Mara's auditioning tour

First stop:  University of Southern California, Los Angeles

This was Mara's number 1 choice....it was also the number 1 choice for about 50 (or more) other flutists that were there auditioning.    Unfortunately, she didn't get accepted here (there was 1 spot), so maybe grad school?

Mara took a private lesson with the professor there, Jim Walker, a flutist who has played for all of the soundtrack recordings in the last 30 years.  It was an amazing lessons to sit in on.

Second Stop:  BYU and University of Utah
(Got accepted at both schools)

 Met up with lots of cousins:  Isaac, Sandra (Isaac's fiancee), and Eliza Riley

 Sydney Anderson

Just by coincidence, one of Mara's favorite flutists, Pahud, was doing a concert in Salt Lake the same time we were there.  We went, and thanks to the assertiveness of our friend, Tonya Miller, we made it backstage, and a knock on the door of his dressing room produced this picture.  Mara was on cloud nine for days!

Third stop:  Florida State University in Tallahassee
(Got accepted here)

Mara stopped in Niceville and saw her old Middle School Band director, Mr. Steadman.  He was the one that started her on this path of playing the flute............


Fourth Stop:  Carnegie Mellon in Philadelphia

Fifth Stop:  Colorado State University
(Got accepted here)

Sixth Stop:  University of Colorado Boulder
(Got accepted here)

Seventh Stop:  Vanderbilt

(Got an offer here the day before she had to make her decision)

Eighth Stop:  Mannes School of Music

(Got accepted here)

Ninth Stop:  Boston University

(Got accepted here)

Tenth Stop:  University of Washington

(Got accepted here)

Funny that a non-coffee drinker would be so thrilled to visit the original Starbucks!