About Emily Smith
Hello!
I always knew I wanted to teach music. I trained to be a band director, but a funny thing happened as I was finishing up my bachelor's degree in music education -- I started teaching private flute lessons and found my true calling! I love what I do and it makes me so happy to be able to share my passion with others. Since starting as a professional Flute Educator more than 30 years ago, I’ve been privileged to see so many flute students discover their natural skills and abilities and reach results they never dreamed were possible. I've also amassed a wealth of experience as an adjudicator, clinician, and performer, and I bring that knowledge and expertise to every lesson. Read about my journey from flute student to flute teacher below. For more about my professional and performance credentials, click here. If that sounds like something you’d like to explore, please get in touch! Scroll down for contact information.
My Story
I’m an Army brat. My childhood was spent living in such diverse locales as Laurel, MD, Atlanta, GA, San Antonio, TX, and Columbia, MO. Our last post was Ft. Leavenworth, KS, where I began playing the flute in 6th grade. Fun fact: I play the flute because my orthodontist wouldn’t let me play the clarinet! He believed the mouthpiece would exacerbate my overbite (not true). Although I struggled for a couple of years, I began to improve when I started taking private flute lessons in the 8th grade. By the time we moved from Ft. Leavenworth to Kansas City, where I finished high school, I knew I wanted to make a career of teaching music. After college, I moved back to Kansas City, where I began teaching private flute lessons. I’ve been a Kansas Citian ever since.
I met my husband, Steven Smith, at a KC music store where we both taught private lessons. He’s a “jack-of-all-trades” kind of musician – saxophonist, violin/viola teacher, orchestra conductor, and arranger. Besides our love of music, we share a fondness for cats and a revulsion for olives. We also share our son, Greg. Despite our best efforts to raise Greg in the family music business, he took his own path, combining his computer savvy and desire to save the planet by forging a career as a software developer of environmentally friendly software programs for public works departments.
In my spare time, I love to travel with my husband – the wanderlust instilled in me as a child is still going strong! I also love BBQ, the Royals, local museums, and driving 20 minutes out into the country every August to view the Perseid meteor shower. Most of all, I love hanging out with friends and family -- and my cats!
Read more about my credentials and professional experience here.
Contact
Interested in joining my flute studio? Click below for more information about private lessons.