Just to let you all know that there's an hour long programme about the last YM winner, the violinist Nicola Benedetti. It's a profile of how she's faired since winning the competition.

Thanks, my Dad told me about this, but not when it was on...well he said 5.40 or 4.50

I'm going to see her play at the end of May

Yes, actually it is 5.40. Apologies to anyone who's already set up equipment to record it.

Oh thanks for that Amanda, you don't always get time to look at what is on!

Thanks Amanda!

I'm going to see her in June...and I just switched on

I am really enjoying it so far!

I'm playing with her in a week and a day!!!! My youth orchestra's playing the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with her in the Brighton Festival.

Wow! Excellent (I LOVE the Tchaik!)

I last saw her peform when she won the final in 2004. What a very mature, level-headed and humble person she's become. I thougt the programme would make excellent viewing for anyone thinking of a career in classical music. She was so honest in viewing her own career, highlighting the amount of concentration it takes to play, the long hours it often involves, the pressures of performing and just how easy it can be to suddenly stand on the platform thinking, "I can't play this".

If there were any young violin pupils watching I hope it made them realise that it's just not talent you need to play well. Talent helps, but it only happens alongside many hours of practice and hard work (spanned over a decade+), to realise the dream of playing at that level.

Saw the programme last night, it was interesting .

One thought that pervaded though was whether there was a great deal of point in her recording the Mendelssohn concerto. It will sell CDs, no doubt, but does she have anything to add musically to a piece which has been recorded many times before by more experienced musicians?

Best get on my asbestos suit....

Oh yes you had!!! Ok, in that case you could ask, is there any point ANYONE recording ANYTHING ever again???!! Young up-and-coming soloists are also under certain amount of obligation - often via their recording contract - to record landmark works from the standard repertoire. To shy away from it might leave the ever-criticising media thinking there could be a deficinecy in the soloists playing that means they won't or can't play the work. As far as experience is concerned, this is something which is gained and everyone has to start somewhere with their career. Nicola is a young lady with far more maturity than her 18 years, so I'm certain her performance will be her "own", not a reproduction of someone elses.

In addition, playing styles change alongside listening tastes of audiences. This is particularly evident in recordings made over the last 50 or so years. If none of this mattered, or indeed a listeners preference for a particular performers style of playing wasn't an issue when purchasing a CD, then we'd still be listening to digitally remastered versions of the old-fashioned drum recordings from the beginning of the 20th century, telling ourselves "well, XX made a perfectly good recording of this in 1909, why would anyone else have wanted to bother recording it since?"

PS. Nicola only lives 2 miles down the road from me, so next time I'm shopping in Walton-on-Thames I must keep my eyes open, just in case!

First, thankyou for taking my comment with good humour .

I'm not doubting she's talented and plays with a musical depth beyond her years - that was my first reaction when listening to her play in the young musician string final. It's just an opinion I have of making a recording of a given work, maybe coming from my background in academia: a recording should only be published if it represents a novel, substantial, original contribution to the field. Perform it all you wish, but only record and publish if it adds something to the collected knowledge of mankind. Original as her work may be, to draw a parallel one would not expect the work produced by a science undergraduate to be published in Nature, no matter how original it is - it wouldn't be as substantive or have the same depth.

But I guess this is where my academic idealism doesn't fit in with the real world - as you say, she's under a recording contract obligation to record the work, and it'll make money.

So perhaps we should all withdraw our recordings from the Forums recording site?

Ahh, but works on the recording site aren't published - they don't have a catalogue number etc. . Much in the same way that one can place an academic 'technical report' on a website; but it's not published until it's accepted to appear in a journal or at an archival conference, whereupon it gets an ISBN and a copy is lodged in the British library or similar.

I knew I shouldn't try and bait an academic.

I don't suppose anyone recorded this and could send me a copy? Sounds like it was a really good programme

We've missed it, too. She sounds like a very nice person. Shame.

Yes, it does sound like she's a nice person and very down-to-earth.

My great aunt recorded it for me, I could send you the video when I've watched it!

I watched her earlier on Young Musician. Her playing is so beautiful and she looked fantastic in that red dress.

That would be excellent, Boo, if that's OK!

I'll PM you...

Are you in the BYO? I'm coming to that concert today- and I'm auditioning for BYO on flute in about a month's time!! I'm very scared.
Good luck for today, I'm sure it will be amazing and I'm looking forward to it

Oooh good luck. Yes I am in BYO, you in BHYP at the moment?

Just got back from the concert with Nicola, she is soooo lovely. She arrived late as her agent had told her the rehearsal would start at three, when in fact that's when the concert was starting!! We had an hour or so to rehearse with her, she was brilliant to work with, not too demanding or anything. We didn't have a chance to speak to her properly, although during the break we went up to her dressing room to say well done... I think she was a bit shocked to see about 20ish people waiting outside when she opened the door. So all in all, she's a lovely, humble, down-to-earth, not all prima-donnaish, extremely talented person who is absoloutly gorgeous aswell. TV does her no justice.

I am in BHYP at the moment but to be honest (not trying to sound arrogant) I'm getting a bit frustrated with it because I think there are people there that just want to have a laugh and never get any work done and it makes us sound really bad sometimes!!! I really hope I get into BYO, you were fantastic today, my friend and I were thoroughly impressed!

Nicola was amazing! How can she play that whole concerto without the music in front of her? Astonishing!!
I'm glad to hear she's really down to earth, I can't stand really pretentious, arrogant people...especially musicians!!

Is Andy Sherwood as scary as he seems? Is it true that he hates flautists?

Kim

I know exactly what you mean. I was in BHYP last year, was basically the only viola and I got so bored.

Andy doesn't hate flautists.. well I don't think he does. He just wants to get the best out of people. He isn't scary either, he's acutally quite funny to be honest!

Andy Sherwood is very scary! I know people who are taught violin by him!

I was terrified of Andy Sherwood at first! But he is really inspiring, and does have a sense of humour.

I'm glad he has a sense of humour I just really hope I get into BYO! He conducted us in BHYP once and it sounded like a different orchestra, it was rather amazing! and strange too!