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An award-winning flutist, content creator, and educator,
Katie Althen-Velázquez enjoys a rich career with a multifaceted impact on the arts.
Widely recognized as a unique musician, the Boston Musical Intelligencer has praised her performances for their “great sinuous magic,” while flute legend Paula Robison describes Katie as “a true, intelligent artist with a wonderful sense of humor and awareness of life’s surprises.”
A Juilliard graduate, she has performed alongside Sir James Galway during his live 75th birthday celebration, shared the stage with Renée Fleming, and performed during the 2023 Met Gala with pop icon Lizzo. She appeared on the exclusive 2018 run of Rocktopia on Broadway, a fusion of classical and classic rock music. She has also performed across the United States in various orchestras, appearing with the Reading Symphony Orchestra, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, York Symphony Orchestra, Artosphere Festival Orchestra, among others, as well as with the chamber music ensemble Frisson. A dedicated collaborator, she frequently joins forces with the accomplished Mexican pianist, Santiago Lomelín. She has presented recitals and masterclasses across the US East Coast, as well as in Mexico and Argentina.
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Katie is a founding member of the New York City-based Sonora Collective, a collective of musicians that brings chamber music to art galleries and other unique spaces. As a Co-Director, Katie has played a role in curating over eighteen distinct concert programs, spanning classical to contemporary compositions. The dedication to performing works by living composers is a hallmark of the collective's mission. Katie has spearheaded commissions for flute and strings, collaborating with esteemed composers Paul Frucht and Jared Miller.
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Eager to diversify her impact, Katie is known to a wide audience for her contributions to the flute community on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, where she has amassed over 230k followers and subscribers, as well as over 30 million views. Having grown her Instagram account since the summer of 2014, she is recognized as one of the first classical music content creators and was named one of Influencer Intelligence's 10 Classical Musicians You Should Follow. On YouTube, she produces content demonstrating flutes from the Flute Center of New York, as well as full-length performances, vlogs, and practice tips.
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A firm believer in sharing her talent and love of music, Katie maintains a private flute studio where she teaches students from 6 to adult. She has been an Artist-Faculty member of The Charles Ives Music Festival at the Western Connecticut Youth Orchestra since 2019. Previously she was faculty at Musart Music and the Great Neck Music Conservatory.
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Katie is from outside of Reading, Pennsylvania, and holds a Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School and a Bachelor of Music degree from the New England Conservatory, with additional studies at the Peabody Conservatory. Her principal teachers include Robert Langevin, Paula Robison, and Marina Piccinini. She is the winner of the Yamaha Prize at the 2011 Julius Baker Masterclasses, won third prize at the 2016 New York Flute Club Competition, and was a 2018 Astral Artists Finalist. She plays on a 9-karat rose gold Muramatsu flute and a copper-alloy Trevor James alto flute.
When she's not making music, Katie enjoys taking ballet class and studying Spanish. Katie lives in NYC with her husband, Argentine violinist Jeremías Sergiani-Velázquez, and their Havanese dog, Miguel.
“...the virtuosos [Althen-Velázquez and Lomelín] played in a moving way, to the point that the audience stood up to applaud them.”
“...the audience members defined it as a concert with soul.”
-Chic Magazine Mexico