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The objective of the Foundation is to help develop young musicians in the Newbury and West Berkshire area through the focus of an annual competition for 15 to 19 year olds to which youngsters will aspire and the award of music bursaries annually to children between 9 and 14 who have demonstrated musical talent but whose families may find it financially challenging to offer their offspring any formal musical education. We hope in time, if sufficient funds can be raised, to develop a strategy to help and support the under 9s in due course.

The project was founded in November 2001 by Bob Rae (Newbury Manor), Fiona Bennett (Newbury Manor), Michael Bewick (The Corn Exchange), John Kane (Southern Sinfonia) and Patrick Hogan (Hogan Music) who are all unpaid, as well as generous financial patrons of the project. We will and need to continue to raise ongoing funds to ensure we can achieve all we have planned for each year for children and music in our area. Donations will be gratefully recieved, please contact Pamela Merry-West regarding donations or any questions.

Please click here to see a press release of the Newbury Manor Young Musician of the year award 2004.
 
 

 
Sir Roger Norrington was a talented boy soprano and violinist and was educated at Cambridge. He is an authority on historical performance practice and is in great demand as a guest conductor worldwide. He has recorded extensively for EMI, Virgin and Decca and is Chief Conductor for the Stuttgart Symphony Radio Orchestra.
 


Frank Kelleher was formerly Head of Wind and Percussion at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. A clarinettist, his professional experience (following studies with Gervase de Peyer) includes many broadcasts and television appearances both as a soloist and as an orchestral player. He has examined in more than fifteen countries worldwide.

  
 

 
Mary Rees has won many awards following studies with Zbigniew Grsybowski and Harold Craxton. She competed in the Warsaw International Chopin competition in 1955 and won first prize at both the Welsh National and International Eisteddfodau. She was formerly Head of Keyboard at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and has also worked with many UK authorities and tutored at summer camps for The University of Southern California.
 


Fiona Bennett won a scholarship at 13 to study the piano at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. She gained her LTCL performer’s diploma at 17 and went on to study piano and trumpet at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Fiona has her own band “Route 66”, runs her own music agency ‘FAB Music’ and is the Entertainment Director for Newbury Manor Hotel.

  
 

 
Helen Fitzgerald studied recorder and ‘cello at the Birmingham Conservatoire. She graduated in 1992. Helen continues to play the ‘cello professionally but has also developed a successful career in Arts Management, providing musicians for ensembles as diverse as The London Classical Players, The King’s Consort, Barry Manilow and Meatloaf. Education project management is also important to Helen and she was awarded an HonBC by the Conservatoire in 1999.
 

 
Following an exciting final, held on Sunday 20th June 2004 at The Corn Exchange, Newbury, the Judges had the difficult task of deciding which of the talented Finalists were to receive the title of 'Newbury Young Musician of the Year 2004'. All of the Finalists played excellently and well and truly deserved their place on the stage. All of the finalists, including the winner, received a gift voucher for £100 to be spent at Hogan Music and the winner also received a host of other prizes: £1000 to spend on furthering their musical interests, a trophy engraved with their name, a recording session at Trinity School's Recording Studio and a chance to perform with Newbury's resident orchestra, Southern Sinfonia. It was a very difficult decision to make, but eventually the Judges came to a unanimous decision to crown Rosemary Toll Newbury's Young Musician of the Year.
 


Rosie is 18 and she began playing the piano when she was 5 and the 'cello when she was 7. her interest in percussion came quite a bit later, when she was 13. She studied 'cello and percussion at the Purcell School, where she also took up the double bass gaining Distinction in her Grade 8 exam. She is now studying percussion at the Royal Northern College of Music through an ABRSM scholarship. Last year, Rosie played principal 'cello for the HCYO. She has also discovered a great interest in composition; writing a piece called 'About Fish' which won the 2003 'Compose Yourself' competition. The piece was recorded by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and was also broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and Classic FM. It received another performance by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall as part of their family concerts. Ros
 
 

 
Lucie is 17 and began learning the oboe when she was 8 years old. Following her time at the John O’Gaunt School in Hungerford, she currently attends ‘The Purcell School of Music’, studying the oboe with Melanie Ragge, professor of oboe at The Royal Academy of Music. Lucie is principal oboe in the Berkshire Youth Orchestra, plays the Cor Anglais in the National Youth Sinfonia and also studies the piano. She recently played in a chamber concert at London’s Wigmore Hall and one of her ambitions is to play a solo on the same stage. Lucie’s favourite pastime is going to concerts with her father but she also loves shopping, swimming and tennis. When she is not at boarding school, Lucie lives in Kintbury with her parents and older sister Georgina and she is determined to become a well-known soloist one day.
 


Rosie is 18 and she began playing the piano when she was 5 and the ‘cello when she was 7. Her interest in percussion came quite a bit later, when she was 13. She studied ‘cello and percussion at the Purcell School, where she also took up the double bass gaining Distinction in her Grade 8 exam. She is now studying percussion at the Royal Northern College of Music through an ABRSM scholarship. Last year, Rosie played principal ‘cello for the HCYO. She has also discovered a great interest in composition; writing a piece called ‘About Fish’ which won the 2003 ‘Compose Yourself’ competition. The piece was recorded by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and was also broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and Classic FM. It received another performance by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall as part of their family concerts. Rosie lives with her mother in Hampstead Marshall.

  
 

 
Hannah is 15 years old. She has studied the piano from the age of 5 and the violin since she was 6. Hannah has performed in countless music competitions in Oxford, Wantage and Basingstoke on both piano and violin from the age of 7, winning many first prizes. She was educated at home until recently and passed 2 A-levels at the age of 14. She now attends the Purcell School, studying violin with Paul Barritt. Hannah is also a talented artist and she exhibited her paintings ‘Hannah’s Heads’ at Desmoulin Gallery when she was 13. She has been offered a place in an exhibition at Buckingham Mall in London by the ‘Society of Women Artists’ which opens on 3rd June 2004. Hannah’s other interests are reading, writing, the theatre and more recently composition. She lives with her parents and older brother, Lukas, in Hollington.
 


Elspeth is 18 years old. She began studying the piano at 11 and violin at 12, in group lessons. She currently studies the violin with Christian Persinaru. Elspeth joined Reading Scottish Fiddlers and at the age of 14 played a solo in front of 800 people at the Aylesbury Scottish Fiddlers Rally. She won a scholarship with BYMT, joined CBSE and the Berkshire Youth Orchestra and last year was chosen to play first violin in the National Youth Orchestra. The benefit of an award from the Robina Dellmeyer Trust resulted in some consultation lessons with Professor Deakin at the Royal Academy of Music and she continues with these twice a month. Elspeth attends the School of St. Helens and St. Katherine and is also studying A-level French and German. She lives with her parents in Upper Basildon and has two older brothers. Elspeth still plays the piano, enjoys singing, running, playing tennis and is a regular at Greyfriars Church.

  
 

 
Lukas turned 18 on New Year’s Eve 2003. He began learning the piano at 5 and it was his performance on this instrument which won him the inaugural ‘Newbury Manor Young Musician of the Year’ trophy in 2002. Lukas has studied the violin since the age of 6, learning with his mother, John Kane and then Paul Barritt at the Purcell School. Lukas led the Hampshire Youth Orchestra for two years but prefers the solo and chamber music repertoire. He particularly enjoys playing string quartets with his family. As a composer, his largest work to date is a piece for string orchestra, which was premiered by the Hampshire Youth Orchestra at The Anvil, Basingstoke in 2000. Lukas is also a past winner of Basingstoke Young Musician of the Year. He enjoys jazz composition, choir, football, basketball, table tennis and tennis and speaks German and French. He will study the violin at the Royal College of Music from autumn 2004. Lukas lives with his parents and his sister, Hannah, in Hollington.