"Let's start at a Distinction and go up from there!"

The penultimate day of the eisteddfod, which you might think would mean we were slowing down, but far from it! 

We started the morning session with what is always a delightful class, the Infant Age Music Making class. Now, I must confess, I didn’t actually get to see this class (to my eternal sadness), as I was warming up all my singers who were set to perform in the following class. I did however hear some of the fun coming through some of the backstage speakers, and I did see the huge array of fabulously bright coloured instruments, so can only imagine the fun that all these young musicians were having on stage. Congratulations to all of you for participating and entertaining us with your music! 

A fine group of young pop stars in the making! 

Continuing the morning, we had the Pop Song Under 12s. A lovely class here, with everyone choosing songs which I felt really suited them, both vocally, and their personality. Nancy remarked that there was "a high standard all around, from performers and teachers alike” and that there was much to admire. She went on to talk about what she was looking for from these young performers, which was good use of pop technique, engagement with the words, and an emotional connection. One piece of advice I would like to give all these performers is to bring greater awareness to your whole body when you are singing. Sometimes we do things without realising we are doing them, like clenching our hands into fists, or hunching our shoulders, or distributing our weight in uneven ways. Take a moment to really look at what the rest of your body is doing when you sing, and will any muscles that aren’t needed to let go. I always say, the larynx (voice box) is the mechanism for producing the voice, but the whole body is the instrument, so don’t just focus in on the smallest part of the whole thing! A truly super class here, with everyone receiving Highly Commended or Higher. I particularly thought that Imogen Ellis, who was performing in her first Eisteddfod solo gave a really natural performance, and there is great promise in her voice. I also thought Zara Stafford-Bell showed a lovely tone developing in her voice, and I look forward to hearing more from her. There were three singers all in second place on Distinctions, which were Kiriana Hutchinson, Zara Stafford-Bell, and Mia Larbalestier, but the winner today was Sicely Mountford with another Distinction, for her performance of 'Hey Brother' by Avicii. Well done everyone, great work! After the Junior School Age Music Making, in which Blanchelande College Year 5 received a Highly Commended for their performances 'It's Out there' and 'In the Autumn', we followed on with the Choirs; Part Singing, Junior School Age, featuring three choirs; ECJS Choirs, The Guernsey Music Centre Junior Choir, and Melrose Junior Choir. Some good singing coming from these youngsters, across all three groups. I particularly enjoyed Melrose's rendition of 'Castle on a Cloud', I thought they delivered this with conviction and a lovely even tone across the choir. On this day, it was Guernsey Music Centre who won the class with a Distinction, with Melrose coming 2nd (also with Distinction), and ECJS coming 3rd with Highly Commended. 

We started the afternoon sessions with a huge class; not just in a sizeable amount of performers, but in the vastness of the material being presented. The Concerto Open Class requires an understanding and delivery of hugely demanding repertoire, which I think all the performers in this class showed. There was a lovely array of instruments on offer here as well, as we were treated to concertos on Violin, Double Bass, Cello, Saxophone, and rather interestingly Bassoon. I thought Daisy (our bassoonist) in particularly performer with a great sense of maturity, and she produced some lovely rich and wood woody tones from the Bassoon. I also thought that Sam Cole performed with lovely poise and elegance, as is expected of Mozart. A cracking class all around, as Nancy said that “the lowest mark starts at Distinction and goes up from there!” - The winner of the class was Joseph Stoller, who received a remarkable 95 for his performance of 'Concerto in C Major' by Kabalewski.  

Next up, a selection of choral and vocal classes. First we had the Choirs; Male Voice Under 14. This is always a tricky age for singers, especially young Male voices, as there's a lot of uncertainty and changes happening that effect the way the voice works and feels. I thought this group did really well, and were awarded a Highly Commended for their efforts. Well done! Next, a small, but lovely class, the Vocal Girls; 15 & Under 18. What was really interesting here was the contrast between the two singers competing - Louise Madden produces a beautiful Soprano tone, with a lovely light and bright quality, and wonderful control. Ellie Evans' voice, whilst also controlled is much mellower in her tonal quality, and has much more of a mezzo-soprano tone and range. Both were praised for their excellent breath control within these songs, which were Song to the Seals (performed by Louise) and Sea Slumber (performed by Ellie). On the day, Ellie was the winner with a Distinction. Following the solo vocalists, we had yet more choral with the Choirs; Gospel & Spiritual Under 18 class. I did think this was an unusual place for this class to be - normally any sacred class would be at St James, but there has been some necessary shifting around this year to accommodate other events, so perhaps this was moved to enable the sole competitor, Guernsey Music Centre Youth Choir, to perform in full capacity. This choir performed really well, perhaps the best I've heard them this entire festival, and were awarded Outstanding, winning the Alan Ingrouille Trophy. A short respite from singing, we were next treated to some chamber music in the Chamber Music Open. It never ceases to amaze me that most of the 'open' classes tend to be fielded by our young musicians, which just goes to further cement that we have some great talent here in Guernsey that I hope will always continue to be nurtured. Also a closely run competition this one, with Elizabeth College Chamber Ensemble winning with a Distinction mark of 87, and Insieme just coming in 2nd with 86 (Highly Commended) 

- We closed the afternoon with the Choirs; Secondary School Age - part 2! If you remember this was another class in which Alderney School Choir competed earlier in the week whilst they were able to be on island. Another great class of choral singing, which is something we really do well here in Guernsey, across the ages! The Guernsey Girls Choir gave a magnificent performance of 'Over the Rainbow', followed by 'Straighten up and Fly Right', which earned them an Outstanding and made them winners of the class. Coming in 2nd was Rhapsodie (Guernsey Grammar School), who also received an Outstanding, and St Anne's School Alderney received a Distinction, coming 3rd. 

We started the evening sessions with the Over 18s Self-accompanied class. Unlike the Under 18s, this class had a wider variety of accompanying instruments, including piano, guitar, and in one case ukulele as well as percussion. Always a heart-warming class, I thought there were some wonderful performances here. I want to commend both Lindsey Veillard and Jo Marsh for performing in this self-accompanied class, as neither one of them as ever accompanied themselves on piano before! Lindsey's tongue-in-cheek performance of 'Blue Moon' was delightful, and I thought Jo did a great job of creating atmopshere with her performance of 'Zombie'. Coming in 2nd in the class was Julie Tostevin-Hobbs, who created, in essence, a one-woman-band, performing Bruno Mars' 'Count on Me' on Ukulele and various percussion. Nancy did say that she thought that Julie's lovely rich low voice would be better served by a guitar - I can see what she means, however, I would also argue that it depends on the ukulele! Eddie Vedder, lead singer of Pearl Jam produced an amazing album of ukulele songs, and he sings them all in a bass-baritone range. If Julie wanted to try a deeper instrument though, I would suggest a baritone ukulele! 1st place for this class was jointly awarded to myself, and Darren Alderton, with 93 marks apiece. I'm somewhat gutted I missed Darren's performance, as my sources from the audience say it was beautiful. I'd also like to make mention of a little blip I had, not for sympathy you understand, but simply to make a point! During the highest most powerful note of my song, my voice fully cracked (and I mean, hilariously so, just ask my friends!), which was frustrating, I must admit, but clearly this didn't matter to our adjudicator. I just wanted to mention this for any singers out there, especially young ones, who are either afraid of your voice cracking, or get frustrated with your voice not behaving. It really isn't the end of the world, and clearly it can happen to anyone, no matter how experienced they are! 

Just as the Over 18s class, the Under 18s Songs from the Shows proved to be not only hugely entertaining, but showcased the huge amount of talent we have in this island. Nancy said she was “amazed by the huge amount of skill, in use of voice and acting.” She also stated that she thought some of these performers were of a professional standard already, even thought they were still Under 18. Some personal highlights of mine included Imogen Hayman’s rendition of ‘Part of Your World’ from the Little Mermaid, and Ivy Paris-Smith’s heart-warming rendition of ‘She Used to be Mine’. I also thought that Erin Vaudin sang the best I have ever heard her; her performance of ‘With You’ was sincere, and beautifully placed vocally. Another stellar night seeing the marks soaring to dizzy heights, as we had nine competitors all on 90 and above! In third place was Scarlett Bougourd with 94 marks for her performance of ‘Always Remember’ from A Star is Born. In 2nd place was Erin Vaudin with 95 marks, and pipping the win was a quartet comprised of Lucy Mahy, Simone Ashplant, Reece Kilminster and Drew Robilliard performing ‘Cantata for a First Date’, from the musical I Love you, your perfect, Now Change, achieving themselves 96, the 4th one we’ve seen this festival!