Personnel – The first thing you need is people
Who do you know in your area that currently plays or has played the flute? Talk to them about their willingness to be part of a choir. Ask what their time commitment could be for rehearsals and performances. Find out if they have a piccolo or an alto or bass flute and if they play. This is not absolutely necessary, but it sure makes the choir sound good and opens a world of music options for you. If someone played the flute in high school or college you may not know that about them. As your membership grows so does the circle of community members who may hear about the choir or who may be involved in other performing groups and hear about the choir. At one time I found out there were 32 flutists around my town. Some were not interested in playing, and some thought they would be but could not find the time. An interesting note is that even if someone moves away or leaves the choir for some reason, there always seems to be someone new the next year. We do have new members who heard us perform and were then excited to join us.
We do not require that anyone auditions for our choir. It has worked well to allow any level of flute playing adult to join. With enough strong players the other players fill out the sound. They all continue to get better as you play. No audition takes away some of the fear factor as well. You will find that there is a lot of conversation needed to get some people to jump in and come to the first rehearsal, but usually after that they are hooked. I mean really, what a sound!!
L-R: Susan Ballinger, Angela Kerr, Jeanne Lodge, Rebecca Gilmore, Suzanne Carr
Rehearsal location
Ask around to find out where there may be a large room you could use. Start by finding out if someone is a member of a church or school that has a large room that you could use, preferably for free, for your rehearsals. Use your imagination but remember that there may be fees or restrictions as to access for entry when you want to rehearse. Find out about availability of keys for building access as needed, any contracts that would need to be signed for use of the space, and which evenings and times are open. It would be great if the location already had music stands available, but musicians can always bring their own if necessary. It is always a good idea to plan a few months ahead for dates you need the room and then reconfirm your dates and times of rehearsals with the facility management to avoid conflicts or misunderstandings.
Although it does not need to be said, good lighting, air conditioning and heat and enough space for a group of flutists to spread out are all important. Not to mention parking.