A super string success

A string quartet made up of talented individuals from West Sussex Youth Orchestra had the opportunity to perform at the Brighton Dome recently.  

The quartet had the chance to play for concert goers prior to a concert given by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Brighton Dome on Saturday evening.  

The quartet were – Benjamin Webster (1st violin and leader of the WSYO), Emilie Ireland (2nd violin), Sophie Bratcher (viola) and Ruby Harte-Stovell (cello).  

Earlier in the day the four, along with many other musicians from West Sussex Youth Orchestra had the opportunity sit in on a rehearsal of the LPO. They then had the chance to ask questions of LPO professionals,  Coco Iman (violin) who has been in the orchestra just under a year and Laura Vallejo who has been working for the LPO for more than 20 years. 

One of our percussionists was awed by the precision of the rolls on the timpani, and for many students it was one of their first experiences of hearing a professional orchestra.  Several students are hoping to pursue careers in music and found the session a valuable insight to deciding on their next steps. 

James Underwood, Chief Executive at West Sussex Music, said:  

“It’s a pleasure to have the LPO as one of our partners because of the valuable  opportunities they offer to young people to explore careers in music. Our quartet really did themselves and WSM proud, and from the feedback we’ve received they were all very impressed by the concert they attended. An enormous thank you to the education team at LPO.” 

If you have a young person interested in performing in the West Sussex Youth Orchestra, go here for more information.