Christopher Rosevear asks:

>Has anybody else on the list been following the BBC Young Musician of the
>Year 2002 competition?

Yes indeed -- been watching it on BBC 4 and very illuminating it has been.
Added to Christopher's thoughts is one of my own.

I'm impressed with the choice of music made by these young performers.
A lot of VERY modern music, including pieces that can best be described
as musical theatre.  The trombone player performing a piece hy contemporary
Swedish composer Fredrik Hogsberg springs to mind -- involved running
round the auditorium, encouraging audience participation and alternating
vocalisations (can't acll it singing!)with actual trombone playing.  well
performed -- but is it really wise to set oneself up for artistic criticism
in addition to the technical scrutiny, I wonder? And to what extent is this
type of choice ultimately the students -- in other words what influence do
their tutors have on them.  For example -- the tuba semi-finalist played
an excellent solo (Alarums, I think) by Edward Gregson -- who happens to
be the Principal of the Royal Northern College of Music where the student
currently studies.  I am NOT making any suggestions of undue influence --
far from it.  But I wonder to what extent non-musical influences are coming
in to play here?

Overall, of course, it is extremely encouraging to see such a wide spread
of young people with such enormous talent.  Onward and Upward!

Tim Mahon
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