Held every year in May, the Soloist Competition showcases the high calibre of musicians in Royal Air Force Music Services. Not only do musicians compete for the coveted RAF Charitable Trust Soloist Award, but the winning compositions composed during the Training and Development Course are performed in public for the first time.
This was the first year the competition was open to the public. RAF Music welcomed an enthusiastic audience to Regent Hall, Central London, where Wing Commander (Wg Cdr) Piers Morrell OBE MVO Principal Director of Music (RAF) conducted the Central Band of the RAF.
Preliminary rounds were undertaken in the weeks before, where musicians competed internally for the honour of representing their own band in the Competition. These rounds are adjudicated by the respective Directors of Music, Bandmasters and instrumental specialists within each band.
The four soloists this year were:
Corporal (Cpl) Ryan Penman (Clarinet), Central Band of the Royal Air Force
Concerto for Clarinet by Artie Shaw arr. Ted Parson
Cpl Kevin Carberry (Flute), Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment
Sonatine by Henri Dutilleux arr. Corporal Jono Read
Air Specialist (Class 1) (AS1) Lucinda Rimmer (Oboe), Band of the Royal Air Force College
Allegro from ‘Legacy’ Concerto for Oboe by Oscar Navarro
AS1 Jonathan Griffiths (Alto Saxophone), Band of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force
Stella by Starlight by Victor Young arr. Bill Holman
As ever, the RAF Charitable Trust Soloist Award, which is presented to the most outstanding soloist in RAF Music, was hotly contested. This year’s adjudicators were:
Marie Lloyd, Head of Woodwind at the Royal College of Music London
Jenni Phillips, Head of Woodwind at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
Melanie Henry, Professor of Saxophone and Doubling Skills at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.
The adjudicators had a difficult task due to the exceptionally high standard of the performances. This was evident, as after much deliberation, AS1s Lucinda Rimmer and Jonathan Griffiths were announced as joint winners.
In her summing up, Marie Lloyd, speaking for all the adjudicators said that Jonathan gave a ‘stylish and engaging performance...with real communication and enjoyment with the audience from the outset...a real stage presence that drew us in’
Of Lucinda’s playing she commented, ‘Your whole performance exuded enjoyment and your connection with the audience was plain to see...the whole concerto was performed with aplomb and flamboyance...Congratulations!’
Once the soloists had given their performances it was the turn of the composers. There are three categories in the Competition: best fanfare, march and original composition. The RAF Music Charitable Trust Award for the best fanfare was won by Cpl Sarah Morris with Fanfare on a Theme of Dambusters, commemorating the 80th Anniversary of Op CHASTISE, the Dambusters raid by 617 Squadron.
The TradeWinds March Competition Trophy was awarded for March to Sicily by Cpl Hannah Read. The march was written to mark the 80th Anniversary of Operation Huskey, in which the Allies invaded the island of Sicily.
There was no specific event to inspire the works submitted for the composition prize, instead, they were to be based broadly around the idea of flight and aviation. Sergeant Neil Wharton won the Pooley Sword Composition Award for his piece titled Lighter Than Air.
Besides these awards there was a presentation from the Gold and Silver Wyre Drawers. The Worshipful Company make an award to a Corporal or Air Specialist (Class 1) for their outstanding professional contribution to RAF Music Services. Cpl James Case won the award this year. His award was collected on his behalf by his Director of Music, Squadron Leader Murray and was presented by the Master of the Worshipful Company of Gold and Silver Wyre Drawers, Catherine Carr.
It was up to Wg Cdr Piers Morrell and the Central Band of the RAF to conclude this showcase event for RAF Music. They did this in fine style with a performance of F-35 Lightning II by Andrew Pearce, performed in perfect synchronisation to a video contrasting the planes flown by 617 Squadron; the modern F-35 lightning II and the majestic Lancaster bomber.
