Carla Rees - Alto and Bass Flute

Carla Rees completed her BMus and MMus degrees at the Royal College of Music, studying flute, alto flute and composition under Graham Mayger, Simon Channing and Timothy Salter.

Since graduating, she has become a leading alto flute specialist, working to raise the profile of the instrument through research, performance and commissioning new repertoire. Carla plays quarter tone Kingma system alto and bass flutes, instruments with which she is able to break new ground in contemporary techniques and repertoire. She works frequently in collaboration with composers of all genres and works as a solo recitalist as a member of her group, rarescale, throughout the UK and abroad. She has commissioned over 50 new works for alto flute, given over 250 premieres, and in 2004 organised an international competition for composers in conjunction with rarescale and the Royal College of Music in London.

She has performed with ensembles such as Madestrange Opera, BEAST, Pagrav Dance Company, Contemporary Consort, and the Ossian Ensemble, and has recorded for rarescale records, EMI, Capstone and Metier, in addition to soundtracks for film and TV, including sound effects for Nanny McPhee 2.

She has performed regularly at flute conventions in the UK and USA, as well as in festivals and recitals internationally, including Proms composer portraits, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Spark Festival (Minneapolis), and Sonic Circuits Festival (Washington DC).

Carla teaches the flute at Royal Holloway, University of London and composition at the Open College of Arts, and has given masterclasses and workshops for flute players and composers at several leading institutions, including the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, UCLA, University of Southern California, University of California, California Institute of the Arts, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music and Trinity College of Music.

She is Programme Director the British Flute Society 2012 convention, a reviewer for MusicWeb International and is currently working towards a DMus in the Centre for Music and Multimedia at the Royal College of Music, where she is researching contemporary techniques for quarter tone system alto and bass flute.
Carla also works as a freelance photographer and has had her work published in the UK, USA, France and New Zealand. She has a photography website at www.carlareesdawson.co.uk