BBC Young Musician 2024 celebrates the most promising young classical musical talents from across the UK

 

The ultimate UK talent contest for young classical music performers, BBC Young Musician returns to BBC Two, BBC Four, BBC Radio 3, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds in September and October 2024, for its 24th edition.  

 

The long-running biennial competition has been celebrating up-and-coming musical talents from across the UK for five decades, launching the careers of international stars such as Nicola Benedetti, Laura van Der Heijden, Mark Simpson, Sheku Kanneh-Mason and pianist Martin James Bartlett. 

 

Recent past classical piano winners include Lara Melda (2010), Martin James Bartlett (2014) and Lauren Zhang (2018, pictured on the main page).

 

Pianist Benjamin Grosvenor was the winner of the keyboard section in 2004. He has since become an exclusive Decca Classics recording artist and performs on the concert platform worldwide. Here he is a few years late performing at the BBC Proms in 2011: 

 

 

 

Bartlett's winning performance in 2014:

 

 

 

Watch the full performance: 

 

 

This year, five programmes – introduced by trailblazing saxophonist and broadcaster Jess Gillam – will be on BBC Four and BBC iPlayer every Sunday from the 15 September, taking audiences through the various stages of the competition, culminating in highlights from the grand final on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 20 October, and the event in full on BBC Four on the same date. BBC Radio 3 and BBC Sounds will feature highlights of the quarter and semi-final on Classical Live from Monday 30 September, with the grand final broadcast in full on Sunday 20 October.

 

Launched in November 2023 with a brand-new format, this year’s edition of BBC Young Musician has seen hundreds of submissions from promising young classical performers from every corner of the UK. 50 musicians from eight geographical areas across the country made it through to the live auditions in April at BBC Central Square in Cardiff. Out of these, only 12 proceeded to the quarter finals, and six to the semi-final, with these stages of the contest recorded in July at The Great Hall, Swansea University (Bay Campus). On Tuesday 24 September at Bristol Beacon, three finalists will compete for the title, as they each perform a concerto accompanied by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

 

Judging this year’s competition are: trumpeter Alison Balsom, pianist and composer Alexis Ffrench, and multi-instrumentalist and broadcaster Hannah Catherine Jones. 

 

We can't help but wish for a pianist to win! 

  

  

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

 

On BBC Four & iPlayer:

Sun 15 September: highlights from the live auditions

Sun 22 September: highlights from the live auditions

Sun 29 September: quarter finals

Sun 6 October: quarter finals

Sun 13 October: semi-final

Sun 20 October: grand final

 

On BBC Two & iPlayer

Sun 20 October: highlights from the grand final 

 

On BBC Radio 3 & BBC Sounds:
Classical Live
Mon 30 September – Friday 04 October, 13:00 – 16:00
Wednesday 02 October, 13:00 – 15:00

BBC Young Musician 2024 grand final 

Sunday 20 October

 

Main image: © BBC