Sponsored by Mary Brevard

Amanda Blaikie was appointed 2nd Flute of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 2016 by Leonard Slatkin and served as Acting Assistant Principal Flute for a portion of the 2023-2024 season. Previous to the DSO, Amanda held the position of Principal Flute with the Detroit Opera, Sarasota Opera, Miami City Ballet, and Battle Creek Symphony Orchestra.

Blaikie has frequently substituted with the New York Philharmonic with special performances including Carnegie Hall, a Live from Lincoln Center television broadcast, and the 2010 Eastern and Western European Tour. She has also performed with orchestras including the Orlando Philharmonic, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Ann Arbor Symphony, New World Symphony, Boca Raton Symphonia, and Opera Tampa. 

An avid lover of chamber music, Blaikie is a core musician with Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings and has also performed with New Music Detroit, Chamber Soloists of Detroit, Cut-Time Players, and the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. Blaikie regularly presents chamber recitals and solo recitals around the country. As a concerto soloist, Blaikie has performed with the Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Allegro Chamber Orchestra, and the Detroit Symphony Youth Orchestra, works by Mozart, Vivaldi, Devienne, and Ibert. Other highlights include performances at the 2017 and 2018 National Flute Association Conventions, as well as judging the 2018 NFA Orchestral Excerpt Competition.

Passionate about teaching, Blaikie maintains a private flute studio and is actively involved in the DSO’s Community and Educational Outreach Programs. She is a Flute Faculty Member at the National Orchestral Institute + Festival (2023) and is sought after as an orchestral excerpt and audition coach. Blaikie was previously a flute faculty at the Pacific Music Institute in Hawaii (2019) and has presented masterclasses at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Eastern Michigan University, University of Akron, and the Hawaii Flute Society. 

Recent editorial features include cover interviews and articles for Flute Talk (2019) and The Flute View (2021) magazines, as well as a podcast interview for the Bulletproof Musician (2020).

Blaikie earned a Professional Studies Degree in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Robert Langevin. She received a MM in Flute Performance from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music where she studied with Christine Nield-Capote and Jenny Robinson, and a BA in Music from Principia College where she studied with flutist and pianist Dr. Marie Jureit-Beamish.