Organized by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Flöte, the 2026 Internationales Flöten Festival took place in Essen, Germany from September 25-27, for which UNO’s flute professor, Dr. Christine Beard was invited to participate as a member of the International SuperFlutes Collective. With only 2 rehearsals, SuperFlutes’ concert featured arrangements of orchestral masterworks by Rheinberger, Mendelssohn, Saint-Saëns, and Gluck. Their performance was dedicated to their colleague and friend, Serbian flutist Milica Milojević-Bogdanović, who unexpectedly passed in 2025.

Founded in 2013, SuperFlutes is a professional flute ensemble comprised of over a dozen flutists from 4 continents, representing Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the USA. Headed by UK flutist Carla Rees who also does the musical arrangements, the ensemble has also performed together in Brazil, Japan, Costa Rica, Switzerland, the USA and the UK. More info about SuperFlutes as well as videos from their German Flute Festival performance can be found at https://superflutes.wixsite.com/home or on their Facebook page.