Dr. Kelsey Maes is an oboist, music educator, composer, and higher education professional based in Arizona, United States. She currently serves as adjunct faculty at Glendale Community College, where she teaches applied oboe and music courses, and works full-time as a Format and Curriculum Advisor in the Graduate College at Arizona State University. She has also taught at Arizona State University and Phoenix College, along with holding an oboe studio teaching assistantship for three years and music theory teaching assistantship for one year during her graduate studies.
Dr. Maes performs regularly as principal oboist with the Scottsdale Philharmonic Orchestra and Gilbert Symphony Orchestra. She has performed with many ensembles including Symphony of the Southwest, West Valley Symphony, Chandler Symphony, Champaign-Urbana Symphony, Danville Symphony, and the Musical Theatre Alliance of Arizona. In 2023, she was named a quarterfinalist in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and a semifinalist in the Coltman Chamber Music Competition.
As a scholar and composer, Dr. Maes has presented and performed at multiple International Double Reed Society (IDRS) Conferences. She serves as the IDRS Social Media Content Coordinator and as a member of the IDRS Chamber Music Committee. Her research based on her DMA research paper, “Arundo donax or Bust? A Preliminary Investigation into Alternative Natural Materials for Oboe Reeds” has been published in The Double Reed. The abstract from her DMA research paper was selected via peer review for publication in the Leonardo Graduate Abstracts database, which is “an evolving international and interdisciplinary peer-review database of dissertation and thesis abstracts that deal with topics at the intersections of art, science, and technology.” Her original composition, Interruptions: Variations on a Wandering Mind, is based on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and interweaves current research with her lived experience. It was premiered at the 2026 Oh My Ears Music Festival in Phoenix, Arizona and performed at the 2026 IDRS Conference alongside TK_X-2 for oboe, live electronics, and virtual reality by Eduardo Orea, one of the recipients of the 2026 50 for 50 Commissioning Grants.
Dr. Maes proudly performs on a Lorée AK oboe and a Lorée English horn with an Étoile bocal. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree, Music Theory Pedagogy Certificate, and Master of Music degree from Arizona State University, along with a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She studied oboe with Martin Schuring and John Dee.