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At London Symphony Orchestra concert with principal flute Gareth Davies – part of University of Adelaide music international study tour 2018.

First day of University of Adelaide music international study tour 2018 to London, Hyde Park.

My flute students with Sir James and Lady Galway – University of Adelaide music international study tour 2018 to London.

ELIZABETH KOCH, AM
FLUTE teacher Elizabeth Koch said it was exciting to be recognised with an Order of Australia for her services to music — for the second time.

“It’s an honour,” Koch said of receiving the AM in today’s Queen’s Birthday Honours.

“I received an OAM exactly 10 years ago. I feel it’s all too much.”

Ms Koch, renowned flautist and head of classical performance and woodwind at Elder Conservatorium, received the award for her contribution to music education and performance, and her involvement in professional associations.

Born in Peterborough, in the state’s Mid North, she attended high school in Adelaide before enrolling to study the piano at Elder Conservatorium.

But fate intervened when a flute lecturer heard her playing a flute for fun in a University of Adelaide common room.

“He walked in and said that sounds good, there’s a spare one in the office,” Ms Koch said. Within three years she was playing flute in the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, a job she held for 27 years.

“I had a great career in the ASO, and taught alongside that, but was very lucky to be offered a fulltime position at the university, because teaching is my first love,” she said.

“It’s great working with students, stretching their abilities, seeing where they can go.”

During her long and lively career Koch has received important teaching awards and mentored myriad students.

She also found time to organise music festivals and camps, advise orchestras and ensembles, and stage her own concerts.

Directorships included the 2007 Sydney Flute Festival and 2009 Australian Flute Festival, as well as her own Elizabeth Koch Flute Summer Schools.

She curated the University of Adelaide’s 2014 Bach Festival, and was president of the SA Music Teachers’ Association, and Flute Society.

She recently joined Adelaide Youth Orchestra’s board, following nine years heading the State Music Camp.

“I’ll never forget those years — the development from the Monday morning to the Friday night concert was incredible,” she said.

Many young flautists have studied abroad with her help, participating in masterclasses with some of the top teachers and players in Europe.

“I’m planning another trip next year, taking a group of students overseas to introduce them to different conservatoires,” she said.

Former students have won positions with orchestras and ensembles including the ASO and Queensland Symphony.

— Louise Nunn

Originally published at: https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/2016-south-australian-queens-birthday-honours/news-story/9b371d0ef99b20f396779c3a06f01f94

Originally published at: http://adelaidereview.com.au/arts/what-it-takes-to-be-one-of-the-greats/

When you’ve been teaching for a long time you get a sense of which students are going to be extraordinary.

Fortunately, I’ve had that feeling about my current group of advanced students; working with students who have insatiable appetites for all things flute, combined with exposure to high-profile pedagogues and performers, can help to produce something very special indeed.

With this in mind, I worked with my English and French colleagues to offer my talented students – Alessandra Woods, Andrew Baird, Jennifer Bird and Kelsey Robinson – something special: an intensive series of private masterclasses over three weeks in London, Paris and Lyon in September. The philosophy behind this project was to offer them insight into tertiary life in Europe, and what is needed to be accepted at any of the music institutions we visited. The students were entering the unknown and emerged from this experience different people and players.

Accompanied by Adelaide flute teachers Karen Fletcher and Samantha Hennessy, we began our London music experience by hearing the inspiring choir at Westminster Abbey at Evensong. The following day everyone arrived at the first masterclass feeling nervous at the prospect of playing for the Principal Flute of the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), Gareth Davies. Davies is a wonderful and down-to-earth person but didn’t initially put them at ease – instead, he put the students through their paces with a mock orchestral audition.

To receive immediate feedback from one of the world’s best orchestral players is a rare experience. When you hear that a 2nd flute audition can attract 225 applications, this is the time to listen to every piece of advice very carefully on how to win an audition.

Duo flute excerpts were the focus of Simon Channing’s (Head of Woodwind) class. It was an action-packed class and the students were able to soak up the ‘orientation week’ atmosphere.

Susan Milan teaches at the Royal College of Music in London and her orchestral experiences include the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestras. She is a prolific recording artist and has a wealth of experience training tertiary flautists. From the moment Milan collected us from the train station at Haslemere, we knew we were in for an extraordinary day at her home. She was meticulous in her criticisms and during the class we heard recordings of Gerard Souzay singing Schubert songs and an old 78 record of the great flautist Marcel Moyse playing Mozart.

Michael Cox, Principal Flute for the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Paul Edmund- Davies, former LSO and now St Martin-in-the- Fields Orchestra, devoted entire days to us, demonstrating generosity and hospitality. Both classes were extraordinary and the students were on their toes, trying new ideas and absorbing every tiny detail. Cox focussed on being a storyteller and an artist; Edmund- Davies added humour and entertainment to his magical teaching, including advice on tackling nerves and adrenalin.

A quick Eurostar trip took us to Paris where we explored the Marais, Place des Vosges and the Isle St Louis, before preparing for class at the Conservatoire Darius Milhaud with Professor Patricia Nagle. She organised a concert presented by my students and sponsored by the Conservatoire, to a packed audience. Kelsey Robinson performed a work by our Elder Conservatorium Director, Graeme Koehne.

In Lyon we spent two days with outstanding  autist Julien Beaudiment. Former Principal Flute of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Beaudiment has returned to his home city of Lyon where he holds the positions of Professor at the Conservatoire de Lyon and Principal Flute of the Lyon Opera Orchestra. He is a natural, highly sought after teacher and he will be a wonderful contact in Lyon for our students in the future. 

The final class was with Sophie Cherrier at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. She is a member of Pierre Boulez’s Ensemble Intercontemporain and while the students initially found her daunting, she was tremendously encouraging.

After packing away their flutes and music, our students were able to walk the streets of Paris, knowing the extraordinary level of their recent accomplishments. New, exciting possibilities now await.

Originally published at: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news83842.html

The University of Adelaide will today officially launch its new Adelaide Education Academy, comprised of academic staff who have chosen to specialise in teaching – the first such academy in an Australian university.

The move is aimed at continuing to transform the teaching and learning experience at the University, for the benefit of both students and staff.

The University will today induct the first 49 of a planned 100 academics into the Adelaide Education Academy.

Among the initial members of the Academy are highly regarded teaching staff across each of the University’s five Faculties.

“In a research-intensive university, it is a challenge for staff to be recognised as real academics for teaching alone. By establishing the Adelaide Education Academy, we are saying teaching is a noble career in a university, with its own unique rewards and privileges,” says the Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Warren Bebbington.

“In particular, we are opening a pathway for staff to be promoted all the way to professor for their teaching alone.

“Among the first members of the Academy are academics who have played an outstanding role in the quality of education at our University for many years. Through its members, the Academy will become a symbol of the University’s unique learning and teaching proposition which, to the great benefit of our students, is at the centre of our strategic direction.”

New Academy members include Associate Professor Elizabeth Koch OAM, Head of Classical Performance with the Elder Conservatorium of Music, and Associate Professor Colin Kestell from the School of Mechanical Engineering. Both are past winners of the University’s long-running Stephen Cole the Elder Prize for Excellence in Teaching.

“The Education Academy is an outstanding initiative to promote teaching, encourage collaboration between staff from different Faculties and develop new curricula and teaching methodologies,” says Associate Professor Koch. “I am most looking forward to sharing and learning from other Education Specialists from across the University. It can only enhance teaching practice and produce invaluable experiences not only for staff but most importantly for our students.”

Associate Professor Kestell says: “The Education Academy is an exciting step towards sustainably empowering the care and quality of teaching that students deserve from a leading university. This self-driven community will crucially stimulate well-informed scholarly practice, while cultivating the required agility to continually develop pertinent curricula for a (technology driven) rapidly transforming world.”

Members of the Academy have exclusive opportunities to bid for learning and teaching advancement grants, apply for promotion based on their teaching and learning activities, and have access to support in the form of teaching-focused special study programs.

Originally published at: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news41641.html

Wednesday, 6 October 2010

University of Adelaide flute teacher Elizabeth Koch OAM has been named the most outstanding university teacher in South Australia in 2010 by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council.

Associate Professor Koch, who is Head of Woodwind and also Performance at the University’s Elder Conservatorium of Music, has received one of 24 national awards for teaching excellence in a tertiary institution – and the only one from this State.

In a teaching and performance career spanning 35 years, the accomplished flautist credits her students, colleagues and fellow musicians for the award.

“I love teaching because every single day I learn something different. I don’t think the students realise this, but the fact that each one has a unique personality, different ability and technical style actually informs my own teaching,” she says.

Associate Professor Koch has also kept pace with innovative new teaching methods, including being the first university music teacher in Australia to use Wimba Voice, a web-based vocal instruction software tool, to improve her students’ flute playing skills.

The software enables students to record practise sessions in the privacy of their room and upload them on to the University’s website where they are directly emailed to Associate Professor Koch for her feedback.

“It means I can give the students instructions and advice in between their weekly face-to-face lessons so they learn to analyse and dissect their practice in a much more useful way. If they are playing the flute in front of me for one hour and then spending 20 hours at home practising, I can pinpoint incorrect techniques during the course of that week. It is a fantastic breakthrough in teaching,” she says.

“It has made a big difference to their approach to playing and time management, and I am also learning how to refine my teaching methods so the information sticks with them.”

Associate Professor Koch says constant interaction with her colleagues and music peers around the world is essential in her own professional development.

“Attending conferences, performances and networking with music teachers exposes you to different teaching techniques which you can then adapt for your own students.”

She recruits guest musicians for lectures and master classes to keep her lessons fresh and also runs mock orchestral auditions so students learn how to perform under pressure.

In January 2011 Associate Professor Koch is also taking six flute students to London and Paris for a three-week tour. This will include classes with some of the world’s best flautists at the Royal College of Music, BBC Symphony and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as the Ecole Normale Superieur.

Associate Professor Koch took up the flute in her second year at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, initially enrolling to study piano and then beginning her flute study with Professor David Cubben.

“I just fell in love with it. It was the perfect fit for me,” she says.

She graduated with First Class Honours in both flute and piano and was awarded a Master of Music Degree in Flute Performance in 1980.

Associate Professor Koch played with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra for 27 years before joining the University of Adelaide in 2002 as a full-time teacher.

She has also performed with the Australian Youth Orchestra, Adelaide Chamber Orchestra and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra among others, and was Artistic Director of the Australian Flute Festival held at the University of Adelaide in 2009.

Associate Professor Koch was awarded an OAM in 2006 for her services to flute music and for the mentoring of young musicians.

She is also the recipient of a number of University prizes, including the Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty Prize, a Carrick Citation and the Stephen Cole the Elder Excellence in Teaching Prize.

Among her most outstanding protégé Associate Professor Koch names flautist Anouvong Liensavanh (South Australia’s top arts graduate for 2009 who is now studying at Yale University); Hayley Radke, Associate Principal Flute for Queensland Orchestra; Amy Ellks, Fulbright Scholarship recipient; and Lisa Gill, Second Flute in the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra.

To hear Associate Professor Koch and her students perform, go to www.adelaide.edu.au/media/video_elizabeth_koch_oct_2010.html

Originally published at: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/adelaidean/issues/42041/news42046.html

A University of Adelaide staff member has been named the most outstanding university teacher in South Australia in 2010.

Associate Professor Elizabeth Koch OAM, a flautist and Head of Woodwind and Performance at the University’s Elder Conservatorium of Music, has received one of 24 national awards from the Australian Learning and Teaching Council for teaching excellence in a tertiary institution – and the only award from this state.

Associate Professor Koch’s teaching and performance career spans 35 years. The accomplished flautist credited her students, colleagues and fellow musicians for the award.

“I love teaching because every single day I learn something different. I don’t think the students realise this, but the fact that each one has a unique personality, different ability and technical style actually informs my own teaching,” she said.

Associate Professor Koch has also kept pace with innovative new teaching methods, including being the first university music teacher in Australia to use Wimba Voice, a web-based vocal instruction software tool, to improve her students’ flute playing skills.

The software enables students to record practise sessions in the privacy of their room and upload them on to the University’s website where they are directly emailed to Associate Professor Koch for her feedback.

“It means I can give the students instructions and advice in between their weekly face-to-face lessons so they learn to analyse and dissect their practise in a much more useful way. It is a fantastic breakthrough in teaching,” she said.

Associate Professor Koch said constant interaction with her colleagues and music peers around the world was essential in her own professional development.

“Attending conferences, performances and networking with music teachers exposes you to different teaching techniques, which you can then adapt for your own students,” she said.

In January 2011, Associate Professor Koch will take six flute students to London and Paris for a three-week tour. This will include classes with some of the world’s best flautists at the Royal College of Music, BBC Symphony and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as the École Normale Supérieure.

Associate Professor Koch will receive her $25,000 teaching award at a ceremony in Canberra on 16 November, at which the 2010 Prime Minister’s Award for Australian University Teacher of the Year will be announced.

Story by Candy Gibson

Originally published at: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/adelaidean/issues/12741/news12763.html

Elder Conservatorium of Music Senior Lecturer, Elizabeth Koch, has been awarded an Order of Australia (OAM) medal for music education and her role in mentoring young musicians.

Ms Koch, Head of Woodwind and Senior Lecturer in Flute at the University of Adelaide, was awarded the medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List last month.

“It’s an amazing honour to be awarded such a prestigious medal for doing something that I am passionate about,” Ms Koch told the Adelaidean.

“I love what I do and I thoroughly enjoy mentoring young musicians. I hope that in the process of teaching and performing that I can be a good role model and perhaps a catalyst for many of them to go on to the highest level in their field of music.”

The accomplished flautist joined the University’s academic staff in 2002, after 27 years as a member of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra.

Ms Koch started her Bachelor of Music degree as a pianist and only took up the flute at age 20, studying with Professor David Cubbin. She graduated with First Class Honours in both flute and piano and subsequently completed her Masters in Flute Performance.

She joined the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in 1974 and has appeared as a soloist with the Adelaide Chamber Orchestra, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.

In 1976 Ms Koch was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to study with Maxence Larrieu in Paris in 1976. In the course of her career she also performed in master classes with Sir James Galway, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Alain Marion, Andras Adorjan, Susan Milan and William Bennett.

A passionate teacher and educator, Ms Koch has led several study tours to Europe with her tertiary students, receiving wide critical acclaim. Many of her former students also play professionally throughout Australia and overseas.

Since 1993 she has directed seven summer schools and this month will direct her eighth State Music Camp at St Peter’s College, Adelaide.

In addition to her duties as Head of Woodwind Studies at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, Ms Koch is involved in promoting flute pedagogy and will be presenting a paper at the Royal Northern College, Manchester this July. She is also preparing a CD of previously unrecorded flute and piano repertoire.

Story by Candy Gibson