Prema Kesselman
Early Life
Prema Kesselman was born in Flushing, New York. Kesselman began her musical training in Valencia, California and later in Los Angeles, California, where she attended the Colburn School of Performing Arts. Since her concerto debut at the age of fifteen, she has soloed with orchestra more than a dozen times and has garnered prizes and awards from over twenty state, national and international competitions. Kesselman received a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance, summa cum laude at Temple University-Boyer College of Music where she studied flute with David Cramer and was awarded the Max Aronoff Prize, President's Scholar Award, Presser Scholar Award and 1st prize in the Annual Soloist Competition.
She completed a Postgraduate Advanced Diploma (PGA) with distinction, sponsored by the Derek Butler Trust, and a Master of Music (MMus) in Flute Performance Studies, sponsored by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, studying flute with Wissam Boustany. Her MMus dissertation titled, "Poem by Charles Tomlinson Griffes: An Analysis and a New Version" and her final recital received a distinction from their respective juries, which included William Bennett.
Kesselman was awarded the Friends of New York Trinity Laban London Prize for her outstanding performance achievements and won the Gold Medal Prize, the College's highest award for solo performance. She was also awarded the Worshipful Company of Musicians' Silver Medal for Excellence in Performance. In addition, she took part in mentor schemes with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and Chamber Orchestra of Europe. Previous flute teachers include Nadine Asin, Peter Lloyd, Karen Lundgren, Cathy Ransom, and Anne Diener Zentner.
