Date: Saturday, April 11th, 2026
Location: Hill-Murray School, 2625 Larpenteur Ave E, Maplewood, MN 55109
Flute Fest is an annual UMFA event dedicated to our love of the flute. Each year we feature an inspiring guest artist, and host the final rounds of the Young Artist Competition and Laudie Porter Memorial Scholarship Competition for junior high and high school students. There are also masterclasses, discussions and workshops, as well as opportunities for participation, so bring your flute! It is a fabulous day to shop for flutes and flute music from our many knowledgeable exhibitors. Those who prefer to spend the day listening, will delight in the concerts and recitals, including our Rising Stars Recitals, dedicated to our youngest students. Join our flute community! We welcome all ages and ability levels to join us!
Flute Fest 2026 Guest Artist
UMFA is pleased to announce that Catherine Ramirez will be the 2026 Flute Fest guest artist!
Flutist Catherine Ramirez - recognized for her “sensitive and artistic” (Flute Talk Magazine) performances as “a communicator through music” (American Record Guide) - has captivated listeners from her desert roots along the U.S. Southern border to audiences around the world. Winner of three international competition prizes in Italy, First Prize and a New York Debut from the New York Flute Club Young Artist Competition, a Sallie Shepherd Perkins Prize for Best Achievement from Rice University, a McKnight Fellowship for Musicians - in recognition of artistic excellence and a distinctive musical voice - and, most recently, a Sphinx MPower Artist Grant, Catherine aims in performance to harness the power of music to invite hope, connection, healing, and inspiration.
As a soloist and chamber musician, she has performed at such renowned venues as the Teatro del Giglio in Italy, Beijing Concert Hall, the Chicago Cultural Center’s Preston Bradley Hall, The Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, and Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, while also sharing her music in such varied locations as public schools, mental health clinics, rural libraries, and urban artist lofts. Equally at home with orchestras, Catherine has performed with such groups as the Sunriver Music Festival, Vermont Mozart Festival, El Paso Symphony, Juarez Symphony, Minnesota Sinfonia, Minnesota Opera, Minnesota Orchestra, and The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.
A dedicated educator of flute and chamber music, Catherine has been an adjudicator and coach for the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, has taught youth to graduate flute students in masterclasses in the United States, Italy, Colombia, and China, has mentored young adults through the National Flute Association and Posse Program, and holds a Special Appointment as Artist-in-Residence at St. Olaf College.
