Shaul . .
13en-ttetr

300 fellow
fanatics.

Totally Immersed

Shaul Ben-Meir lives
and breathes one
instrument. Therefore,
Sunday will be a
memorable day.

SUZANNE CHESSLER
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

haul Ben-Meir
will feel very
much in his ele-
ment Sunday
when he joins
about 300 other
musicians for
Michigan Flute
Festival '93. The after-
noon concert features
professionals and hobby-
ists performing at
Orchestra Hall.
Mr. Ben-Meir, a flutist
Detroit
the
with

S

Symphony Orchestra
(DSO), routinely sur-
rounds himself with
flutes, flutists and flute
accessories.
When he is not
involved with DSO
events, the Israeli-
trained instrumentalist
conducts a non-profit
flute ensemble, teaches
advanced flute students,
repairs flutes and oper-
ates Flute World, which
sells flutes, flute sheet

music, flute recordings
and flute novelty items
to customers across the
country.
What's more, he is
married to a flutist with
whom he sometimes
shares the stage.
"The flute is a melodic
instrument that allows
for an interesting reper-
toire, including classics,
chamber music and jazz,"
said Mr. Ben-Meir,
whose Michigan Flute

Orchestra will perform
pieces by Mozart and
Gates at the festival.
"There is going to be a
variety of groups, and
there should be a lot of
nice pieces to listen to.
The program is different,
and there's a lot of
enthusiasm for it."
The festival was
planned by Musica Viva
International Concerts
Inc., a non-profit organi-
zation that presents
Michigan and interna-
tional guest artists in
performances planned
throughout the year.
This will be the organi-
zation's first program
featuring only flutists,
and sponsors hope it
will become an annual
event. The concert is in
honor of Ervin Monroe,
principal flutist with
the DSO for 25 years.
Alexander Zonjic, a
former student of Mr.
Ben-Meir, is master
of ceremonies.
"A flute concert is
not routine cham-
ber music," said
Mr. Ben-Meir, who
served as director of the
Professional Flute Choir
of the National Flute
Association during its
1991 convention in
Washington, D.C. "They
do this kind of program
with string or brass
instruments.
"There are a lot of good
flute players around, but
community orchestras
can only take two so
there's not much room
for them to play. With
flute orchestras, there
are tremendous possibili-
ties."
Mr. Ben-Meir, who has
recorded albums of clas-
sical and Israeli music,
did not begin his career
as a flute player.
"I grew up on a kib-
butz, and the only
instrument we had was a
recorder," he explained.
"My teacher noticed I
had a talent for wind

IMMERSED page 78