Young Musician Competition District Final, 2026

There were 10 soloists and 6 ensembles split into the following categories – Vocalist and Instrumentalist, both with Junior, Intermediate and Senior subsections. Open Vocal Ensemble and Open Instrumental Ensemble.

The standard was extremely high and the skill shown by all the contestants was exceptional. The judge had an unenviable task of picking winners in each category and then the best instrumentalist and the best vocalist to go forward to the Cluster / regional final.

The variety of music that we were entertained with was stunning, pianists, violinist saxophonists and a bagpiper. The bagpiper caused the organisers a headache trying to find a place for him to warm up away from the main auditorium… bagpipes are, of course, designed to be heard from many miles away!  The vocals ranged from modern pop songs, to musicals and to full opera. The ensembles included a family string trio, a rock group and vocal ensembles. Truly an eclectic mix!

The judge was Sheila Berry, an accomplished musician and singer who has been a music and voice coach for over 40 years. She has a passion for developing young singers and musicians.

The Winners were................... 

Instrumental Winners

The winner of the Junior Instrumentalist was harpist, India Bowman (sponsored by Ashby Hastings Club).

The winner of the Intermediate Instrumentalist was Sydney Charles on Bagpipes (Sponsored by Melton Mowbray Club).

The winner of the Senior Instrumentalist was violinist, Nicola Chotrani (sponsored by Melton Mowbray Club).

The overall winner was Nicola Chotrani who will progress to the next round being held on Sunday 29th March at King Edward VI College in Stourbridge. 

Vocal Section Winners

Intermediate winner was Milly Gibson (sponsored by Towcester Club)

Senior winner was Grace Hillis (sponsored by Wellingborough Club)

There were no entries in the Junior Vocalist.

The overall winner was Grace Hillis who will progress to the next round being held on Sunday 29th March at King Edward VI College in Stourbridge.

Ensemble Section Winners

The Open Vocal Ensemble was won by Towcester Rock School Intermediate Choir (sponsored by Towcester club).

The Open Instrumental Ensemble was jointly won by The Pang Family Trio (sponsored by Wellingborough Club) 

and the Towcester Rock School Intermediate Group 2 (sponsored by Towcester Club).