Top Notes Flute Quartet
Petar Dundjerski, Elizabeth Faulkner, Sarah Pollard & Elizabeth Koch
Sunday, March 16, 2025 - 3:00 pm
St. Albert United Church
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In 2017, Petar Dundjerski suddenly realized that Edmonton was lacking a professional flute quartet. After bringing the shortcoming to the attention of Elizabeth Faulkner, Elizabeth Koch, and Shelley Younge, the four joined forces to take the city by storm. They started sight-reading through stacks of pieces that each of them had collected over the years and confirmed that they loved
this kind of chamber music. Their first concert, in February 2018, was the inaugural benefit concert, entitled Beneflute, for the newly-formed Edmonton Flute Association. On that concert, they premiered a piece by St. Albert’s own Michael Massey who wrote it in tribute to Elizabeth Koch’s father. Since then, they have performed in Edmonton, St. Paul, Calgary, and the amazing community of St Albert. They are so happy to be back to play for you and are joined by one new flutist. After Shelley decided to retire from the group, Elizabeth, Petar, and Elizabeth had no trouble convincing the Edmonton Symphony’s new Assistant Principal Flute Sarah Pollard to join the group.
Petar Dundjerski was born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, and has made Canada his home for the majority of his life. He has a Master's degree in Performance from the University of Toronto, where he studied flute with Susan Hoeppner. Petar has served as the Assistant Conductor-in-Residence of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and presently conducts the University of Alberta Symphony
Orchestra. As a flutist, Petar performs regularly with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra as well as in various chamber music ensembles. Petar is a founding member of the Top Notes, Edmonton's professional flute quartet.
Elizabeth Faulkner has played the flute and piccolo with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra since 2000. Along with her role as third flute, she has had the opportunity of playing the piccolo position for 23 years, Acting Principal Flute for two seasons as well as Acting Assistant Principal. She has also played Principal Flute with the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra, the National Ceremonial Guard in Ottawa and the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton. She has been featured as a soloist with various ensembles including the ESO, Alberta Baroque Ensemble, Ceremonial Guard, RDSO and more.
Besides having a music degree with distinction, she has acquired an education degree from the University of Alberta. She has taught flute at North American Baptist College, Vanguard College, The King's University, and with the Wild Rose Public School division. Her other loves include her husband, 2 sons, and cheesecake.
Recognized as one of CBC Music’s 2023 “30 Hot Canadian Classical Musicians Under 30,” flutist Sarah Pollard is Assistant Principal Flute and Piccolo of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. Prior to this she was Principal Flute of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra, and Second Flute and Piccolo of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Sarah is an alumna of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada, the Orchestra of the Americas, the National Repertory Orchestra, the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, the McGill Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestral Institute at Whistler and the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra. She has also performed as a substitute musician with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra.
As a chamber musician Sarah has performed with numerous ensembles, a highlight of which was performing Boulez’s infamous Le marteau sans maître in the Ottawa Chamberfest’s New Music Now Festival. She has also participated in several other chamber music festivals across Canada, including Banff’s Evolution: Classical festival directed by the Gryphon Trio, and the Bathurst Chamberfest in New Brunswick.
Sarah is a graduate of The Glenn Gould School, McGill University and the University of Toronto, where she studied with eminent Canadian flutists Susan Hoeppner, Carolyn Christie, Nora Shulman and Peg Albrecht. In masterclasses, music academies and private coachings, Sarah has had the opportunity to work with renowned flutists Denis Bluteau, Jennifer Gunn (piccolo), Jeffery Zook (Piccolo), Emmanuel Pahud, Leone Buyse, Jeanne Baxtresser, William Bennett, Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson, Demarre McGill, Kelly Zimba, Joanna G’froerer, Henrik Heide, Agata Igras, Robert Langevin, Gwen Klassen (piccolo) and Claire Guimond (Baroque flute).