LUKE Cave and Saskia Porter-Thaw have been crowned Young Musicians of the Year after battling tough competition in the Musical Festival finals this term.
As winners of the Intermediate and Senior Woodwind categories, Saskia and Luke went head to head against the winners from the Piano, Brass, Percussion, Organ, String and Singing categories in a tense final round. Saxophonist Saskia secured the Intermediate Instrumentalist award with her rendition of Guilhaud’s Concertino No. 1, while Luke’s clarinet solo – Bennett’s Ballad in memory of Shirley Horn – enchanted the judges, earning him the title of Senior Instrumentalist and overall winner of the competition.
At school assembly, Saskia collected the Walser Cup for her achievement and Luke was awarded the prestigious Walser Trophy. Both awards are named after David Walser, a former Chaplain who left a sum in his will for the enrichment of the arts at King’s Ely.
Both Saskia and Luke also delighted an audience at the finalists’ concert, along Sophie Hudson and Will Oliver, who won the Intermediate and Senior Singer awards, respectively.
Head of King’s Ely, Sue Freestone, said: “Music is the heart that beats at the core of King’s Ely. It is impressive and humbling to hear the quality of performance that so many of our young people can achieve and to see the confidence with which they deliver those performances.”