Xaverian College students proved their talent in the Xaverian College ‘Young Musician of the Year Competition’. With 20 entries from the Music A Level course and across the College, the standard of performances impressed the judges with all students performing to a high professional standard.
The judging panel for the competition, that consisted of Xaverian College music teachers, and peripatetic instrumental tutors, eventually picked Charlotte Philpotts as the overall winner with her Flute performance of Fantasia Para un Gentilhombre by J. Rodrigo. Kelly Yip was awarded second place, followed by Charlie Lambert in third place and Ben Robertson who was awarded ‘Most Improved Young Musician’.
Charlotte commented: “I really enjoyed playing in the competition, as well as listening to others perform, and it was a great opportunity for me to develop my performance skills. The supportive atmosphere of the Music department was very much in evidence on the night. It was a brilliant experience and one I’ll never forget.”
Kelly said: “I performed Prokofiev Sonata 3 as it’s such a virtuosic piece that I’ve been working hard on for my auditions. I felt truly honoured to be amongst the winners, and special thanks to my friends in the department who supported me to make the piece sound more intriguing. I’m happy with my performance, but I think I could improve in dynamics, which is an area I know I want to keep working on.”
Charlie commented: “It was a privilege to perform alongside so many talented musicians and to share my passion for music with the audience and judges. The competition challenged and inspired me, and I’m grateful for all the opportunities we get at Xaverian to grow as performers.”
Ben said: “Playing in the ‘Young Musician of the Year’ competition was a fantastic opportunity to perform in front of a great audience and has really helped further prepare me for my auditions.”
The competition has been running for many years and aims to assist students in their preparation for conservatoire and university auditions and give students invaluable performance experience in front of a live audience.
Andy Levendis, Director of Music at Xaverian, said: “This year’s event was a huge success with families, friends and teachers attending to listen to the performances. The students were amazing, and they should all be proud of their performances.”
Earlier in the day, the Royal Northern College of Music visited Xaverian to run their second, and final, session of performance masterclasses. This annual workshop allows students to receive extensive feedback on their performances and get expert guidance on how to prepare for auditions, competitions and recitals.
Kevin Gowland, Chris Hoyle, Iyad Sughayer, Lynne Dawson, Murray Greig and Wayne Ellington, senior representatives from the RNCM, led simultaneous classes before spending three hours coaching dedicated students.
Andy continued: “Our young musicians were focused, confident and eager to learn. I am so proud of how well they performed. They demonstrated exceptional professionalism and the RNCM Tutors inspired them to progress to the next level and fulfil their potential. It was an honour to welcome them once again this year, and it was a delight to observe them pass on their expertise to our students.”
Xaverian music students are currently preparing for their performance at the Music for Youth Proms in the Royal Albert Hall on 27th November and the Xaverian ‘Christmas Showcase’ concert on 8th December at the Royal Northern College of Music. Tickets for the ‘Christmas Showcase’ are available by calling in at Student Services at the College, or tickets can be bought using Parentpay.
As one of the largest providers of post-16 education in the region, Xaverian College offers an extensive range of A Levels in addition to several BTEC courses.