Principal flute: I gave birth during the Met’s last show

Chelsea Knox, principal flute, has been talking to Classic FM about the exodus of Met musicians from New York, a trend first reported last weekend by slippedisc.com. Here’s Chelsea:

‘I gave birth during the final performance at The Met on 11 March, 2020. I had only just received tenure for my job in the spring of 2019 and for me the Met Orchestra is my dream job. I love playing opera and I am in constant awe of the talent of my colleagues. It felt like I had the career security to finally start a family and plan a future in New York City.

‘My husband, who is also a musician, and I were getting ready to purchase our first home, but were suddenly faced with leaving our apartment and moving in with my parents to sort out our plan going forward as a family. We’re now renting a small place outside of the city and while we are lucky to have such a supportive family it is still difficult to suddenly be in this position.

‘Emotionally the loss of identity has been as challenging as the loss of income. I expected new motherhood to be life altering, but being isolated with a baby and with no performances scheduled for the next year it has been hard to find balance. I’m not sure what my future as a musician looks like right now.’