Leslie Newman

Leslie Newman made her professional debut with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at age 18, performing Carl Nielsen's Flute Concerto under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis. Since then, she has performed all the major flute concerti with orchestras throughout Canada.

Leslie has appeared in recital in New York, Montreal, Chicago, Washington (DC), Taipei, and London's prestigious Wigmore Hall, where her two performances were broadcast live by the BBC's Radio 3. She has performed as guest principal flautist with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Sir Simon Rattle, the Hallé Orchestra with Kent Nagano, the Bournemouth Symphony, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Festival appearances include Banff, Bogotá, Salzburg, Sorrento, the Stratford International Flute Festival, and the Oregon Bach Festival.

Her debut CD, Beyond the Iron Curtain, was released by CALA/United and described by Gramophone magazine as an "...immensely worthwhile contribution to the catalogue." Her second solo CD, Opera Fantaisie, evoked praise from the editor of Pan (the journal of the British Flute Society), who wrote: "...I rarely enjoy a CD as much as I have enjoyed this one. Bravo."

A native of Alberta, Leslie won first prize in the Canadian National Competitive Festival of Music at age 17. Upon completion of her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto, she was awarded a prestigious Canada Council Grant to study with the late Thomas Nyfenger at Yale University. While still a student at Yale, Leslie won top prize in the CBC's National Young Performers' Competition. She graduated from Yale with her Master's degree and received the honour of Outstanding Performance Major, then moved to New York, where she continued her studies with Julius Baker at The Juilliard School.

Leslie makes her home in Toronto, where she performs regularly as a soloist and chamber musician. She has taught at The Royal Conservatory's Glenn Gould School since 2003.

You can email Leslie at leslienewman@interlog.com