Radio 2 Young Brass Soloist 2005

ScrapingtheBottom

ScrapingtheBottom

Active Member
Does this explain why we don't get a good standard of brass soloists in Young Musician of the Year? (Mr. Pannell excluded of course!).

Bit insular if you ask me.
 
ScrapingtheBottom

ScrapingtheBottom

Active Member
I've always been slightly disappointed at the standard of the brass entries in YMOTY compared with their counterparts in other sections. I'm just wondering if this seperate BBC brass soloist competition has anything to do with it. I'm not sure if their is a BBC 2 young pianist of the year, or woodwind, or percussionist, or string player - please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

I think it would probably be too much to ask for a young person to prepare for both contests, so I should think it would be in a brass players interest to enter the competition they are most likely to win. Why don't we combine these contests into one super contest. Surely the Young Brass Soloist of the Year should represent the brass section at YMOTY???

But I digress.
 
Aidan

Aidan

Active Member
being fair to all the entrants to the BBC 2 competition.. the average standard is FAR higher in the YMOTY in general.. eg.. even though the standard of the BBC2 comp finalists was high, and i was very impressed... players of this standard are commonly seen only reaching the 2nd or 3rd rounds of the YMOTY... David Childs only got to the Brass Final (i dont think he won the brass finals.. can someone correct me) and in all fairness i think he would walk it in a competition such as the BBC2.
the beeb2 was designed more as an easy listening competition that all brass banders could compete in.. (some band instruments are not accepted into the YMOTY) and I believe thats why Andy King didnt do better in the radio2.. because his programme was as 'easy listening' as the others.
 
PeterBale

PeterBale

Moderator
Staff member
David Childs did win the brass final, premiering the orchestration of the Wilby concerto in the overall final. As Aidan has said, the two competitions are very different and I don't really see that one will detract from the other. Indeed, there are very many music competitions around for those so inclined, whatever their instrument (Shell/LSO etc), even if the others don't get the publicity attached to anything being broadcast.
 
groovy

groovy

Active Member
Would love to enter this but not good enough yet! Plenty of time though, I'm 14 and Grade 6 now so you'll get me in the future.........
Good luck to all tmpers who enter, go for it Alex!
 
S

shedophone

Member
They could have made it young brass band soloist of the year, which would have implied an easy listening programme and different instruments to YMoTY. They could also have included percussion... :roll:
 
Dave Euph

Dave Euph

Member
I think that the standard of YMOTY in brass is very high indeed. Wht is really interesting about it is that you get a lot of "non-brass-banding" players in it, who may play a program totally different to what you might expect, and in totally different styles. For example, trumpet and french horn players do not make use of vibrato commonly, so their program may concentrate more on technical prowess.

That is not to say that I put down the radio 2 show. For the record, I won't be entering it either. Maybe, just maybe, in the future ... but even then it would simply be for fun.
 
imthemaddude

imthemaddude

Active Member
I seem to remember there being lots of publicity about DC playing euphonium in the competition because it wasnt a recognised instrument by them. I had the same problem, I wanted to enter as a grade 8 keyboard player and but in their terms keyboard means piano. I was also an organist but of the electrical variety and that neither is welcomed as I believe. David managed to play eventually and did very well but with regards to the judging I find that string players are at an advantage and within the brass; trumpet, trombone and french horn. Maybe because it is an orchestral aimed competition. I find the ABRSM exams are the same, its not so easy to play trumpet concerto's on cornet because you have to change the style of cornet playing to succeed. I dunno but with so many instruments unique in thier own way it must be difficult to say what suits what better as oppose to who is the best musician. As a player of 14 different instruments, I know well that what you can do on one instrument doesnt work as well on another thats why jazz has a different instrument compositiion to a heavy metal band.
 
L

Laura

Member
Aidan. Tom Osbourne and Andy King have both reached the brass finals and as for Katrina, I don't think she has ever enterered the BBC young musician, her playing speaks for itself though! I do feel the BBC young musician is somethimes glammed up though, this year they couldn't stop going on about looks! Also, the young violinist that won last year, lots of people said she was amazing, but wasn't the best, it seems her age (12?)played a big part. But maybe I'm wrong. I just feel sometimes that the music world is becoming to visual, looks seem to play a large part in people getting noticed.

Anyway Aidan, I'm still not happy with you :x
 
W

welcome2martonia

New Member
the standard of the brass section this year was really bad... the trumpet player who got through? what was the point... I'd have rather but an electronic monkey on the stage that banged cymbols... stood a better chance of winning... any way string players always win it... it's rediculous... fair does they all have been good but what about the wee man on the piano, 11 and he was playing like that... look out for him in the future awwww, bless the little wee man...

oh and alex, I'll see you at the comp... just looking at the details now... going to enter on flug I think or horn... I don't know yet probably flugal cause I've been told I have a lovely tone (by my mother, he he, joke) but then again jonathan webster thought I was fab on the cornet... on't know where he got that from, obviously had the delusional pill before he conducted us... never mind good luck though Alex!!!!!! :roll:
 
PeterBale

PeterBale

Moderator
Staff member
welcome2martonia said:
the standard of the brass section this year was really bad... the trumpet player who got through? what was the point... I'd have rather but an electronic monkey on the stage that banged cymbols... stood a better chance of winning... any way string players always win it... it's rediculous... fair does they all have been good but what about the wee man on the piano, 11 and he was playing like that... look out for him in the future awwww, bless the little wee man...
Click to expand...

I don't have the stats in front of me, but it is definitely incorrect to make a statement such as you did about string players always winning. I can definitely recall a number of wind players, including horn player David Pyatt, a couple of clarinettists and a percussionist. I do agree, however, that string players and pianists do seem to have a bit of an advantage when it comes to the concerto final, as their concertos are often more substantial and better-known, although that is likely to have more impact on the public watching than on the jurors.

Edit: Having just checked the BBC website, the breakdown of winners is as follows:
  • violinists - 5
    cellists - 2
    pianists - 2
    horn - 1
    percussion - 1
    clarinet - 1
    oboe - 1
    trombone - 1
It is also true that 5 out of the last six winners were string players, which would obviously affect the impression given to those who've only been interested over the past 10 - 12 years.
 
lynchie

lynchie

Active Member
I remember last year, one of the judges in the final saying "They're all very evenly balanced, but I'm going to go for the violin player because it's the hardest instrument to play"... and these are supposed to be the great and good of the music world?
 
Aidan

Aidan

Active Member
Laura said:
Aidan. Tom Osbourne and Andy King have both reached the brass finals and as for Katrina, I don't think she has ever enterered the BBC young musician, her playing speaks for itself though! I do feel the BBC young musician is somethimes glammed up though, this year they couldn't stop going on about looks! Also, the young violinist that won last year, lots of people said she was amazing, but wasn't the best, it seems her age (12?)played a big part. But maybe I'm wrong. I just feel sometimes that the music world is becoming to visual, looks seem to play a large part in people getting noticed.

Anyway Aidan, I'm still not happy with you :x
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yup they seemed to choose all the young people to go through to the final didnt they!! was the pianist 14 or 12 or something aswell..

haha all the best gigs laura :D
 
Seedhouse

Seedhouse

Active Member
welcome2martonia said:
oh and alex, I'll see you at the comp... just looking at the details now...
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If you read the details on the application form Martin, you have to record two pieces with Brass band (maybe we could do them with YB2k?) and you submit the recording and they chose if they want you to go through to the semi final.
 
W

welcome2martonia

New Member
I was just being big headedmeaning we'll both get through to the semi-finals...he he he... I doubt that I will but you definately will... I like string players, don't get me wrong but every seems to think they're the hardest instrument to play where as I don't each instrument has it's own difficulties... brass you only have 3/4 valves or a slide to get all those different notes, strings you just ming untilyou get any good at it, woodwind well I don't know what's hard about these apart from they squeek alot, that could be hard to stop I suppose, perc I'm usless at doing two things at once and doing different stuff with one hand from the other, and pianos they're just technically difficult... all instruments have their own level of difficulty I don't see why people always think strings are the hardest...
 
Seedhouse

Seedhouse

Active Member
Welcome2martonia said:
I was just being big headedmeaning we'll both get through to the semi-finals...he he he... I doubt that I will but you definately will...
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Lol, ok! :lol:
I'm jst going to give it a go, and if I get through I get through! If I don't it's not the end of the world! :roll:
 
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