Stéphanie Pesant
Stéphanie Pesant, B.MUS/B.ED(MUS.ED) University of Saskatchewan; M.Mus (Flute Performance), University of Toronto
flute, clarinet, saxophone, piano, Musical Prelude
Stéphanie Pesant is a charismatic, ebullient young woman at the start of a brilliant career. Be it solo performances, orchestral playing, chamber music, or teaching, Stéphanie strives to explore new grounds as a musician. As an orchestral player, Ms. Pesant is currently principal flutist with the Brampton Symphony Orchestra and second flutist with Orchestra Toronto. She has performed as an orchestra member with the Kindred Spirits Orchestra, the Canadian Sinfonietta, Etobicoke Musical Productions, the Toronto Mandolin Orchestra, and the North York Concert Orchestra. From 2007 to 2010, Ms. Pesant was a founding partner of the Aurum Ensemble - a duo with classical guitarist Mariette Stephenson. Aurum specialised in international new music, premiering works by contemporary, present-day composers such as William Beauvais, Patrick Power, and Jonatas Batista-Neto. In August 2009, Stéphanie fulfilled a life-long dream of working with William Bennett and performed at the William Bennett International Summer School in Greenwich, England.
In the 2010/11 season, Stéphanie will continue performing with both the Brampton Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Toronto. New opportunities for the 2010/2011 season include an invitation to perform with Toronto’s Sneak Peek Orchestra, an ensemble founded in 2007 by her musical peers, conductor Victor Cheng and composer Kevin Lau, as well as an invitation from the Taffanel Wind Ensemble to sit the flutist’s chair.
As a teacher, Stéphanie is passionately committed to sharing her knowledge with others; she has presented flute clinics throughout western Canada and continues to be in demand as a clinician in the Greater Toronto Area. Stéphanie currently acts as Artist in Residence at Mayfield Secondary School in Brampton where she teaches private flute lessons, presents master classes, and serves as a panel adjudicator for woodwind entrance auditions. In the Toronto area, Stéphanie is Woodwind Specialist at the Classical Music Conservatory (CMC). At CMC, Stéphanie has taught Musical Preludes to young children, and continues teaching private flute lessons to beginner students as young as five years of age. She has spent the past three years preparing her more advanced students for Royal Conservatory of Music flute examinations and entrance auditions to the Etobicoke School for the Arts.
Stéphanie loves the look on a student’s face when an “a-ha” moment happens – the moment when the teaching and learning come together and the hard work of both student and teacher pays off. “For me, teaching is learning,” Stephanie says; “I’ve found every student brings a new perspective, and, in a way, ‘musical puzzles’ for me to solve. Teaching also causes me to reflect on my own abilities, so as a result of teaching, I continue learning as well.” Her philosophy is the better a performer she is, the better a teacher she is, and vice versa.
In 2008, Stéphanie received her Masters in Flute Performance at the University of Toronto, under the tutelage of Camille Watts, who plays flute and piccolo with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Prior to her studies in Toronto, Stéphanie graduated with honours, earning two Bachelor degrees: one in Flute Performance, and the other in Music Education, both from the University of Saskatchewan. There she studied with Randi Nelson - principal flutist of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. After completing her undergraduate degrees, Stéphanie lived in Vancouver for a year, studying privately with Brenda Fedoruk, flutist of the now-defunct CBC Radio Orchestra. During her student years, Stéphanie performed in master classes with renowned Canadian flute soloist Susan Hoeppner and with l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal’s principal flutist, Timothy Hutchins. She has also worked with Carol Wincenc at the Centre d’arts Orford.
Stéphanie grew up across Canada – from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, and several provinces in between. Rare moments without flute in hand entail scrapbooking, reading, and knitting (currently specialising in scarves). Physical fitness is also a top priority for Stéphanie - she enjoys rollerblading, working out at the gym, and practicing yoga and pilates. Her most recent goal is to finish a half marathon to raise money for Lymphoma research; like all of Stéphanie’s ambitions, this too will soon become reality.
For information on Stéphanie, please visit her website at www.stephaniepesant.com