Christchurch
Flute Lessons | Artist development, Aural Lessons, Ensemble Coaching, Theory Lessons, Jazz Improvisation Lessons, NCEA Music Tutoring, Online Lessons, Posture for Singers and Instrumentalists
Bio
Dr Hannah Darroch has been described as “a musician comfortable both in the ancient and the modern…a master of musical communication.” She is the Principal Flute of the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, and is on faculty at the University of Canterbury’s School of Music, teaching flute and managing the woodwind area. In 2024 she is running a private flute studio out of The Piano in Christchurch.
Her genre-crossing career has included concerto appearances at the International Conference on Mixed Music Pedagogy and IRCAM Forum in Montreal, a free improvisation clinic at the 2020 Jazz Education Network conference in New Orleans, a chamber music residency with the International Contemporary Ensemble at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Canada, a Chamber Music New Zealand tour in 2022 with award-winning Canadian guitarist Steve Cowan, and another coming up later in 2024 with founding member of the LA Percussion Quartet, Justin DeHart.
Hannah has freelanced with every professional orchestra in the country over the past 16 years, and can be heard on a number of New Zealand Symphony Orchestra recordings on the Naxos, EMI, and Universal labels, including the soundtrack to The Hobbit. She also features on Frank Ticheli’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated work Songs of Love and Life recorded on Klavier Records in the United States, and on Les Oiseaux, a new album by French indie-pop band Les Passagers recorded in Montreal. She has shared the stage with a wide range of artists including Renee Fleming, Diana Krall, and Tiki Taane. Conductors she has worked with include Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Sir James MacMillan, and Sir Andrew Davis.
An advocate for working with living composers, she collaborated frequently with six-time Grammy-nominated percussionist-composer John Hollenbeck while living in Montreal, and is currently the resident performer-curator of the Composers Association of New Zealand’s annual conference. Committed to equity and championing music by underrepresented composers, Hannah was recently awarded a $40,000 grant from Creative NZ to commission and record four new works for flute and piano by women composers, which are now regularly broadcast on RNZ Concert.
Teaching Info
Hannah is in-demand as a teacher, recently giving guest masterclasses in a range of locations across Canada, the United States, South America, and Australia. She was awarded a McGill University Teaching Award in 2020 for her commitment to innovation and collaboration in her work on the teaching staff at the Schulich School of Music, where her undergraduate woodwind students have since gone on to gain places in the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, professional orchestras, and graduate performance programmes across the United States and Europe.
Back in New Zealand, Hannah is a regular touring coach for Chamber Music New Zealand. She has worked with the woodwind sections of youth and community orchestras and bands around the country, including the NZSO National Youth Orchestra during her time on contract as Principal Piccolo of the NZSO.
Recent student successes have included places in the NZSSSO and NYO, scholarships to music schools in North America, distinction grades in Trinity College of Music examinations, and advancement in the NZCT Chamber Music Contest. Hannah also works to train teachers across the country, and was invited to be a keynote speaker at the 2022 Institute of Registered Music Teachers (IRMT) National Conference, as well as adjudicating regional IRMT solo competitions.
Whether you’re an absolute beginner, an advanced High School student seeking that next level of detail, an adult wanting to return to flute after some time away, or someone looking for one-off coaching ahead of an audition or exam, Hannah is happy to cater to your needs. Hannah also has a background in saxophone and has spent many years helping jazz doublers to feel confident with their flute playing.
By choosing to study with Hannah, you’ll get a solid foundation of tone and technique, and advanced concepts of sound production and body awareness to optimise your flute playing – all presented with individualised guidance that will allow your musical expression to shine through with confidence.