Audition Prep with Erik F.

Pianist, music director, and vocal coach, Erik was born and raised in Eastern Washington state. As a solo pianist, he has been heard all across the northwest and beyond, in cities including Seattle, Portland, Tacoma, NYC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Philadelphia, and internationally in Prague and Salzburg. Erik has been a guest artist at Whitman College, Portland State University, The Kairos Chamber Music Lyceum, California State University Summer Arts, the West Seattle Symphony, and the Gig-Harbor Peninsula Symphony Orchestra. In addition to performing, Erik’s passion for teaching has led him to be an adjudicator for various festivals including the Washington Sonata-Sonatina Festival and the Washington Regional Solo and Ensemble Festival. Erik most recently served as the Music Director for the National Tour of Kander and Ebb's timeless musical Cabaret. This production was on tour from December 2017 through May 2018 all across North America. Broadway.com's review praised the musicianship of the show, "Musical director Erik Flaten's musicians are impressive in their dexterity: At one moment, they are providing rich interpretations of the memorable John Kander score, while perhaps at the next they are playing denizens of the Kit Kat Klub or neighborhood thugs, wastrels and other folks of questionable repute. Flaten and his band are given their own richly deserved moments in the spotlight at the top of Act Two and the music director himself is given the well-earned final bow at the end of the curtain call." Erik currently resides in Philadelphia, where he coaches and plays for a diverse range of singers. In addition to coaching and playing, Erik works as Music Director for musical theater, manages a private studio, and serves as Artistic Director of the Media Performing Arts Series. Previous successes include performances with mezzo-soprano, Angela Niederloh and baritone, Matthew Hayward in Portland, and a performance of the Grieg piano concerto with the West Seattle Symphony. Upcoming engagements on the East Coast include collaborative work with with soprano, Leah Golub. Students of Erik have the opportunities to perform in studio recitals and workshops.