Philip & Dorothy Green Young Artists concert

Barbara Eifler writes about Making Music's new Young Artists, which were announced in May and performed their presentation concert for Making Music members in June.

Once again I was privileged to be able to attend the presentation concert of our new Young Artists, available now for engagements with members with a substantial subsidy, thanks to the Philip & Dorothy Green Music Trust, for the next two years.

These artists are all extraordinary on their own, but having the opportunity to hear them all in one concert was amazing, and there’s no question that any one of them will bring something special to your concerts, whether engaged as solo artist for a full evening programme or as soloist to perform alongside your group.

Rosanna Rolton introduced us beautifully to the harp, with three very different pieces, bringing home to me the variety of repertoire this instrument is capable of assimilating – even if not written for it originally, such as the Aeolian Harp Etude by Chopin.

Luba Tunnicliffe left you in no doubt that all those jokes about violas and viola players are simply wrong – I came away with the strong feeling of a feisty artist who will do much in her forthcoming career to promote the viola as a solo instrument.

I was bowled over by Jonathan Radford on saxophone, showcasing a wide range of repertoire, some of it for me quite unexpected. His introductions to the pieces were also informative and fun, and I for one would enjoy an evening at a concert in his company.

As a former amateur pianist, I was left open-mouthed by Florian Mitrea’s acrobatics on the instrument – my hands never did manage to move in such a way! But it wasn’t just his undoubted technical mastery that impressed; he played with such beautiful feeling.

I do like the trumpet as an instrument (and am disgruntled that my son has given it up…) and Matilda Lloyd certainly did not disappoint. She made a lovely sound and is clearly passionate about her instrument, as well as a technical wizard on it.

Finally, I loved Emily Sun’s rendition of Frolov’s Concert Fantasy on themes from Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess – surprising, for me, as a choice for this concert, but such fun and so amazingly played that it cannot fail to engage any listener.

You can hear all the artists’ pieces from this concert below, and of course I would recommend you do so soon and get your bookings in before subsidies run out!