Awards for Young Musicians (AYM) is a national charity founded in 1998 which aims to address this situation. 

The organisation was set up as the result of the legacy of Robert Lewin, who left an extraordinary collection of instruments in his will on the instruction that they be sold to create a small endowment fund, which would help support the development of the UK’s most talented young musicians from low-income families.

Young violinist Danielle is one of many who have reaped the rewards of our support. Her mother says: ‘We spent Danielle’s AYM award on extending her half-hour lessons to longer ones and it’s amazing how much progress she has made, inspired by the fact that she knows AYM is behind her. Two and a half years after taking her very first violin lesson, Danielle joined the Royal Academy of Music’s junior department and has started her Grade 8 scales and repertoire.’

Developing a young person’s musical ability in whatever genre they’re playing requires considerable investment: hours dedicated to practice; travel to be taught by the best available teachers; specialised courses to expand musical horizons and build on skills; the purchase or loan of high-quality instruments; and a whole range of less obvious costs such as accompanists’ fees and specialist dentistry. This is expensive - one expert estimates an average cost of £6,000 per year between the ages of 7 and 18 - so in families where income is low, it’s often impossible for the money to be found to meet these expenses. This is where AYM’s help begins: by fundraising from a wide range of sources, we run an annual Awards programme which distributes a minimum of £50,000 to the most talented young musicians in the greatest financial need.

Our awardee Harry says: ‘My AYM award enabled me to study at London’s Centre for Young Musicians (CYM), where I got fantastic tuition on the tuba from Joe Hassan and passed my Grade 8 with distinction in March 2007. A few months before that, I managed to gain a place in the London Schools Symphony Orchestra as principal tuba. This opened a whole new world of musicality for me. Suddenly I was working with great musicians of all kinds and a truly inspirational conductor, artistic director Peter Ash.

‘In July 2007, I took my ABRSM diploma in piano performance and gained a distinction. I have got involved in masses of chamber music, including starting a piano trio at school, and have taken up the double bass, which I am playing in a jazz quartet. I am also studying conducting with Peter Ash, who has helped me develop my aspirations to study music at Cambridge and go on to become a professional conductor.’

However, it’s not just financial support that talented young musicians need if they are to fulfill their potential, something I was all too aware of when I became AYM’s director last May. Following a review process in which I talked to colleagues across the country about how we might help address current gaps in provision, we’ve shaped a new strategy: to deepen our work by doing more for the young musicians who come to us for help, and to broaden our support by doing more to locate talented young people who aren’t currently finding us. 

With the state’s current levels of investment in music education, there have never been more opportunities across the country for talented young people to develop their musicianship. However, if they don’t have access to information about these opportunities, they have no chance of taking advantage of them; many young people say they discovered what was available to them purely by accident. 

We’re regularly contacted by the parents or teachers of young people whose musical talent is emerging but who don’t have access to the information or resources they need to help them progress.  By working closely with our partners, we’re hoping to create more connectivity across the sector and deepen our support by providing relevant information to talented young musicians and their families as they negotiate the so-called ‘pyramid of progression’ from classroom provision to national-level opportunities.

As a national independent charity, we are part of an extensive network of music education colleagues with massive expertise: our Pathways programme, which begins in the autumn, will aim to help connect talented young people with the opportunities available to them. This won’t be about creating a database of information that will quickly go out of date; our aim is to provide a light touch and a tailor-made response to the individual needs of each enquirer. We’ll also evaluate whether the help we give leads to greater opportunity for that young person.

We’re also very aware that many young musicians from low-income families have little opportunity to experience the wealth and richness of the UK’s music scene – to attend concerts, rehearsals and recordings, meet conductors and musicians, gain mentors, and benefit from work experience. These experiences are all hugely valuable in expanding their understanding of music and in enabling them to find their own path towards a career in music, if that’s what they want. Cost and geography are often major barriers, so, to address this, we’re developing partnerships with the UK’s leading orchestras in our Orchestral Mentoring programme.

Again, it’s about making connections, this time between talented young musicians and the tremendous musical resources offered by orchestras local to them. So far, we’ve been working with partners including the Britten Sinfonia, the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra, and the BBC Philharmonic in Manchester, who arranged for a group of our award-holders to attend a studio recording.

Katie, a 17 year-old clarinettist who took part, says: ‘Thank you very much for the opportunity you gave me to watch the live studio recording. I don’t often get to see live orchestras play as concerts are expensive and transport is often a problem, so the chance to see the BBC Philharmonic was amazing and extremely inspiring. I loved the way we were so close to the orchestra because it really made you feel as if you were part of the performance and the music. The orchestra itself was stunning, and as a clarinettist, I love to listen to as many different clarinettists as possible. Thank you once again for such a brilliant opportunity – I hope to see a lot of the BBC Phil in the future.’

Most of these young people already play at a very high level technically and have a rapidly developing understanding of music that far exceeds their age.  We hope that engaging with young people at this level will also be inspiring to the orchestral musicians they come into contact with.

But what about young people whose musical talent has barely been identified at all? AYM is also working to broaden its support to cover them. We’re hoping to find new ways of assisting young people whose musical talent may only just be emerging as a result of access programmes, so we’re currently raising funds in order to pilot some work. We’re also investigating ways in which we might support music teachers – whether class teachers, peripatetics or freelance musicians – to more effectively identify young people with musical talent and help that talent to flourish.

The response we get from families and from the young musicians themselves makes it clear why AYM’s work matters.  Here’s the mother of Lucy, a 10-year-old violinist, showing how the whole family has pulled together to help support her:

‘Just to let you know, my daughter recently acquired a beautiful German 1920s full-size violin. Her violin teacher came with us to get it as I am no expert!  We put £50 towards it, my mum bought her a bow and my sister helped with the case. I was quite emotional in the shop – it’s like a dream! She has taken to the violin straight away and the sound is amazing. She plays it constantly! Once again, a huge thank you for giving her this wonderful opportunity.’

And here’s Lucy herself:

‘Thank you so much for giving me the money. My new violin is better than I imagined. It has an amazing tone. I’ll treasure it forever and play it with pride.’

Photography: Gemini Kim
Additional material: Ria Hopkinson

Awards for Young Musicians
PO Box 2754
Bristol BS4 9DA

T: +44 (0)117 9049906
E: enquiries at a-y-m.org.uk
W: www.a-y-m.org.uk