MusicByTheLake

Our Executive Director

Christine Flasch spent 12 years singing leading sopranos roles with opera companies nationwide, culminating in 12 seasons with the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Since then, she has built thriving vocal programs at several colleges and universities, including Aurora University where she helped develop the choral, applied voice, and piano areas on the Illinois campus while functioning as Artistic and Executive Director of Music by the Lake in Williams Bay.

Christine has enjoyed every aspect of building and developing the summer festival, including serving as music director and conductor of 10 seasons of opera, operetta, and musical theatre performances as part of the Main Stage and Sundays at 4 Series. Her orchestral conducting began with 10 performances by the Florentine Opera and Waukesha Symphony of Mozart's "The Magic Flute" for school children. She has since led performances of several more productions in the area, including an especially well-received "Madama Butterfly" by Puccini at Music by the Lake in 2009. In addition, Christine has presented eight Christmas concerts on campus featuring the choirs of Aurora University, the Music by the Lake Singers, and members of the Music by the Lake Orchestra.

With a strong emphasis on developing young artists through vocal instruction and involvement in Music by the Lake productions, Christine has nurtured the talents of hundreds of young musicians at the college level, and in the early stages of their professional careers. Through her direction, young singers have been encouraged to reach for their highest potential artistically and personally. Nurturing their artistic growth, while working to build appreciation for fine music on stage and for audiences everywhere, has been her focus since returning to the Midwest.