Win for Loretto pianist

Now in its seventh year, the James Waterhouse Piano Competition, in association with Steinway and Sons, has established itself as one of the foremost piano competitions in the UK for children under 19 years of age.

This year there were a record 82 entrants, 34 of whom went on to participate in masterclasses, which were split into three sections by ability level, and provided an opportunity for children to try their pieces out and receive feedback from a professional pianist in a supportive and inspirational environment. The standard of playing was extraordinarily high throughout, making for a difficult adjudication.

There were ten finalists split across the three categories, and the winners of the Intermediate and Advanced categories went on to a Prizewinners’ Recital at Steinway Hall, London. The winner of the Intermediate category, which had 15 entrants, was Hamish Ogilvy of Loretto School.

All the pianos in this Scottish boarding school are Steinways, including three Concert Grand model B pianos in the Chapel, the Concert Hall and the main piano teaching room. These superb pianos are part of Loretto’s strategy to continue to develop ‘a centre of excellence in the expressive arts’. Playing the piano is one of the most popular ways of fostering a lifelong love of music from an early age, and lucky Loretto students are taught and practice on the finest pianos in the world.

If you would like more information about this, or any of the other British boarding schools we recommend, please do contact us.

Photo courtesy of Loretto School