The three Gold Medal finalists each performed a concerto with the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Judd to a capacity audience in the Barbican Hall on 2 May 2012.

The other two finalists were pianist Ben Schoeman and violinist Jonathan Chan. Runner up Ben Schoeman was presented with the Glass Trophy, generously donated by The Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers.

Ashley Fripp’s winning performance was Liszt’s Totentanz – Danse Macabre

He commented, ‘It is a tremendous privilege to have been awarded the Guildhall Gold Medal and has been an enormous pleasure preparing for this prestigious event with the outstanding support of the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra, James Judd and the Guildhall staff. I enjoyed the occasion and opportunity to perform Liszt's Totentanz with such enthusiastic musicians before a generous public in a beautiful hall.’

Ronan O’Hora, Head of Keyboard Studies at the Guildhall School and Ashley Fripp’s teacher said, ‘The outstanding level displayed by the three finalists, matched by the quality of the orchestra under James Judd demonstrate why the Guildhall Gold Medal continues to be such a special evening. As a teacher it is a privilege and pleasure to witness the development of a young talent such as Ashley Fripp.’

The final took place before a distinguished panel of judges including Edward Gardner ENO’s acclaimed Music Director; Richard Morrison Chief Culture Critic at the Times; Joint Chief Executive of Askonas Holt Martin Campbell-White; Jonathan Vaughan, Director of Music at the Guildhall School and James Judd conductor of the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra for the Gold Medal.

The Gold Medal award was founded and endowed by Sir H Dixon Kimber in 1915. Previous winners include Jacqueline du Pré (1960), Tasmin Little (1986) and Bryn Terfel (1989). The 2007 winner Katherine Broderick also won the first prize in the Kathleen Ferrier Award 2007 and was announced as one of ENO’s Harewood singers earlier this year; 2008 winner Sasha Grynyuk also won the inaugural Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prize which saw him perform a solo recital at the Wigmore Hall. 2009’s winner Gary Griffiths has performed solo recitals at the Wigmore Hall, Barbican Hall and Birmingham Symphony Hall, and made his professional debut with Welsh National Opera in summer 2011. In 2010 the prize was awarded to pianist Martyna Jatkauskaite, who has appeared as a soloist with the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Lithuania Chamber Orchestra, Kaunas Symphony Orchestra and the London Festival Orchestra. 2011’s winner Natalya Romaniw was awarded first prize and the song prize in the 2012 Kathleen Ferrier Competition.

Biography
Pianist Ashley Fripp is currently studying at postgraduate level with Ronan O’Hora, having graduated last year with First Class Honours, and is the Derek Butler Trust Scholar. He has given solo and concerto performances in many of the most prestigious venues throughout the UK, including the Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall, Bridgewater Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall and Kings Place. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in a recital with two other Guildhall students in January 2012. Recent international invitations have taken him to Poland, Germany, Amsterdam, the Netherlands and China. He recently won the Keyboard Prize at the Royal Over-Seas League Competition 2011 and has also made appearances on BBC television and radio.

The Guildhall School is provided by the City of London.
www.gsmd.ac.uk

It's in the unhurried moments that Sir Colin Davies takes to consider his answers that you sense the colossal weight of experience behind his each and every word. Taking time out from rehearsals with the LSO for a concert production of Weber's Der Freishültz to speak to Richard Morrison of The Times at the ISM's Going for Gold conference, Sir Colin offered a unique perspective into how music has changed over the course of his lifetime. There's a laconic air about him, always giving just enough and never more that is characteristic of his whole approach to music, one in which he perceives his role more as a catalyst than as the 'all knowing maestro', something indeed which he seems to despise.

His reverence towards the great geniuses of Western music to whom he has devoted his life such as Berlioz and Mozart displays a humility not common in artists of his stature. Indeed when one casts a glance at his career history it reads as a veritable who's who of twentieth century music making. But for all his achievement he seems still so aware of his own flaws; how long does it take to master a score asks Richard Morrison? 'A lifetime' he quietly offers, gazing out somewhat melancholically into the middle-distance of his past. For those not accustomed to reconciling great artists as we know them with their very human frailties, it's shocking yet very moving to hear of his own tendency towards depression 'I like to fool around as much as the next man, but when I'm on my own I get very depressed, it's easy to slip down.' And in this admission he somehow fittingly drew into focus the purpose of an institution such as the ISM, one which promotes the interests of musicians and music.

I'm sure I wasn't the only participant who felt a great deal of solidarity with Sir Colin at that moment being as I am a part of an ever changing and challenging musical landscape. What advice did he offer musicians building careers in the face of setbacks and difficulties? To be patient and to never lose your love music. Heartfelt advice which surely cannot be more relevant in this day and age.

Lydia Hepworth, ISM student member, shares her thoughts on the conversation with Sir Colin Davis and Richard Morrison

The conversation began with an introduction from Richard Morrison, chief music critic for the Times. We were guided through Sir Colin Davis’s inspiring career, from his first period as conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra in the 1960s to his return to the LSO 12 years ago in the capacity of President.

Throughout the conversation Sir Colin’s insatiable love of music shone through as he discussed the progression of musical attitudes throughout his career, also touching on the importance of music and a musical education to today’s youth. His passion for forward, flexible and modern thinking was clearly evident.

Richard Morrison began by quoting Sir Colin directly: ‘You “detest charisma and the exercising of power”’. The misuse of power and its effect on music was therefore established as a clear theme. Sir Colin went on to describe how power creates fear, and in turn music making is inhibited. Sir Davis initially went to the LSO on the condition that he wasn’t to have power! Having broken the stereotype of the tyrannical conductor, Sir Colin touched on the now prominent yet once non-existent role of women in the LSO, which he certainly sees as having had a positive effect on the atmosphere. Freedom and the ability to be light hearted in music making was also a resonant feature in Sir Colin’s discussion of the role of music and the conductor.

Sir Colin is well renowned for championing ‘taboo’ composers and this was discussed in some depth, from Tipett in the early days of Sir Colin’s career, through to Berlioz, to Sir Colin’s commission on his 80th birthday from McMillan. Through the discussion of Sir Colin’s interaction with this repertoire the inevitable subject of philosophy and spirituality was raised. Sir Colin summarised his personal philosophy thus: ‘All you can do is save your little corner of the world’. This encapsulates two important beliefs held by Sir Colin: firstly, the importance of working with young people in music; secondly the unfashionable yet unequivocal role of music as a thing of beauty to be cherished, enjoyed and to immerse oneself in. Sir Colin’s closing word resonated deeply with me and, I felt, summed up a life dedicated to music beautifully: ‘If you don’t have a massive love of music, don’t go into it…. it’s yours and is separate from the outside world.’

David Major, ISM graduate member, tells us about his experience of ISM Conference and talks about the session with Composer Philip Cashian and the Benyounes Quartet

'Going for Gold' was my first ISM conference, a fantastic experience which I hope will become a regular feature of my professional year. A particular strength of the conference, I feel, was the variety and scope of the sessions, which covered music from its many angles - its composition, its performance and its distribution via broadcasting media - and ensured its relevance irrespective of the delegate's interest or specialism.

The presentation by Philip Cashian and the Benyounes Quartet was a personal highlight and provided a fascinating insight into the approach of a professional composer to his work. His new quartet Samain was commissioned especially for the Benyounes Quartet and is inspired by the work of artist Leonora Carrington. Philip spoke of how he translated the painting's surrealist and unearthly nature into the musical language used in the quartet, the process of building motifs, and the use of repetition.

The Benyounes Quartet performed with absolute precision and flair, and it was a real pleasure to hear them play - as well as exuding the highest levels of musicality, they played with a presence and style that entirely captured their audience. What was fascinating, aside from hearing a composer talk about his work, was having this put into context and hearing the work performed live by the ensemble it was written for. Not only this, but the way the session was structured afforded the audience a journey of understanding: we first heard the piece played, before Philip spoke about his work. A subsequent second hearing of the work enabled the audience to fully appreciate and understand Philip's explanations and insight, and gave the Benyounes Quartet another chance to shine with their flawless rendition of the piece.

Harriet Jenkins, ISM graduate member, comments on Professor John Irving's session - Mind the Gap: Mozart's keyboard music in notation and performance

It was a genuine thrill to hear Professor John Irving speak at the ISM Conference on 12 April. The internationally recognised Mozart scholar and Head of Music at Canterbury Christ Church University is certainly no stranger to public address, and jokingly hinted that he had given a similar talk on a previous occasion, but these facts did nothing to dampen his enthusiasm for his topic.

Prof. Irving's contribution focused on Mozart's keyboard music – both its notation and its performance alongside the ‘gap’ which can appear between the two. His angle was both entertaining and refreshing – bringing Mozart ‘to life’ seemed key.

It was a joy to have the privilege of hearing Prof. Irving provide illustrations of his various points on a copy of a Viennese fortepiano from Mozart's era – which allowed his audience (a rather captivated one at that!) to hear for themselves how Irving believes Mozart's embellishments must be approached through the delicate conversation of the sound created. And a conversation indeed Irving believes it should be. In line with opinions held by predecessors such as Bach, he argues that we must ‘intervene’ and not be passive in our interpretation of Mozart's scores.

A crucial point to come across throughout Irving's presentation was that the text of the score doesn't show everything, and should be viewed as provisional and not definitive. Irving argues that to view the text as ‘regulative’ is not a sustainable approach and an unfortunate attitude resulting from the more modern conservatoire training in Europe.

In fact, as Irving highlights, many of Mozart's piano works began their lives as improvisations and it therefore makes sense for their scores to be less than absolute – to be viewed more as having ‘potential for action’.

Irving argues firmly that ‘music is not the score’, but instead the notation encodes a dialogue between Mozart and the performer – a ‘conversation’ and an adventure in ‘creative engagement’. As performers, therefore, we shouldn't suffer guilt if we depart from the score, so long as we do so in a historically informed manner. Our management of embellishments within the performance of Mozart's music voices our understanding of Mozart's intention.

In short the message that Irving seeks to convey is clear - a performer approaching Mozart's music should think not of conservation, but instead of conversation. It would also seem recommended that the performer seeks out the delicate touch of the fortepiano, as opposed to the ‘percussive’ bell-like toll of the modern grand – where possible of course!

Hilda Sibeck, ISM student member, tells us her thoughts on John Irving's Mind the Gap session

Ever thought that there is one correct way of playing Mozart’s keyboard music? Think again. Rather than the notated music being the full story, Professor John Irving argues for a freer approach, and that Mozart wouldn’t have recognised the slavish adherence to the score that is the practice of today. An internationally recognised Mozart scholar, recently appointed Head of Music History and Performance Practice at Canterbury Christ Church University, Irving has written several books about the composer and specialises in eighteenth century historical performance.

In Mozart’s time, the notation was a point of departure for the performer, and this is also how we should look at scores today – as tools rather than rules for our playing. Irving quotes the earlier composer C.P.E. Bach, a big influence on Mozart, who claimed that ‘a good performance reveals the true content of the piece along with its appropriate affect’. This we cannot find in the notated music, and hence we need to intervene with it. Professor Irving exemplifies this by playing a Bb sonata from 1789 (K.570), a piece with an episodic rondo structure. He embellishes and improvises over the episodes, and makes the point that how you manage the embellishment shows your understanding of the piece.

So if the notation was provisional in Mozart’s time, why do we perform his keyboard music in such a different way today? Irving means that this is the consequence of a conceptual divide between composer and performer that gradually arose after the installation of the Conservatoire de Paris in the late eighteenth century. Musicians here received rigorous training, marking a new approach to performance. Another novelty was the grand piano and the introduction of legato playing, resulting in different articulation because of the mechanics of the instrument.

Mozart’s music would have been performed on a fortepiano, which has an altogether shorter decay of the notes, and Irving concludes that when played on this kind of instrument there will be less compromise in terms of how you play, and the music will speak in a different way. So maybe the future will see a more relaxed approach to the keyboard score, in service of the music?

Photographs by Mark Thompson.

The ISM sponsored the Opera & Music Theatre category and we are pleased to announce that the jury chose English National Opera’s production of Eugene Onegin for its superb orchestral playing and singing led by Music Director Edward Gardner which made a familiar work fresh and dynamic for today’s audiences.

Congratulations to Edward Gardner and all the team at ENO.

Further information about all the category winners is available on the RPS website.

A special RPS Music Awards programme will be broacast by BBC Radio 3 on Sunday 13 May at 2pm.

Friday 4 May at Augustine Hall, Canterbury welcomes Sir Peter Maxwell Davies who introduces A Mirror of Whitening Light to be played by London Sinfonietta. One of the foremost composers of our time Sir Peter Maxwell Davies has made a significant contribution to musical history through his wide-ranging and prolific output. In a work-list that spans more than five decades, he has written across a broad range of styles, yet his music always communicates directly and powerfully, whether in his profoundly argued symphonic works, his music theatre or witty light orchestral works. In this evening’s concert.

Through a combination of virtuosic performances and ambitious programming, the London Sinfonietta has become one of the world’s leading contemporary music ensembles since its foundation in 1968. Their concert will feature the winning composition from this year’s International Composers Pyramid competition as well as an exciting array of works from contemporary British composers, including George Benjamin, Oliver Knussen and Edmund Finnis, plus a work by the composer of the London Sinfonietta’s Writing the Future 2011.

The BBC Big Band will be at The Gulbenkian Theatre on Saturday 5 May with two jazz legends, Norma Winstone and composer and arranger Mike Gibbs. They will explore some of the finest examples of popular song from the past 80 years, giving a new twist! These include the work of Fats Waller (Jitterbug Waltz), Duke Ellington (Caravan), Joni Mitchell (Blue), Tom Waits (Soldier’s Things), Sting (A Thousand Years) and Nick Drake (Riverman). This concert will be recorded for BBC Radio 2.

Sunday 6 will be Choral Day with Paul Patterson, one of the most widely respected British composers – he will work with choirs throughout Kent to join foces to perform excerpts from his Magnifcant. This will be following in the evening by a concert with Ensemble Midtvest from Denmark. This ensemble will include in their repertoire Per Nørgård Virvelverden for wind quintet, the only piece of music to be performed during the whole festival which is not written by a composer from Great Britain, the reason being to build on our excellent relationship with the Danish Cultural Institute.

Bank holiday Monday evening will see the return of The Arditti Quartet to Canterbury with music by Phillip Neil Marin (commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society through their Encore Project), Thomas Adès, Brian Ferneyhough, Robert Saxton and the world premiere of a piece by Sounds New Artistic Director Paul Max Edlin Frida Sketches. They also play Victor Ibarra Crossing Lines, a winning work of this year’s International Composer Pyramid. Arditti Quartet are responsible for the commissioning of several hundred contemporary string quartets and other chamber works by Andriessen, Birtwistle, Britten, Cage, Dillon, Harvey, Kagel, Ligeti, Stockhausen and Xenakis. These works have left a permanent mark on 20th century repertoire and have given the Arditti Quartet a firm place in music history. The concert will be broadcast for BBC Radio 3.

Tuesday 8 May Sounds New will introduce Scotland and Wales. The lunch time concert is in association with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and will be a representation of Scottish classical contemporary music including works by James Macmillan and Peter Maxwell Davies. The evening will bring us the Rhodri Davies Ensemble who will collaborate with theSounds New Poets from the University of Kent for an evening of music and poetry. Each member of the ensemble has composed a piece to be played during the concert. The concert will be recorded for BBC Radio 3.

An audio-visual spectacular experience will take place at Augustine Hall on Wednesday 9 May when genre-trashing British percussionist Joby Burgess performs. Joby Burgess is best known for his virtuosic, lissom performances and regularly appears throughout Europe, the USA and beyond with artists including Stewart Copeland, Peter Gabriel and Joanna MacGregor. Powerplant is an inspiring collaboration of British artists, comprising of Joby Burgess’ playing and electronics with cinematic sound by Matthew Fairclough and bespoke film by Kathy Hinde. In a lavish audio-visual feast the worlds of minimalism and electronica collide: explosive drumming, lush xylosynth, found objects, American presidents, traces of Michael Haneke and Franz Schubert culminate in Powerplant’s landmark collaboration with electronic composer Gabriel Prokofiev.

The Turner Contemporary, Margate will play host to Sounds New on Thursday 10 May when the world premiere of John Croft’s A fury’s Curses will be performed by the mezzo-soprano Loré Lixenberg. Prior to the opera John Croft and Loré Lixenberg will discuss the challenges of creating and performing contemporary operatic work and what it takes to make the seemingly impossible happen. A Fury’s Curses is an opera-monodrama by John Croft, based on Jean ardieu’s one woman theatre piece, Les Maledictions d’une Furie with Loré Lixenberg as the Fury. Scored for voice, bass and contrabass flutes, violoncello, percussion, live electronics and electroacoustic sounds, this will be a world premiere. Tardieu’s play presents a relentless denunciation of the human condition and of the gods who have created such a world of futile suffering. The electronic treatments include live spectral processing and timbral transformation of a kind that has only very recently become possible.

John Tavener’s Veil of The Temple will be at Canterbury Cathedral on Friday 11 May with Tenebrae, English Chamber Orchestra Ensemble and Canterbury Cathedral Choir conducted by Nigel Short in the presence of Sir John Tavener. The evening begins in a veil of mystery with a poem by Jalaluddin Rumi, the 13th century mystical Sufi poet, sung in the outer round temple and out of sight by the soprano… and accompanied by a duduk. Then in the centre of the church is the rousing sound of a huge Tibetan horn, calling us to prayer... Here the veil is lifted, and East and West become one and the soprano heroically intones dazzling high Cs. The organ thunders... There is braying of brass, a final majestic "OM" and the Sanskrit "Tat tvam asi" ... a meeting of all cultures in one work! Be prepared to levitate!

The Cathedral will be the venue for Grimethorpe Colliery Band on Saturday 12 May when they perform a programme of English Music to include McCabe Cloudcaster Fells, Birtwistle Grimethorpe Aria and Holst The Planets.

The amazing Julian Joseph Trio will be at The Gulbenkian Theatre on Sunday 13 May - virtuosic pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger and broadcaster, never failing to inspire with his mastery of the keyboard, the versatility of his musicianship and the seemingly limitless scope of his creative imagination. Tonight’s concert will feature a wide ranging repertoire of original compositions and arrangements, all rooted in the jazz tradition but combined with Julian’s unique flair and imagination.

To celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee in style The King Singers will be at the newly refurbished Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury on Tuesday 15 May championing the work of young and established composers. Tonight they will be performing their many new commissions and contemporary music in their repertoire: plus a special commission for the Queen’s Jubilee. They will also perform Paul Patterson Timepiece. There are lunchtime concerts every day including a rare performance of Jonathan Harvey’s Bhakti in association with the Royal College of Music. There are late night gigs, poetry in a collaboration with Sounds New Poets supported by the Canterbury University, a conference at Canterbury Christ Church University, family entertainment, street music and much more.

For more information, visit the Sounds New website www.soundsnew.org.uk

Tickets for all performances are available from The Marlowe Theatre : 01227 787787 or online from www.marlowetheatre.com

‘This announcement is the culmination of a great deal of work by music leaders across England. The next three years will be crucial for the development of music education and there is real opportunity for music hubs, their leaders and their managers to offer visionary approaches to the delivery of high quality education in their area.

‘The ISM, as the professional body for musicians, will continue to do everything we can to support, inform and encourage hub leaders and Arts Council England, offer professional development and training for music educators, and support the entire sector during the next three years and beyond.’

Full details of the bids can be seen using the links below, and individual music education hub comments are also linked to. In addition, the National Plan for Music Education can be found below, alongside the Henley Review for Music Education and summaries of Ofsted’s report Music in Schools: Wider Still and Wider.

The ISM is the professional body for the whole music sector. It is a member of the Council for Subject Associations (CfSA) and a member of the Music Education Council.

More information can be found on the ISM website.

The full announcement, statement and further details about the process are available on the Arts Council England website as is Art Council England's Press Release.

In addition, the National Plan for Music Education can be found at the bottom of this page, along with the Henley Review of Music Education in England. We have also included the recent briefings we produced on Ofsted's music review below for information.

Deborah Annetts, Chief Executive of the ISM, said:

‘This announcement is the culmination of a great deal of work by music leaders across England. The next three years will be crucial for the development of music education and there is real opportunity for music hubs, their leaders and their managers to offer visionary approaches to the delivery of high quality education in their area.

‘The ISM, as the professional body for musicians, will continue to do everything we can to support, inform and encourage hub leaders and Arts Council England, offer professional development and training for music educators, and support the entire sector during the next three years and beyond.’

Mike Weatherley MP, Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Music Education and MP for Hove and Portslade, said:

'Music plays a very important role in a child’s development, so it is only right that along with other education reforms, music is included. I am pleased that as part of a national plan for music education, the Arts Council is managing a new programme of specialist music hubs ... This will go a long way to opening up musical opportunities for children across the country.'

You can tell us what is going on in your area below, and a full list hub links and further information will be included below:

• Brighton & Hove Music & Arts (BHMA) with a comment from Mike Weatherley MP.
• Cambdridge County Council
• Cheshire East / The Love Music Charitable Trust
• Cornwall Learning / Music Cornwall
• Hampshire County Council Music Service (PDF)
• Hertfordshire Music Service
• Isle of Wight Music Service
• Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, Westminster with the Royal Albert Hall
• Kent Music (MS Word)
• Lambeth Music Service
• Merton Music Foundation
• Oxfordshire County Music Service
• Portsmouth Music Hub
• Tower Hamlets Arts and Music Education Service (THAMES)

One of the hugely enjoyable things about writing music for an ensemble to play is that when you give a part to a jazz musician, you are sharing the ownership of the music. Wrapped up in that is the fact that to a great extent you have to trust what that musician will do with it. I've been hugely fortunate to work with many amazing, world-class musicians on my own projects. When I write music for specific people I try to write to their strengths so that not only do they enjoy playing the music more, but the end result is that the music takes on a life and energy far beyond what you could have imagined when you first started. For this reason I find it's always best to record music after you've performed it on numerous occasions, the more times the better. If you've played a piece of music say 20-30 times in a concert situation, so many little areas, diversions and developments will have been introduced into the music that will have greatly enhanced it from the original draft. The problem is there's always a 'Chicken-and-Egg' situation, in that when you tour a project, ideally you need to have an album of that music to sell. Firstly because the publicity behind an album release is invaluable to procuring gigs in which to play the music. Secondly, selling the albums on gigs is very much an important source of income to both record label and artist. However, if the music is recorded before the tour then it hasn't had chance to grow and develop past those first creative stages. There are many recordings that I've been involved with that I've never listened back to, because a year or two down the line the interplay and creativity has reached a totally different level. On listening back to the original, what we played then feels like such a regression. There is, of course, something to be said for the initial, honest renditions of tunes on an album. I guess in some ways the important elements of what makes a great album are not always the same as the wanton abandon and rather more gung-ho energy of performing a live concert. (I do feel though that once you know the pieces and you can get your head 'out of the paper’, then you can focus all your brain power into listening and creating instead of reading, and it's at that point the music can really take off). Of course there is the option of making a 'live' album. This solves many of those problems (and indeed there have been a few live tracks on various albums that I've been involved with in the past). The only thing about it is that it is a warts-and-all, one take version of everything, and my own personal hang-ups about my technical inadequacies have thus far prevented me from taking the plunge and making an entire album in that way. I will do though. Eventually.

When recording a solo album the sense of ownership and responsibility for the music created is focused on just one person. You have to rely on yourself to develop and grow the music, as well as being responsible for the 'quality control' in the absence of fellow musicians offering their opinions. This can be particularly hard as when you're right in the middle of the music (which is of course the only place you can be) it's difficult to see the flaws and places where the music can be improved, because you become very used to doing things a certain way. On top of this you don't have other musicians with which to communicate and have an improvisatory dialogue. You have to create all the energy and dynamism yourself, and then find a way of connecting with the listener. On top of this, when creating a solo album, I want there to be a wide dynamic and timbral range, as even though the piano can be an orchestra in itself, I feel a responsibility to keep the listener engaged throughout the hour or so of music. For sure a challenge when there is only the one instrument involved. The trade off to all this I guess is that you do feel an enormous sense of pride and ownership at the end of it all, as you've written, rehearsed and recorded the set of music by yourself.

Stepping aside and looking down objectively on what you're doing is absolutely crucial to the development of your music and for this reason I try to record the pieces at home as I'm creating them, in order to listen back and go over what could be improved. I must confess to being a 'tinkerer', and many of my pieces (both solo piano and for ensembles) are on their 3rd or 4th draft, sometimes more. I find that crafting music is very much like creating a sculpture and the constant chipping away at what you're working on continues right up until you're eventually happy with what you've produced. And sometimes you can only see where improvements can be made when you've heard the music played in a performance situation.

When I'm writing music, one of the most fundamental things is that there is a story, a narrative to what's going on. This is especially important I feel when creating purely instrumental music, as without a singer belting out the words there is a greater responsibility to convey the 'message' of the music above and beyond it just being perceived from a technical viewpoint. This emotional focus is, in my opinion, at the absolute heart of what the purpose of music making is. Too often I find myself listening to 'jazz' and feeling totally cold at what I'm hearing, despite (but often as a direct result of) a focus on technical and 'intellectual' prowess. I teach piano at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and more often than not I find myself urging the pupils to consider their playing/writing from a listener's point of view, as opposed to simply worrying about playing the right chord scales and clever polyrhythms. Jazz often gets heavily criticised in the wider press and listening community for being too introverted and 'for its own benefit'. More often than not this is because musicians forget that creating the music is the easy bit. Communicating what you have to say to an audience is the real challenge. My feelings on this have only been increased, subsequent to conversations and interviews with press from the more mainstream musical world. The three things that undoubtedly 'scare' non-jazz audiences are 'improvisation', 'instrumental music', and sadly most of all the word 'jazz' itself. This is a sorry situation and I feel we should do everything we can to show that this music that we love can appeal to, and include anyone.

I was performing a solo concert at Schloss Elmau (a 5-star hotel and cultural retreat featuring a beautiful concert hall in the Bavarian mountains) in spring 2010. Attending the concert was Siggi Loch, the owner of the jazz label 'ACT', one of the largest and most well respected of the independent European record companies. He has released a series of solo recordings from Elmau and he very kindly suggested post-concert that I should record an album for his label. We chatted for a while and decided to go for it. So the first thing to consider was that familiar problem. There was pretty much no time to organise and publicise a run of gigs to try out the new music that the album would require, so instead I had to make do with playing the music over and over again at home, recording the progress every day, making adjustments where needed. I did manage to organise one private concert a few nights before the recording date. Derek Hook is a great supporter of live music and he runs a fantastic jazz gig up in his Cinema 'Zefferelli's' in Ambleside in the Lake District. As well as this he hosts concerts - both jazz and classical - in the large front room of his guest house just outside the town. Derek kindly organised a concert at the house at very short notice and I was able to play my programme through. I recorded the performance for analysis, with the added bonus this time of having public reaction to the music, invaluable to ascertaining which tunes and parts of the music connected most favourably with the audience, as well as judging if the set had a satisfactory 'shape' to it.

Armed with this information I set off for Elmau, arriving the night before the recording day. Naturally I was nervous. Firstly because in recording your music, all the little slips and blemishes in the performance will be recorded and documented for ever, for me always a daunting prospect. Also this was the first album under my own name that was not only entirely solo, but also away from the relative familiarity and autonomy of working with the Basho label, whose owner is Christine Allen, my manager and close friend. I knew Siggi would be there producing and directing proceedings and I was apprehensive that I would relinquish some of the control of which takes of the recorded material would be chosen and released on the album. I am a very harsh critic of my own work and I guess I always have a strong opinion on how I would like my playing to be represented, and not having the sole final say over this was a potential concern.

Anyhow, I awoke refreshed and ready to go. We were scheduled to begin at 10am, recording through the day for as long as required, but only for the one day. I had an idea in my head of the order in which I wanted to get through the music. I am at my least productive in the afternoons so I figured I'd work on the more dexterous and lively pieces in the morning and evening, leaving the more melodious and relaxed tunes for when I knew I'd have less energy. I was on my own in the concert hall, with Siggi and the engineer backstage recording and listening. It was kind of an odd set up to be playing to an empty hall, but knowing the room it was easy enough to get into the flow of things and connecting with the sound world of the room. However, after an hour of recording the recording machine broke down, and we had to make an enforced break for an hour or so. The beginning of a session is always one of the most productive and freshest parts so to be stopped in mid flow was annoying. It wasn't initially clear what was wrong but eventually they managed to fix the problem so we resumed again and continued to record. After about an hour or so, I became aware of a clattering sound outside the windows of the hall, and after a little while it became clear it wasn't going to stop (and it was certain to be picked up by the ambient room mics) so we went over to investigate. What we hadn't realised is that the concert hall was situated on top of the kitchens for the hotel restaurant, and for the next hour or so there was a steady flow of lorries delivering food for the coming evening's meal, each time with trollies clanking over the cobbles as the ingredients were loaded in. The label had never recorded from this hall in the daytime so this problem had never previously been apparent. Schloss Elmau is a listed building in Germany which means the original thin single-paned windows to the hall had to remain as built, meaning that any sound proofing was definitely minimal! So we were forced to stop again, and take an early lunch. Upon starting again it wasn't very long until I could hear a very faint low-pitched 'whirring' sound, coming from outside the same side of the hall, but this time further in the distance. It disappeared again but proceeded to reappear about every 3-4 minutes. Again I was sure it was being picked up by the microphones so again we stopped to investigate. Looking out we saw in the distance a large circular field. In this field a tractor was mowing the grass, doing circuits from the outside to the middle. Every time it reached the nearest point to where we were it could clearly be heard. Aaargh! Looking back the catalogue of intrusions was amusing to be fair, but at the time there was so much still to be recorded that there wasn't much time or energy to really see the funny side of it! We had to press on and in fact at the end of one of the quiet tracks on the album, if you turn the stereo right up, you can hear the Tractor working away (much as we tried to hide it using technical wizardry!) Somebody actually wrote in to my manager complaining that there was a technical glitch on the album! There are also moments where you can just about hear some distant birdsong, but that seems somehow more palatable!

We finished at about 10 in the evening and although the physical amount of recorded music was less than planned, we got everything done that I had wanted to. On many of the tunes there were only one or two takes of things, as that had been all we had time for. In some ways that helped me to 'accept' the music and enjoy it more when I listen back. When you have 7 or 8 takes of a tune, you begin to get a little bogged down in the sheer weight of musical information, and it can become very difficult to make rational judgements on what should be used or not. I think this problem is very specific to improvised recordings. If you have 7 or 8 takes of exactly the same music then I guess it's a lot easier to make a decision about which take was the best. If you have so many different takes of improvisation however, there will always be little nuggets (hopefully) in every take and every time you end up jettisoning music that you wish could have made it onto the album. So the choices were made and I mixed and mastered the music at Curtis Schwartz's wonderful studio down in Ardingly, Sussex.

I'm very proud that the album, Good Days At Schloss Elmau, was nominated for the 2011 Mercury Prize. Having my album (recorded in 1 day, mixed and mastered in another) put alongside various pop albums (some of which took many months to make) was a clear illustration of the different world we live in and financial constraints we operate under as jazz musicians, when compared to our more illustrious popular music counterparts. It also gave me the opportunity to talk to many members of the mainstream musical press, and it was a harsh reality check as to what 95% of the world think of the music that is so all-encompassing and compelling to people like myself. It strengthened my resolve to continue to try and make music that will appeal and communicate with as wide an audience as possible whilst staying true to my musical ideals.

I look forward to the next time I have the challenge of making a solo album, but in the meantime I've just finished making a new CD with the trio, Lighthouse, which includes the wonderful Tim Garland on Saxophones and Bass Clarinet, and Asaf Sirkis, an amazing percussionist from Israel but native to London. The album came out (on the ACT label) in late March of this year.

Deborah Annetts, Chief Executive of the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) said:

This is utterly unacceptable. As the UK’s professional association for musicians we cannot condone any policy or behaviour which attempts to force professional musicians – our members – to work for free; we would not expect chefs, broadcasters and others to work for free, and we would not expect professional musicians to work for free at the BBC Proms either, so why should they face this sort of treatment at the Olympics? All our members are highly skilled music professionals who earn a living from their work and it is insulting to ask them to work for free. Ensuring that the London Olympics 2012 are promoting British music, musicians and live performance is surely an economic and political necessity.

2. How can a young musician effectively manage stress and performance anxiety during competitions?
Musicians need to learn to practice in a way that focusses on a performance.  Often musicians practice in isolation and need to bear in mind that the product of their work is shared in public.  Performing to an audience of peers and participating in master classes and public lessons is a great way to enhance performance skills. 

While it is paramount to work technically, there is something to be said about being in the moment.  When a musician plays beautifully and communicates with the audience it brings that moment alive.  Playing with the acoustics of the room will also create an inspiring and unique experience for the audience.  The key is to focus on creating a beautiful performance by sharing something special with the audience.

Self-belief in your skill and ability will reinforce your confidence and alleviate the stress.  It is also important for contestants to see competitions as a learning curve. You will need to find a way of turning your adrenaline into a positive driving force.   Participating in competitions and festivals is an important step to becoming a professional musician. You will have learnt new repertoire, ready for future recitals and more competitions. Win or lose, the experience will strengthen you.

3. What are the benefits of entering competitions like BBC Young Musicians?
Competitions provide a platform to be recognised as an accomplished artist and an opportunity to be promoted through high profile channels.  However, life after winning a competition can be very demanding. It isn’t for the faint hearted.  Young musicians are treated as adults and need to cope with the pressures that come with this kind of success.

The benefits of winning international and television competitions, such as the BBC Young Musician of the Year, are phenomenal and it’s an excellent launch pad to a career as a professional musician. Winners gain access to agents, record deals and concert tours.  Many extraordinary world class musicians have shot to fame after winning first place prizes in competitions.

Gabriella Dall’Olio
Born in Bologna, Italy, Gabriella studied in Italy, France and Germany with Pierre Jamet and Fabrice Pierre, Jaqueline Borot, Giselle Herbert and Anna Loro. Now based in London, she continues to follow an international and high profile career performing as a soloist and teaching the harp. She collaborates regularly with some of the world's finest orchestras and conductors including the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Vienna Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra.  Gabriella is Head of Harp Studies and teaches at the Junior and Senior Departments at the Trinity College of Music, London, and teaches the harp also at Chethams School of Music, in Manchester. She is well known as an adjudicator and has been invited to give master classes in England and abroad (France, Spain, Sweden, Tasmania)

ENO: Eugene Onegin
Royal Academy of Music: Kommilitonen!
Royal Opera House: Il trittico

There’s high drama in the shortlists for the Opera and Music Theatre award, which features Master of the Queen’s Music Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’s tales of 20th century student protest, Kommilitonen!, co-commissioned by the Royal Academy of Music and Juilliard School; the Royal Opera House Puccini hat-trick Il trittico, directed by Richard Jones; and Deborah Warner’s acclaimed ENO production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.
The winners of the ISM sponsored category, Opera and Music Theatre, together with all the other categories will be announced at the RPS Music Awards ceremony at London’s Dorchester Hotel on Tuesday 8 May.

Notes to Editors:

The Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) is the UK’s professional association for musicians providing a distinctive range of services to its membership of performers and music professionals.  The Incorporated Society of Musicians aims to promote the art of music and champion the interests of musicians, raising professional standards, and providing legal advice and other benefits to its members.  Its members include performers, composers, music teachers and industry professionals.  The ISM has over 100 corporate members including all the music Conservatoires, university music departments, Trinity Guildhall, ABRSM, Association of British Orchestras, Federation of Music Services, Jazz Services, Music for Youth, Oxford University Press, specialist music schools including Chetham’s School of Music and the Yehudi Menuhin School, as well as music industry and trade organisations such as PPL, the Music Industries Association, Yamaha Music, and the International Artist Managers’ Association.
This is the first time that the ISM, the association for professional musicians, has sponsored an RPS Music Award. The ISM’s sponsorship is for the Opera and Music Theatre category.

The annual RPS [Royal Philharmonic Society] Music Awards, presented in association with BBC Radio 3, are the highest recognition for live classical music in the UK. Awards, in thirteen categories, are decided by independent panels consisting of some of the music industry’s most distinguished practitioners. The awards honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. The list of previous winners reads like a Who’s Who of classical music. This year’s RPS Music Awards celebrate outstanding achievement in 2011.

Shortlists for this year’s RPS Music Awards will be announced on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune on Tuesday 17 April, with winners announced at the RPS Music Awards ceremony at London’s Dorchester Hotel on Tuesday 8 May. BBC Radio 3 will broadcast a special RPS Music Awards ‘Performance on 3’ on Sunday 15 May at 2pm. www.rpsmusicawards.com