has been on that faculty since 1986.