Applications are open to be part of our Young Musician Showcase 2021

Are you a musician aged 15-21 who lives or studies in Kirklees or Calderdale? &Piano wants to hear from you!

Last year, in the middle of the first lockdown, &Piano held its first Young Musician Showcase, which gave 10 talented performers from around our region the opportunity to perform to a live virtual audience. On the night itself, we had about 180 people watching together, and since then, the event has been viewed over a 1000 times both on Facebook and Youtube.

After the success of last year’s event, applications are now open to perform as part of our 2021 Young Musician Showcase. Please consider applying if you are:

between 15-21 years old.

grade 7 or above standard on any instrument (including piano but excluding organ) or as a singer (classical & musical theatre)

living or studying in Kirklees or Calderdale (or you have a non-term-time address in Kirklees or Calderdale – for example when not at university)

You don’t need to be studying music as an academic subject at school/college/university.

Regulations allowing, we are inviting up to 10 performers to record a piece up to approximately 5 minutes long with a live accompanist at The Civic Hall in Slaithwaite (late March/early April – date to be confirmed), which will then be shared as part of our online event, broadcast on Sunday April 25th, 7pm.

You will have the opportunity to have 20-30 minutes to work with a professional accompanist on your piece, and then we’ll record a performance.

To apply please send:

Your name, locality (area you are from or where you study), your age, the instrument you play, and who you study with (your instrument teacher)
The proposed piece (or you may offer a choice) you would like to perform.
A video (with or without accompaniment) of you performing a short piece (this can be the piece you would intend to perform, or a different piece) on your instrument.

Here are a few tips on making a good video:

Make sure we can clearly see you and your instrument in the video
The video or sound does not need to be professional or fancy. Filming on a smartphone or tablet is absolutely fine. You do not need to dress up/dress formal, but looking reasonably smart makes a good impression!
Briefly introduce yourself and the piece you are going to play – the name and the composer
Make sure it’s a piece that equally shows off your ability but that you are also comfortable playing.

The deadline for applications is March 19th. We will acknowledge receipt of every entry, and successful applications will be informed by email.

If you are under-18 you will need permission to apply from a parent or guardian.

When selecting our performers we’ll be considering ability as well as looking to create a balanced programme of different instruments, singers and repertoire – it won’t feature 10 of the same instrument!

There is no fee to apply, and if you are not successful this time, then you’ll be welcome to apply again to another potential YMS event providing you still fit all the criteria.

Send your video* and requested information, or any questions you might have to: youngmusician@andpiano.co.uk.

*If your video is too large to send by email, then you can send the video via www.wetransfer.com to the same email address.

&Piano takes the safety and protection of participants very seriously. Please find our Safeguarding Policy here. Any in-person recording that takes place will be done strictly adhering to COVID-19 Health & Safety guidelines.