Kia Bennett studied flute with David Nicholson at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and was awarded a Bachelor of Music with Honours in 2007. In the same year she was the winner of the John McGregor Flute Prize for outstanding achievement and was a finalist in both the Concerto Competition and the Mozart Concerto Competition. After being offered postgraduate scholarships from two of the UKs leading colleges, Kia took up a place to study with flautist Richard Davis at the Royal Northern College of Music, generously supported by Dobies Charitable Trust. In her first term at RNCM Kia won the flute position for the BBC Philharmonic Professional Access Scheme and has subsequently performed with the orchestra. Kia was awarded a Distinction for her Postgraduate Diploma in Performance at the RNCM then took up scholarship to study on the Guildhall Artist - Orchestral Training MMus at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama supported by the Guildhall School Trust.
Kia was recently offered a years work as Co-Principal flute with the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra (Durban), a position which she declined in order to pursue work in the UK. She has performed with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra(including their tour of Spain in summer 2008), with Welsh National Opera and the BBC Philharmonic. She has also won apprenticeships with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestra of Scottish Opera. As part of her Orchestral Training at the Guildhall she completed a scheme with the Philharmonia Orchestra. She was also asked to play principal flute for the combined Symphony Orchestra of the Royal Academy of Music and the Guildhall conducted by Sir Colin Davis. Other orchestras she has performed with include the Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra , City Side Sinfonia and Kentish Opera, she has also been invited to play principal with Sinfonia Cymru , the New London Sinfonia and also the newly formed Chelmsford Sinfonietta. Conductors she has worked with include: Vladimir Ashkenazy, Sir Colin Davis, Gary Walker, Ilan Volkov, James MacMillan, Hansjörg Schellenberger, Vasily Petrenko, Michal Dworzynski and Stéphane Denève.
In masterclasses, Kia has had the benefit of instruction from many leading flautists including: William Bennett, Wissam Boustany, Ian Clarke, Michael Cox, Paul Edmund Davies, Philippa Davies, Robert Dick, Launa McGhee, Peter Lloyd, Jaime Martin and Jacques Zoon.
As well as orchestral work, Kia is in demand as a teacher,and enjoys playing as a chamber musician and as a soloist. She has particularly enjoyed working with Jonathan Fisher (staff pianist, RNCM), Nico DeVilliers (piano fellow, GSMD) and 'cellist Ben Gregor-Smith. She performed Reinecke’s Flute Concerto in her hometown, Sheffield, in January 2009 and recetly performed Bach's Bminor Suite with the New London Sinfonia and conducted by David Gibson. Kia has also performed a new work "Trafod" for solo flutes and orchestra by Welsh Composer Brian Hughs with Sinfonia Cymru. Kia gratefully acknowledges financial help from the Society for the Promotion of Training Women.