Two musician appointments were recently announced by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra: AMANDA BLAIKIE, second flute, and JAMES RITCHIE, assistant principal timpani/section percussion.
Amanda Blaikie has performed with the DSO as a substitute musician for several years, and has served as principal flute with Detroit’s Michigan Opera Theatre and with the Sarasota Opera in Florida. She has held principal flute posts at Miami City Ballet and the Battle Creek (Mich.) Symphony Orchestra. Blaikie made her solo debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall after winning the 2013 Alexander & Buono International Flute Competition. She holds a bachelor’s degree in music from Principia College (Elsah, Ill.) and a master’s in music from the University of Miami.
James Ritchie was a regular extra with the Cleveland Orchestra prior to his DSO appointment. He has held principal timpani posts in the Blossom Festival Orchestra and Colorado’s National Repertory Orchestra; participated in the Tanglewood and Pacific music festivals; and performed with Ohio’s Akron and Canton symphonies, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Malaysian Philharmonic, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, Ontario. Ritchie received a bachelor’s degree from Manhattan School of Music and a master’s from the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Posted July 29, 2016
