Mary Boodell
Mary Boodell is the Principal Flutist of the Richmond Symphony in Virginia. Praised as one of the city’s “most versatile and venturesome musicians,” she has won acclaim not only for her orchestral playing but also for her numerous chamber music performances. Equally at home in Baroque and contemporary music, Ms. Boodell has performed at festivals across the US and Europe, including at the Los Angeles Hollywood Bowl, Eastern Music Festival, Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy, Wolf Trap, VA, and regularly at the Staunton Music Festival, VA. Before coming to the Richmond Symphony, Ms. Boodell played Principal Flute with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra in Tennessee and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. Since 2004, she has played baroque and modern flutes as a member of the Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia, an organization dedicated to bringing world-class chamber music to Richmond.
Born in Chicago, Ms. Boodell received her Bachelor of Music at the Oberlin Conservatory and her Master of Music at Northwestern University, studying with some of the country’s most respected flutists, Robert Willoughby and Walfrid Kujala. A devoted teacher herself, she has taught at the University of Richmond and the Richmond Symphony School of Music, coaches youth symphony players, and performs regularly with the RSO Woodwind Quintet in Richmond-area public schools. Her students have gone on to major conservatories and top orchestral jobs.
When not performing, she enjoys biking, swimming, cooking, yoga, and exploring the city of Richmond, where she lives with her family.