By EMILY THOMAS

Voices hushed and heartbeats quickened when Swiss flutist Emmanuel Pahud, wearing jeans and a brown suede jacket, entered a crowded Morse Hall on February 6 to give a three-hour master class before an audience of some 80 people. The seven Juilliard flutists (Emi Ferguson, Justin Bahrami, Sarah Frisof, Alexandra Sopp, Jesse Han, David Buck, and I) who were selected to participate had reason to be excited. Mr. Pahud—a world-renowned artist who was appointed principal flutist of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra at 22 and has had a solo recording contract with EMI Classics since 1996—has the ability to capture an audience's attention in a very powerful way. Flute faculty members Carol Wincenc and Robert Langevin came to the front of the hall and introduced Mr. Pahud to the audience, thanking him for his time and willingness to conduct this master class in the midst of a busy concert schedule. (He was in New York to perform a recital with pianist Yefim Bronfman at Zankel Hall the following day.) After the audience's exuberant applause, the proceedings got underway.

Master's student Alexandra Sopp at a master class with flutist Emmanuel Pahud. (Photo by Peter Schaaf)

The program that the students had selected included works by LeClair, Stamitz, Prokovief, Bach, Mozart, Martin, and Widor—a range of composers from the French Baroque to the 20th century. Mr. Pahud allowed each student to perform his or her piece of choice uninterrupted for at least five minutes, while he alternated between pacing slowly throughout the hall and sitting down as an audience member. He did this in order to analyze all aspects of the student's playing, including posture, rhythm, phrasing, breath support, resonance, presentation, concentration, dynamic control, and technical precision, as well as to allow the student to become centered in the act of performing. The organization of Mr. Pahud's thoughts was revealed as he interacted with the students and audience in a manner that was both instructive and humorously entertaining. Interestingly, he did not bring his own flute to the master class, but used the students' flutes to demonstrate his ideas. This brought him closer to understanding the relationship the students have with their instruments, including their selected alignment of the head joint and the instrument's capabilities.

Mr. Pahud began his analysis of each student with suggested posture improvements. For example, he demonstrated a three-step process to help make the flute feel like a part of the body. The method involved taking the flute in one's hands, while resting it on the thighs; bringing the instrument up to the level of the face; then turning the head to the left, and bringing the flute up to the mouth. As well as incorporating the flute with the body, he emphasized the importance of making music internally, with a minimal amount of movement. "Think that you produce the tone inside your body," he advised us. "Don't play expressively in the shoulders; play expressively in the tone."

After comments regarding the mechanics of flute playing, Mr. Pahud focused on specific elements relating to the artistic aspects of the students' musical performances. He addressed phrasing, including direction of line and breathing, and often used humor to dramatize pertinent issues. When speaking about the universal elements in music, he said, "You know rhythm is very important. Rhythm is what allows us to follow the music: it's the beat, the pulse. Play on the beat, against the beat, but always with the beat. Another piece of advice was, "When you think piano, don't think slower, softer; think more support, more edge, and carry. Try to speak to the people in the last row … play with the same precision as if you were playing forte."

Mr. Pahud's honest and insightful comments had the effect of creating a monumental collaboration between students and teacher, reinforcing the importance of education and partnership in order to preserve knowledge. His focus on concentration and the direction of energy revealed how he finds such freedom and power in performance through control and precision.

At the end of the class, Mr. Pahud thanked Juilliard for inviting him to conduct the master class and said, "It is always an honor for me to enter this building … [because of] the history of the great artists in these walls."

Emily Thomas is a third-year student in flute.