Bournemouth Chamber Music Society

Young Musicians Development Scheme - report for year 2004-05

Bournemouth Chamber Music has a long tradition of providing performing opportunities for young musicians. The Young Musicians Development Scheme was created to enhance this.

Last year (click here for the report for year 2003-4) we described the origins and status of Bournemouth Chamber Music's Young Musicians Development Scheme. Since then it has moved on apace, as its founder and inspiration, Rosemary Allen, explains. If you want to know why the committee is justly proud of Rosemary's achievements, read on ...

Our Young Musicians Development Scheme is now in its third year and continues to flourish. The core event each year is a masterclass for local young musicians, giving them the opportunity not only to play in the excellent youth orchestras in the area, but also to experience the more intimate art of playing chamber music.

We limited the first masterclass in 2003 to strings and keyboard players, and engaged the Lycydas Piano Trio, then studying at Trinity College of Music, to act as tutors. It was their first masterclass and they proved to be such natural communicators that we invited them back in March 2004.

At the request of the young players, many of whom play more than one instrument, we included wind players and extended the event to a whole day. We also invited two more students from Trinity College as extra tutors.

Tutors and some of the students at the 2004 Masterclass, Talbot Heath Music School

We supplied the young musicians with a wide variety of music and were amazed at their ability to adapt to the requirements of playing in a group, with all the communication and 'give and take' that involves. It was hard to believe that, with exception of a piano trio who had stayed together since the first masterclass, none of them had played together before. Many of the local players hope to go on to study music after leaving school and they were delighted to have an opportunity over lunch and tea to chat informally about their future.

We give free tickets to the masterclass participants for our regular recitals and the students have occasionally acted as page turners.

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