Paula Robison

Paula Robison (born June 8, 1941) is a flute soloist and teacher.

Early life and education Paula Robison was born in Nashville, Tennessee, the daughter of David V. and Naomi Robison, an actor. David Robison was a playwright and writer for film and television. Her paternal grandmother was a piano teacher, her maternal uncle the playwright Jerome Lawrence, and there were other musicians and dancers in the family. David studied in Vienna, and upon his return joined the faculty of Fisk University. There the family met the singer Paul Robeson, who became Paula's godfather.

The family moved to Hollywood, where Naomi continued her acting career and David took up screenwriting. Paula's sister Deborah and brother Joshua were born there. Paula learned to play the flute in the orchestra of North Hollywood Junior High School, continuing her studies with Arthur Hoberman. She studied piano with her grandmother. At the age of ten she first met the composer Leon Kirchner, with whom she collaborated as an adult.

Paula Robison attended the University of Southern California for two years, studying flute with Roger Stevens, Principal Flutist of the LA Philharmonic, theater with Jeff Corey, and dance with Bella Lewitzky.

She eventually played for Julius Baker, which led to an audition for the Juilliard School. She was admitted and graduated with a BS in 1963. In 1961 she also began to study during the summers with Marcel Moyse at the Marlboro Music School and Festival (making her the direct musical descendant of Paul Taffanel). Her studies with Moyse continued until 1968.

Early career Robison joined the roster of Young Concert Artists in their inaugural year, 1961. The same year, she played Volière in Saint-Saëns' Carnival of the Animals with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic.

Ms. Robison joined the New England Conservatory faculty in 1973, and also taught at the Juilliard School during the early 1980s. She now occupies the Donna Hieken Flute Chair at the New England Conservatory.

In the early 1990s the composer Stanley Silverman, had come into possession of some musical scores written by Brazilian musicians for the Walt Disney cartoon, Saludos Amigos. He encouraged Robison to play one of these pieces as an encore at one of her 92nd Street Y concerts, a dance for flute and pandeiro, a large tambourine traditional in Brazil. Silverman invited the percussionist Cyro Baptista to join her. The flutist Irna Priore, who was at the concert, told her that in Brazil there was a repertory for flute in the choro, a tradition of popular song originating in 19th century Rio de Janeiro. Cyro Baptista's wife provided recordings and tapes of music that was largely unknown in the US. Robison began to work on it with Baptista and other Brazilian musicians, who toured with her and eventually they produced a recording, Brasileirinho. In the end the group became a trio: Cyro Baptista, Romero Lubambo and Ms. Robison. As she has said, "The fusion between the three of us, with Romero's elegant Bossa nova style and Cyro's mad world music percussion genius, created a whole new, very exciting sound. I called it 'Mistura Nova'!" The trio played together for over ten years. She also played with flutist Altamiro Carrilho and his ensemble in Rio de Janeiro.

Discography Discography Pergola Recordings PR1041 - Classic (Paula Robison, flute; Timothy Hester, piano) PR1040 - Caprice (Paula Robison, flute; Paavali Jumppanen, piano) PR1039 - Playing New York (Paula Robison, flute; Steven Beck, piano) PR1038 - Paula Live! Music of Frazelle, Liebermann, Kirchner, and Prokofiev (Paula Robison, flute; Timothy Hester, piano; Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano; Ayano Kataoka, percussion; Yefim Bronfman, piano) PR1037 - Rio Days, Rio Nights (Paula Robison, flute; Romero Lubambo, guitar; Sergio Brandao, bass and cavaquinho; Cyro Baptista, percussion) PR1036 - Paula Robison, John Gibbons: J.S. Bach Sonatas BWV 525-530 (Paula Robison, flute; John Gibbons, harpsichord) PR1035 - Paula Robison: Edvard Grieg, Joachim Andersen: Music for Flute and Piano (Paula Robison, flute; Samuel Sanders, piano) PR1034 - By The Old Pine Tree: Music by Stephen Foster and Sidney Lanier (Paula Robison, flute; Krista Bennion Feeney and Calvin Wiersma, violins; John Feeney, bass; Samuel Sanders, piano) PR1033 - Mozart in Love: Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Paula Robison, flute; Charleston Symphony Orchestra; Bundit Ungrangsee, conductor) PR1032 - One Hundred Roses: Seven Italian Serenades and Dances, with music by Godard, Chaminade, Griffes and Massenet. (Paula Robison, flute; Charleston Symphony Orchestra; David Stahl, conductor) Vanguard Classics MC 123 - The Art of Paula Robison – A collection of all-time favorites from the Vanguard Archives (Paula Robison, flute and various artists) ATM CD 1271 - Mozart Flute Quartets: Complete (Paula Robison, flute; Tokyo String Quartet) ATM CD 1615 - Carmen Fantasy: Bizet-Borne, Fauré, Delibes, Massenet, Taffanel, Dutilleux, Gaubert (Paula Robison, flute; Samuel Sanders, piano) ATM CD 1616 - Paula Robison – The Romantic Flute (Paula Robison, flute; Samuel Sanders, piano) ATM CD 1493 - Bach Flute Sonatas, Flute Partita (Paula Robison, flute; Kenneth Cooper, harpsichord; Timothy Eddy, cello) ATM CD 1494 - Handel Flute Sonatas: Complete (Paula Robison, flute; Kenneth Cooper, harpsichord; Timothy Eddy, cello) ATM CD 1837 - Brasileirinho: Choros, Chorinhos, Bossas and Bach (Paula Robison, flute; Romero Lubambo, guitar; Tiberio Nascimento, guitar; Sergio Brandao, Cavaquinho; Stanley Silverman, guitar and mandolin; Cyro Baptista, percussion) ATM CD 1860 - Ravel – Fauré – Debussy: Works for Flute Viola and Harp (Paula Robison, flute; Scott Nickrenz, viola; Heidi Lehwalder, harp) Mode MODE210 - Lei Liang – Brush Stroke: World Premiere recording of Lei Liang's "In Praise of Shadows" MODE161/3 - Berio Sequenzas complete and solo works Bridge Records BRIDGE: 903 - Duos from Malboro: A collection of performances from the Marlboro Music Festival including the 1968 recording of Schubert's Introduction and Variations with Rudolf Serkin, piano Pucker Gallery, Boston - Places of the Spirit: Music and Images Inspired by the Berkshires. CD and catalogue collaboration. Music by Takemitsu, Schickele, Kirchner, Vivaldi, Warshauer, Debussy and Traditional music. (Paula Robison, flute; Cyro Baptista, percussion; paintings by Jim Schantz) Places of the Spirit: The Holy Land. A trip to Jerusalem with painter Jim Schantz, a book of images and a CD of music inspired by the journey. (Paula Robison, flute; Frederic Hand, guitar; Steven Beck, piano; Nancy Allen, harp) "Places of the Spirit: Music for Peace and Healing", a 2 disc compilation from the original Pucker Gallery releases. King Records CD: KICC67 - Hungarian Pastoral Fantasy (Paula Robison, flute; Tokyo Akademiker Ensemble; Fumiki Asazuma, conductor) New World Records 80403-2 - Flutes: Beaser, Song of the Bells (Paula Robison, flute; Solisti New York Chamber Orchestra; Alasdair Neale, conductor), The Old Men Admiring Themselves in the Water (Robert Beaser, piano) and other performances CBS Masterworks CD: MLS 45523 - Flute, Greatest Hits: Greensleeves, Fauré Sicilienne, Genin Carnival of Venice, and other performances (Paula Robison, flute; Tokyo Akademiker Ensemble) SONY Classical CD: SMK 46250 - Marlboro Festival, 40th Anniversary: Nielsen Woodwind Quartet (Paula Robison, flute; Joseph Turner, oboe; Larry Combs, clarinet; William Winstead, bassoon; Richard Solis, horn) Marlboro Recording Society LP: MRS 3 - Schubert: Introduction and Variations on "Trockne Blumen" (Paula Robison, flute; Rudolf Serkin, piano) Musical Heritage Society CASS: 6299 - Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Presents Schubert and Schumann: Schubert Variations for Flute and Piano (Paula Robison, flute; Richard Goode, piano) and other live performances 5169151 - Canciones Latinas (Paula Robison, flute; Eliot Fisk, guitar) 5169160 - French Masterpieces for Flute and Piano: Works by Fauré, Boulanger, Ravel, and Poulenc (Paula Robison, flute; Ruth Laredo, piano) 5184518 - Paula Robison Plays American Masterworks: Works by Copland, Barber, Roy Harris, and Robert Beaser (Paula Robison, flute; Timothy Hester, piano) 7038 - Mountain Songs: Works by Beaser, MacDowell, Richards, Foster, Corea, Schuman, and Ives (Paula Robison, flute; Eliot Fisk, guitar) MMD0040/41 - Poulenc: Complete Music for Wind Instruments and Piano The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center MMD0093Z - J.S. Bach – A Musical Celebration: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center MHS4523 - G. Philipp Telemann: Six "Konzerte" for Flute and Concertante Harpsichord (Paula Robison, flute; Anthony Newman, harpsichord) MHS3704/5 - G. Philipp Telemann: Twelve "Methodical" Sonatas for Flute and Continuo (Paula Robison, flute; Samuel Sanders, harpsichord; Laurence Lesser, cello) Columbia Masterworks ML5768 - Saint Saëns: The Carnival of the Animals (Paula Robison, flute; New York Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein, conductor and narrator) M39006 - Paula Robison: Romantic Favorites Connoisseur Society CS362(5751) - Flute Concertos of 18th Century Paris: Concertos for 5 flutes (Paula Robison, Samuel Baron, Harold Bennett, Lois Schaefer, and Jean-Pierre Rampal, flutes) CRI CRI SD 439 - William Schuman: In Sweet Music (Paula Robison, flute; Scott Nickrenz, viola; Heidi Lehwalder, harp; Rosalind Rees, soprano)

Publications

Publications A Touch of Blue Sparklers for piccolo and piano Theodore Presser (2017) First prize winner for newly published music at the National Flute Association.

Amazing Grace: 8 Songs of the Spirit Theodore Presser Company (2011)

To a Wild Rose: 15 Romantic Pieces for Flute and Piano Transcribed by Paula Robison G. Schirmer, Inc., New York (2003)

Paula Robison Masterclass: Frank Martin – Ballade (2002) The Sidney Lanier Collection: Music for Solo Flute & Flute with Piano Universal Edition, Vienna (1997)

Paula Robison Flute Masterclass: Music of Paul Hindemith New Edition, Schott Music Corporation, Mainz (2012)

The Andersen Collection: Music by Joachim Andersen Edited by Paula Robison and Irna Priore European American Music Corporation (1994)

The Paula Robison Flute Warmups Book European American Music Corporation (1989)

Water Music University of Michigan Press (2003)

La Serenata for flute and guitar "La Serenata": Favorite Italian serenades and love songs arranged for flute and guitar by Paula Robison and Frederic Hand Theodore Presser

As Contributor Ann McCutchan, Marcel Moyse: Voice of the Flute - The Foreword Marjorie Ryerson, Water Music - "A Dialogue" Ed. John Sinclair, Flute Stories - a story Amy Nathan, The Young Musician's Survival Guide - an interview Karen Evans Moratz, Flute for Dummies - an interview Stephanie Stein Crease, Music Lessons - an interview Maro Chermayeff and Amy Schewel, Juilliard - filmed interviews (book and PBS film)