Award-winning pianist in to perform at Shropshire college
An award-winning pianist will take to the stage later this week as part of a series of concerts at a Telford school.
Wrekin College’s Sounds of the Future programme continues on Friday, February 11, with a special evening performance by Alexander Arenare, from nearby Sedgley in the Black Country.
Launched at the start of the year by BBC music finalist Tom Hall, the ‘Sounds of the Future’ programme is the first major concert series to take place since the school built its new £2.5 million music school.
“We’re absolutely delighted to have our Sounds of the Future series underway and we’re excited to have Alexander join us on Friday,” said the school’s director of music, Simon Platford.
“Alexander is a phenomenal talent and this will be a wonderful opportunity to see him perform as his career goes from strength-to-strength. I know this will be a thrilling evening for those in the audience. He was the only performer out of all those we booked in 2020 who was able to play before Covid struck and he received a standing ovation”
Alexander is currently studying for a Masters Degree in music at the Guildhall, London.
He was a finalist in the John Longmire Piano Competition 2018, won a piano accompaniment prize the Kathleen Ferrier competition in 2017 and also achieved the highest possible marks in his major recital in 2018.
The promising young talent was also awarded the Fred Southall prize while previously working with tutor Dorothy Randles.
Mr Platford added: “It has been a difficult time for musical performance which has been impacted greatly by restrictions put in place during the last two years due to the pandemic.
“But now we are, fingers crossed, looking forward to a very exciting year ahead full of opportunities for children to really develop their musical abilities and their performance skills.
“Music is a very important part of the curriculum at Wrekin College and ‘Sounds of the Future’ will hopefully inspire our pupils and other young musicians, by showing them the standards that can be reached by musicians in some cases only one or two years older than them.”
In the live performance on February 11, Alexander will play the Bach/Busoni Chaconne in D minor, Beethoven Piano sonata op.109 in E Major and the Brahms Piano Sonata nr 3 in F Minor.
The concert starts at 7pm and is in the Chapel at Wrekin College. Tickets are £5 and can be bought via ticketsource.co.uk/wrekinarts or on the door. Young pianists from other schools can have a complimentary ticket by emailing music@wrekincollege.com
The event will follow all current Covid-19 Government guidelines.
