Tonight’s hour-long selection of class winners includes performances from the six contenders for this year’s Cleveland Medal - the highest honour which the Manx Music Speech and Dance Festival awards to one adult singer. Listen - and decide who YOU think should receive the glittering prize in the finals on Friday night.
The programme on Wednesday 25 April featured the following (please note that the list below is not necessarily the order in which the pieces are played in the programme):
Cleveland finalist number 1 - JUDITH BARKER from Liverpool - Winner of the Special Contralto solo voice class, singing Autumn Storms by Grieg, accompanied by Madeline Kelly
Cleveland finalist number 2 - MATTHEW QUINN from Ramsey - Winner of the Special Baritone solo voice class, singing ‘Se vuol ballare’ from The Marriage of Figaro, accompanied by Jill Collings
Cleveland finalist number 3 - MICHAEL CORKHILL - Winner of the Special Tenor Solo voice class - accompanied by Gareth Moore and singing his own choice - ‘Ah Mes Amis’ from Daughter of the Regiment by Donizetti
Cleveland finalist number 4 - DEBBIE WOODING - Winner of the Special Mezzo Soprano solo voice class, singing ‘Silent Noon’ by Vaughan-Williams and ‘Funeral Blues’ by Britten. Her accompanist is Graham Kirkland
TALYA GIULIANI - Winner of the Spoken Word class for 7 year olds. Her poem is called The Snowman
Cleveland finalist number 5 - PAUL COSTAIN - Winner of the Special Bass solo voice class, singing ‘Rollicum Rorum’ by Finzi, accompanied by Patricia Cullen
Cleveland finalist number 6 - OLIVIA BLACK - Winner of the Special Soprano solo voice class, accompanied by Frank Wooley and singing ‘Do not go, my love’ by Hageman
ARABELLA AYEN - Winner of the Plucked Strings class for Grades 4 to 5 - She plays two harp pieces by Rachel Hair, for which she was awarded 90 marks - and a first place!!
POLLY GLYNN - Winner of the Strings Class for Grade 6 and above - she plays ‘Romance’ by Shostakovich on violin
KAREN ELLIOT - Winner of the Vocal Solo by a British Composer - Karen was awarded 90 marks for 'Let the Florid Music Praise!' by Britten. Her accompanist is Mary Frankwick.
