About Us

Established by Suzanne de Lozey in 1994, initially with six young flute players, Flutes & Co, Cumbria's flute orchestra is thriving at almost thirty years old. The group is now led by Musical Director Sue Nicholls and boasts almost 40 members from primary school students to the retired, Grade 3 to post-diploma, spanning a forty mile radius from our Kendal base. Continual fundraising has enabled the group to own two piccolos, four altos, three basses and a contra bass, alongside an enormous library of flute choir music. In addition, a double bass player gives more depth to the ensemble and a percussionist joins for performances. 

A hard working committee of about 10 members supports Sue in the running of the group, looking after the music library, instruments, membership, safeguarding, concert organising, promotion and finances. The committee includes parent and young people reps and meets at least once a term.

We rehearse at the Abbot Hall Social Centre (LA9 4DN) twice monthly in term times, usually the second and fourth Sundays of the month. Rehearsals start by 6pm and run until 8pm with a tea and biscuit break. We start earlier if there is an Inspire or small ensemble rehearsal, and during the main rehearsal occasionally split into sectional practice to help each part succeed. 

We have annual Summer and Christmas Concerts, plus a semi-secret Christmas Carol performance in Rydal Caves. The Covid pandemic led the group to continue rehearsing together using Zoom and when restrictions allowed, we played music together outdoors starting on a member's farm and then expanding into local public parks, the gardens of stately homes, and much more. As this is not only fun, it presents a variety of challenges to play together in outdoor environments, expanding our abilities and so we continue to do this in our Summer rehearsal break.

Flutes & Co are paired with Glasgow's Flutes Unlimited and get together annually for a workshop day followed by a joint performance in the evening. We take turns to host each other with the most recent shared concert in Kendal in October 2024.