PERSONAL STORy:
As a concert artist, I’ve been fortunate enough to perform around the world, teach both professional and aspiring musicians, and make lasting friendships wherever I go. I live a life full of music, travel, and meaningful connections.
However, what many don’t know is how my journey began. After college, I tried to follow the expected path—marriage, teaching, settling down. However, during graduate school, I realized that this mold didn’t fit me. So I left that life behind on an adventure to make it as a musician. In 1980, I arrived in Germany with just $200 and two suitcases. I knew a couple of people, but I had not applied for scholarships and I had no family or external support. I planned to earn a living as a street musician, playi
ng for passersby in bustling city squares. And, this I did! (See the photo!).
Finding My Own Path
Viewing my street-playing as “paid practice,” I played as much classical repertoire as I could from memory and also increased my skills by joining Irish bands and learning folk tunes. Already in the first months I was “discovered”: I was invited to perform with various local orchestras and chamber groups and then offered a job teaching flute at a music school. From there, opportunities continued to open up: I played concerts, won a solo competition, and soon started collaborating with composers like Karlheinz Stockhausen and Kaija Saariaho. Over time, I concentrated on performing solo repertoire and gradually carved out a career that felt truly mine.
Creating a Life Outside the Box
The road wasn’t exactly direct, nor was it smoothly paved: my income was often precarious, and emotional support in this pre-internet time of communication wasn’t always at hand. But somehow I carried on, refusing to settle for a “real” job. And sure enough, the right people and opportunities kept appearing, enabling me to perform in incredible places from art museums to Carnegie Hall, from Germany to Japan, playing music which I’m passionate about. Eventually, despite the unconventional path I took, I reconnected with my family and, later in life, was also “discovered” by an interesting man who insisted on marrying me!
Looking Forward
Today, I’m living proof that you can create a fulfilling, meaningful life outside the box, no matter how winding the path might be. Grateful to have found people and tools helping me along the way, it is now my mission to inspire you to find your own way to success.
instruments:
Playing alto and bass flutes made by Altus, I am also an Altus artist. https://www.altusflutes.eu/en/musicians/camilla-hoitenga.html
I continue to treasure the flute Jack Moore made for me in 1978 (#42) — read about its ingenious inventions under Media! — and the headjoint Albert Cooper made me in 1981 to go with it. As an alternative, in 2012, I added a headjoint made by Tobias Mancke https://mancke.com/