Modern Flutist, Historical Flutist, Educator
Dr. Kelly Nivison performs with the Durham Symphony on flute and piccolo, performs regularly with the Carolina Philharmonic, and on traverso, she performs with the Raleigh Camerata, Atlanta Baroque Orchestra, North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, and the Catawba River Baroque. She teaches flute, saxophone, and piano privately, and has previously served as the adjunct professor of applied woodwinds at Vincennes University. Kelly has previously performed with Indy Baroque Orchestra's Ensemble Voltaire, Bourbon Baroque Orchestra, and Owensboro Symphony in addition to several other modern orchestras and ensembles. She currently serves as Artistic Director for Raleigh Camerata, and on the board for the North Carolina Bach Festival. She previously served as the volunteer coordinator and board member for the Bloomington Early Music Festival, and was previously the president of Gamma Ut, the student organization for the Early Music Institute at Indiana University.
Three cats join Kelly in her home in Raleigh, North Carolina. She is an advocate for feline diabetes treatment and knowledge along with giving special needs kitties a chance at life. For fun, Kelly enjoys the outdoors, and has hiked several sections of the Appalachian Trail.
Dr. Nivison has won the National Flute Association Graduate Research Competition (2018) for her Doctoral thesis "The Flute In Transition," won second place in the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra's Concerto Competition (2014), has been a semi-finalist in the National Flute Association's Baroque Flute Artist competition four times (2007, 2009, 2012, 2015), and has won the National Flute Association's Baroque Masterclass Performers competition (2011). Known for her performances, Andrea Luke of CVNC writes that Dr. Nivison is "arguably the most accomplished Baroque flutist in the state, her technique ... [is] fluid and infallible." She has performed for notable period flutists, including Barthold Kuijken, Claire Guimond, Rachel Brown, Sandra Miller, Stephen Schultz, Janet See, Christopher Krueger, and Stephen Preston. Dr. Nivison received her doctorate in Historical Flute Performance at the Early Music Institute at Indiana University where she also completed a minor in music education and modern flute performance. Additionally, Dr. Nivison holds flute performance degrees from Florida State University (M.M) and Appalachian State University (B.M.), a certificate in early music from Florida State University, and a K-12 music education degree from Appalachian State University (B.M.). Her teachers include Barbara Kallaur, Kathryn Lukas, Eva Amsler, and Nancy Schneeloch-Bingham.