French horn player, Jamie Miller (18) from Addo is a learner at the Collegiate Girls’ High and the sole representative of the Eastern Cape at the 36th National Youth Music Competition (NYMC).
With the competition scheduled to run from 6 to 11 December at the Hugo Lambrechts Auditorium in Parow, Cape Town, a new record number of 27 upcoming young musicians have been selected to compete over four rounds for the coveted title, the R155 000 cash and gold, silver and bronze medals.
This is the biggest number of contestants ever in the contest’s 37-year history. They were selected from a record number of 45 entrants from across the country. It is the only South African music competition in which the six finalists get the opportunity to perform with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO).
“The entire concert and award ceremony will be streamed free on the NYMC website. People can just click the streaming button on the homepage of the NYMC website (www.nymc.co.za),” says Michael Maas, chairman of the National Youth Music Foundation (NYMF).
The NYMC has been described as one of the most gruelling music competitions for young musicians between the ages of 14 and 19 years in South Africa.
It demands stamina, technical excellence and strong interpretative skills. The contestants will play an extensive repertoire of works from different style periods.
All contestants take part in the first two rounds, after which a maximum of 12 players go through to the third round on Thursday 9 December 2021.
The six top musicians then do their battle under the accompaniment of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) at a gala concert on Saturday 11 December 2021 with CPO resident conductor, Brandon Philips on the podium.
