Peterborough festival for young musicians to go ahead with new look

Instead of the usual competitive classes for instrumentalists and singers which take place in local venues in the city, the committee are approaching the event in a radical way.

Company director Moira Lester said: “We were so lucky to be able to go ahead with the festival in March last year, as it took place just before lockdown.

“When planning for 2021 though, it was pretty clear that we were going to have to make some big changes in order to carry on. It’s so sad to see other local festivals being cancelled, so we really wanted to do something to give young people a platform to perform their music this year”.

Youngsters are invited to submit a recording of themselves playing their instrument or singing. The piece can be from a graded syllabus or can be own composition. Entries will be collated and forwarded to professional adjudicators, who will provide written constructive feedback for every entrant.

On Saturday, March 13, a showcase event will be streamed on Facebook showing a selection of the performances.

There will also be the opportunity to watch performances from the adjudicators, other local music teachers and bands.

Director Diane Llewellyn added: “We are really excited about this! We are putting together a great programme showcasing local talent, interspersed with music from our young Music Festival ambassadors. We felt that it would be particularly beneficial to students to receive valuable feedback at a time when not many face to face exams are taking place.

“Thanks to support from the Peterborough Music Hub, we are delighted to able to run this event free of charge for participants.”

Each entrant will receive a certificate, adjudicator feedback and a USB stick of the Facebook event, which, if they are chosen as an ambassador, will feature their performance.

For more information about how to enter, visit the website signaturemusicfest.org or email [email protected].