Brass Final BBC Young Musician

Over the past four weeks, we've been treated to some

high-quality playing by some very talented young musicians,

with winners decided in strings, percussion, woodwind,

and in last Friday's keyboard final we heard the winning performance

by Martin James Bartlett that simply blew me away.

This weekend, we reach the conclusion of the competition,

beginning this evening with the brass final.

After tonight's programme, we will have the complete line-up

for the semi-final, which you can watch here on BBC 4 tomorrow night.

And on Sunday, we head to the Usher Hall in Edinburgh

for what promises to be another thrilling BBC Young Musician final.

After four closely contested categories

and some very difficult decisions for our judges,

tonight, brass takes centre stage.

Our five brass finalists have already survived two tough audition rounds

just to reach this stage of the competition.

With the brass title at stake,

and with it the last remaining place in this year's

BBC Young Musician semi-final, there's a lot to play for.

The BBC Young Musician is the most important competition in the UK.

I remember watching it and thought, wouldn't it be great to do that?

Peter Moore.

The exposure provides many things.

The last two years have been a roller-coaster ride.

This competition is for people who want to be the best at their instrument.

As a young musician, it just lifts your playing to a different level.

Some of these people,

we're going to enjoy their performances for many years to come.

I am extremely grateful to the competition

for making my dreams a reality.

This is a real big, big kick-start for young musicians.

It will be an unforgettable experience for them

which will make them love music even more.

It's been the most amazing start

to what I hope will be a long career in music.

Now, as a trumpet player myself,

I've been particularly looking forward to this final.

Over the history of the competition,

there have only been three brass winners

and to date, no trumpeter has ever claimed the main prize.

In 1978, Michael Hext surprised everyone, not least himself,

by winning the very first BBC Young Musician competition on the trombone.

'Portrait of a happy young trombonist.'

Ten years later, French horn player David Pyatt took the title.

In 1998, it was a thrill for me to reach the final,

where I had the chance to play with the Ulster Orchestra

at the newly-opened Waterfront Hall in Belfast.

But it took another ten years for a brass player to lift the award again.

And what a win it was.

Young Musician of the Year 2008... Peter Moore.

At just 12 years old, trombonist Peter Moore became,

and is still, the youngest winner in the history of the competition.

Tonight, here at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama

in Cardiff, three trombonists and two trumpet players

will battle it out for this year's brass title.

Will the trombone triumph or could 2014 be the year that a trumpet

blasts away the competition?

That's something I would really love to see, not that I'm biased!

Let's meet our five brass finalists.

First to perform, trombonist Isobel Daws.

She's 14 and from Stanmore in London.

It's probably the biggest concert I've played.

I was really excited when I found out I got through.

The youngest performer in this category final,

trumpet and flugelhorn player Will Thomas. He's 13 and from Twickenham.

I just want to get out there and play my best

and see how it all goes.

From Oldham near Manchester,

14-year-old Ellena Newton on trombone.

I'm really excited to perform on the stage.

I'm not very nervous, which is strange.

Our third and final trombonist is Lewis Bettles,

aged 18, from Sheffield.

I consider this the biggest thing I've done as of yet.

It's been a long time preparing, but I think it's all paid off.

And finally, 18-year-old trumpet player

Matilda Lloyd from Tonbridge in Kent.

I just want to show the judges that I love music

and sort of try and take them on a journey,

and make them see how much I love playing.

'Earlier, I met up with all five competitors for a quick chat.'

Great to meet you. Are you all feeling OK?

-Yeah.

-Fine, yeah.

One thing I was thinking all week

was that it's a fantastic acoustic for brass.

'They're five very impressive young performers

'and I'm really looking forward to hearing them play

'in this category final.'

16 years ago,

I was one of the performers waiting nervously in the wings.

The temptation is to practise right up until the very last minute

but what sets brass players aside is that we have to save ourselves.

The constant obsession with saving our lip

for the intense solo performance.

Let's hope they have all been saving their chops.

We are really looking forward to hearing them perform tonight.

But for three very important people,

a night of tough decision-making lies ahead.

And our judges are -

Trumpet player and member of London Brass, Andrew Crowley.

I'm looking for sound, musicianship, expression.

Perhaps something else, maybe a freedom in their playing.

Principal trombone of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Helen Vollam.

I guess they really have to entertain, but also

bring their personality across to the audience

and bring the music to life.

And general adjudicator, Meurig Bowen.

I'm looking for an inner strength, somebody who's compelling onstage,

someone who has charisma and is prepared to take risks.

And not only musical intelligence but an emotional intelligence too.

With the judges taking their seats,

our five brass finalists are backstage preparing.

First on, 14-year-old Isobel Daws, who plays the trombone

and hails from Stanmore in North London.

Isobel is rarely quiet.

In fact the only time she's quiet is when she's asleep, basically.

People do say I suit a trombone

because I'm quite a loud person when you get to know me.

So a small instrument probably wouldn't have suited me that much.

She started on the cornet - quite a loud player.

-A very loud player!

-Very loud.

Isobel started playing at three,

mainly because Stephanie had started learning already

and Isobel didn't want to feel left out

so she would keep picking up Stephanie's instrument and playing.

'Isobel's dad David is a talented brass player in his own right

'and she grew up listening to the sweet sounds of her father's cornet playing.'

When he was practising at night, I'd say, can you play me a lullaby?

Then I would fall asleep while he was playing.

He kind of did inspire me, I guess.

Isobel Daws comes from a long line of Salvationists.

And every Sunday, Izzy and her family go to their local Salvation Army.

She's been playing in the Young People's Band there

since she was five years old.

Isobel's a sixth generation Salvationist.

And in fact both her great-grandads played the trombone.

There's clearly something in the family genes.

These days, father and daughter can often be heard practising duets together at home.

'What I do is discuss musical issues with her,

'about whether it's performance'

or technical issues or asking her advice,

how would you play that section?

With a top brass player for a father, there's no slacking for Izzy.

-Much quieter there.

-I forgot.

-Yeah, I thought you did.

'Sometimes it can be quite annoying,'

because he makes you do everything, you have to do what he says.

Because I like being independent.

Much louder there. But that was all right, that was OK.

In term time, Izzy is a day pupil at Britain's oldest music school, the Purcell School.

She fits her normal lessons around a busy musical schedule

and developing her sound on the trombone.

It's wonderful for Izzy that she makes such

a round, plum-like sound,

that immediately she plays, proves to everybody,

wait just a minute, this isn't just a trombone,

this is a true musical instrument.

But the highlight of Izzy's musical year is a week away from home

on a Salvation Army youth brass band course,

working towards a concert at the Lighthouse in Poole.

I was really excited to go this year because I knew more people.

I enjoy it so much, I didn't really want to come home at all.

As the band's principal trombone,

Izzy is an inspiration to all around her.

I don't really practise at home

because I always think going to rehearsal is practising for me.

I think that's probably the reason why Izzy's really good and we're not.

Because she practises more.

I think the sound she produces is just...out of this world, I'd say.

Just completely, like, natural.

Go, team Izzy, come on!

I don't really get nervous before concerts,

I kind of just get excited to play. I like playing in front of people.

We enjoy watching her. I never feel nervous when she's performing.

Sarah does.

She does love it, though, doesn't she?

All her auditions and exams, she loves doing those,

she loves to perform. She really enjoys it.

Yeah, she's very cool.

For over 135 years, the Salvation Army has used music,

particularly brass bands, to spread their message

and some of the world's finest brass players

started out in its youth bands.

There is a handed-down tradition within the Salvation Army,

particularly with its music-making.

We want to share the joy of making music.

It appears to me that she's really blossomed,

and she's quite a character too.

And here is trombonist Isobel Daws to open this brass category final.

I'll be playing The Conquest first,

it's a Salvation Army piece by William Scholes.

It's, like, kind of a mixture of everything, fast and slow.

APPLAUSE

A very confident start there by Izzy.

She's been playing that piece since she was just nine years old.

Also in her programme, the second movement of Castarede's Sonatine

and to end, she's chosen Morceau Symphonique by Guilmant.

APPLAUSE

I must say, I loved Isobel's performance.

What a warm and rich tone she had,

and it sounded like the audience loved it too.

Well done, Isobel. You opened our competition tonight.

Playing with such assurance and control.

What is the highlight,

particular highlight of your performance tonight?

I was happy to get all my important notes, like the high notes,

and I was just... I was really pleased with it, actually.

Lots of lovely sounds from Isobel. Great intonation.

Perhaps I would have liked a little more expressivity in her playing.

A bit more sense of her really going for it.

I really love Isobel's sound. She's so natural.

It almost sounds effortless.

I really enjoyed her performance of the Guilmant, the last piece.

Which is one of my favourites.

So, a wonderful start to the brass category final.

Next, it's the turn of our youngest competitor tonight,

13-year-old Will Thomas.

He's also our first trumpeter to face the jury this evening.

-Will Thomas is a keen sportsman.

-I do quite a lot of running, football.

I had to quit rugby because I was too small

and I always used to get taken out by the big people.

You know when you watch the Olympics and sports people always say,

"I can win, I can win," so William has developed a bit of that,

he sort of has the determination and if you say anything else,

like, "Well, you might not,"

"Don't say that, that is not a positive thing to say."

I've just always worked hard and tried to be the best I can be.

HE PLAYS CORNET

When Will was eight, he decided to follow in his dad's footsteps

and pick up the cornet.

When I first got my cornet, my dad taught me,

like, the fingerings for the first two weeks.

And I remember saying to him after about three weeks, when he was doing

really well, I said, "This is going well, what do you want to do?"

He said, "I think I need a new teacher, Dad."

And that's when we got him his first proper trumpet teacher.

Just two years later,

Will gained a place at London's Junior Guildhall School of Music.

Every weekend, he plays his trumpet in the big band,

wind orchestra and brass bands, along with fellow brass finalists

Isobel Daws and Matilda Lloyd.

For Will, the day starts with a trumpet lesson.

Just stop there for a moment. Commit yourself to it.

And above all, you're singing.

OK? You're not blowing the trumpet, you're singing, OK?

'William's a delightful lad.'

He even gave me, as a Christmas present,

a pot of blackcurrant jam which he'd made.

So he's...

I was really delighted with that!

As well as mastering the trumpet and the cornet,

Will loves the very different tone of the flugelhorn.

'His ability to play a slow melody

'and pretty much bring a lump to your throat and tears to your eyes,

'immediately he plays it, is a great attribute.'

He hasn't learnt that from me.

He just does that.

'Delightful to teach.'

For the last six months, Will has held a prestigious

Principal Cornet position with championship band Regent Brass.

We had a very small chap come in looking quite nervous.

-How are you doing?

-Good.

-And he came and sat down, and what a sound!

He was an absolute natural, straightaway.

THEY PLAY IN UNISON

His attitude to the music is very, very particular.

About the sort of pacing of the piece.

He's got a very keen ear for intonation.

And not every player has that. It is a gift.

I think the judges will see that he has just got

an absolute natural musical talent.

And for this teenager, music is also a family affair.

I sort of got brought into it, listened to more jazz

when my brother started playing it.

THEY PLAY JAZZ

Whenever we have time, I like to sit down, we just do a bit of jamming.

Yeah.

We are almost more friends as well as brothers.

He's got a nice manner about his playing.

And I'm proud of him as well.

With so many styles up his sleeve

and at least three instruments to choose from,

how is Will going to approach this final?

I'm not going to go for all classical.

I'm just going to go out there and try and engage with the audience.

He's just a normal lad who does very extraordinary things.

APPLAUSE

In his bid for the brass title, Will Thomas begins on the trumpet,

with Rustiques by Bozza.

Probably I like it

because there's three trumpet cadenzas in the whole piece.

And it's nice because it's hard to play by yourself

and shows off playing technical bits in the piece.

Next, we're going to hear Will on the flugelhorn,

an instrument on which he loves to play slow melodies.

Here he is with My Ship, by Kurt Weill.

And now it's back to the trumpet,

as we head to Latin America with Tico Tico.

I first heard it

when I was at a concert with the Venezuelan Brass Ensemble,

and the principal trumpet played it,

and I was just like, "Oh, I really want to play that."

And it's probably my favourite piece to play.

APPLAUSE

Well, trumpeter and flugel player Will Thomas, there, giving us

a fabulously entertaining performance.

Hard to believe he's 13 years old.

So, Will. You're the man.

Playing with such tenderness and beauty.

I thought it went well. There were a few blemishes in the first piece...

Don't focus on blemishes! Tell me about it all.

Well, it was really exciting, playing in front of the audience.

They were really lively.

I got a nice applause after the second one.

I wasn't really sure what to do, because they went on for ages!

It was just... It was really fun, and I really enjoyed it, yeah.

Will was really entertaining.

As a trumpet player myself, I was very in awe of his stamina.

The trumpet wasn't off of his face the whole time.

You know, he really sort of performed.

Really, really musical and imaginative playing from Will.

I loved his flugelhorn piece in particular.

Some really fantastic sounds and very imaginative playing.

I thought William played really well tonight.

It was a really dramatic, varied programme,

and I'm very proud of him.

High-five.

We've already heard from two of our fantastic brass players.

Still to come, trombonist Lewis Bettles

and trumpeter Matilda Lloyd,

but next to play is 14-year-old trombonist Ellena Newton.

The Saddleworth village is near Oldham in Manchester -

a heartland for brass banding in the UK.

Every village in the Saddleworth area, basically,

has its own brass band.

And right in the middle of this brass band hot spot,

you will find Ellena Newton.

She was adamant she wanted to play the trombone,

so she picked it up, and...couldn't reach,

but used to drop it down onto a cushion

so it would reach, and it went from there.

She carried on with it.

I'm the first brass player in my family.

When she was seven years old,

Ellena started at the Oldham Music Centre, where young players

have the opportunity to rise through the ranks of its bands.

She made her way up to the youth band.

I suppose, when you're younger, maybe, playing an instrument

wasn't very, like...cool, or whatever.

And I think, going there, everyone else played instruments too,

and you all enjoyed doing it, and it was just fun.

Every year, Ellena's local area hosts one of the biggest events

in the brass band calendar, Whit Friday.

And when I was younger,

I would watch the bands coming down the hill on Whit Friday.

The trombonists would always be right at the very front,

and I thought that was really cool, so I always thought

I wanted to do that.

And for the last three years,

Ellena has played in championship competition band Oldham Band (Lees).

As far as a musician's concerned, she's just first-class,

she really is.

If I ask for a little bit more or a little bit less,

it's done to perfection every time, it really is.

The group has recently earned a place in this year's

National Brass Band finals.

Now, that's something to be proud of.

Competing since I was young has definitely helped me

with my confidence and my nerves.

I don't really get very nervous for things any more,

because I've done so much of it.

Another local young player made waves

with his trombone playing back in 2008.

I saw Peter Moore when he was 12, which was a massive inspiration.

Not only has Ellena come up through local brass bands, like Peter,

she also goes to the same school of music in Manchester.

Since I've started at Chetham's, classical music has become

a massive part of my life, which it wasn't before I went.

I've always been in brass bands,

so my playing was quite brass-bandy, but that's changed now.

SHE PLAYS "Sonata 'Vox Gabrieli'" by Stjepan Sulek

It was a good start, but it's mezzo forte, and this is Vox Gabrieli -

this is the voice of the Angel Gabriel, and for my liking

it was just a little bit too timid.

-OK.

-OK?

'She's so dedicated and enthusiastic and you can't actually

'give her enough to practise. Whatever I give her, she's done.'

That's it.

'I mean, even through the summer holidays, she'll phone me up

'and say, "Can you send more studies?"'

"Can I have another piece to do over the summer?"

'She's like a sponge.

'She just soaks it up. She just wants more.'

As well as playing in the school's symphony orchestra and big band,

Ellena has put together her very own Newton Trombone Quartet.

THEY PLAY "Scarborough Fair"

Whether it's a concert organised by the school,

or a brass band competition,

Ellena's always on her way somewhere.

The schedule's crazy.

It's every day, every night till nine, ten o'clock at night,

four nights a week. And she loves it.

She's not forced to do it, she doesn't have to do it,

but she wants to do it and she loves doing it.

Unfortunately, I'm the taxi

and I'm the one who has to take her here, there and everywhere.

But I don't mind doing it.

We've tried to cut back on certain things and said,

"Well, what about..." But she doesn't want to give any of them up.

I'd hate to say it because I might get in trouble for it,

but I think she's got the potential to go and win it outright.

She's just a born performer, I think.

APPLAUSE

And here is Ellena,

the second of three trombonists in this brass final.

My opening piece is a fanfare by John Kenny.

It's really bold and loud,

and it's also very different because there's no accompaniment,

it's just the pianist press the pedal down and I play into the piano

and the strings reverberate under my playing, and I create my own chords.

I think the audience will like that.

A lovely, rich, ringing sound created there by Ellena.

Next she's going to play Fantasiestucke, No 1 by Schumann.

It was originally written for clarinet,

but it sounds great on trombone.

It's really a peaceful, relaxing, really legato smooth playing.

APPLAUSE

Fantasiestucke by Schumann, performed by Ellena Newton.

And to end her programme, Sulek's Sonata Vox Gabrieli.

It's got a story to it.

It's all about the voice of Angel Gabriel,

and the very last bit is really loud.

It's a great finisher

and it's Angel Gabriel's voice going over the entire world

telling everyone that it's time to go

and it's the day of judgment, so it's quite exciting.

APPLAUSE

As that piece suggests, the voice of an angel.

Ellena Newton there playing so wonderfully.

Sounds like the audience enjoyed it. I suspect the jury did, too.

-Congratulations, Ellena.

-Thank you.

It was a beautiful performance and such beautiful repertoire.

-Are you happy?

-I'm really happy. It went really well.

-What was the highlight for you particularly?

-My last piece.

-The very end of the very last piece.

-It sounded so powerful.

-Yeah.

-I love that, it was great.

-Congrats. Feet up.

-Relax.

-Relax.

-Yeah.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Bravo.

I liked her programme. It was different

and I really liked the first piece she did by John Kenny.

Her second piece, I thought

she could've been a bit more outgoing and a bit more expressive.

It's a big strong sound and I thought she performed it

in a really, really communicative way as well.

Really enjoyed it.

She's come off stage and she's thoroughly enjoyed it.

That's all we can ask.

It's very nerve-racking sitting in the audience

watching your daughter do something like that,

but also just the most amazing feeling.

Next on stage is our eldest performer this evening,

18-year-old trombonist Lewis Bettles.

Sheffield in South Yorkshire.

The home of versatile young musician Lewis Bettles.

Growing up, Lewis learned to play piano, percussion,

euphonium and trombone.

But there comes a time

when every serious young musician has to make an important decision.

Probably about two years ago, when I was 16, I think,

I think that was the time when I realised

Conservatoire's coming up soon,

I need to pick an instrument and get pretty good on that one, really,

if I want a chance of getting in.

For Lewis, choosing the trombone was easy.

In my opinion, it's just a really cool instrument.

You can play in so many different ensembles and styles, I think.

You've got jazz and orchestral and brass bands,

and even in some pop music and rock music you can play in it.

At the Junior Royal Northern College of Music, Lewis plays trombone

in both the brass and the big bands.

For the last two years he has improved his technique

with lessons from Christian Jones

Christian's great, he's a great player, he's a great guy,

and if he'll tell me to do something,

I'll do it, because I know he's right.

Can you do it once more? But really build through that phrase.

Lewis can switch it on. He has got that X-factor, if you like.

But it's not all been plain sailing.

In the last year, he has had to adjust his embouchure,

something brass players have to do when their mouth position

isn't developing in the best way for their playing.

From being brought in from a young age in brass bands,

teachers don't tend to teach you the technique straightaway,

so I progressed through my playing with what we call a weak embouchure.

That is actually quite a big change.

And that did put my playing back to the basics for a long time last year.

It definitely knocked my confidence a lot.

And he's got over this mental issue,

with it feeling very different, brilliantly.

It has been a hard year, but it has paid off this year, definitely.

Lewis recently won a trombone scholarship

to the Royal Scottish Conservatoire, which he will take up in September,

but in the meantime, he's broadening his horizons

with the music technology course here at Rotherham College.

I really like technology-based things.

I've always been the one playing.

It's really good to see what it's like being on the other side

and helping the musicians for a change.

# Can we dance? #

OK, guys, can we try that again? But really go for it this time, yeah?

Lewis came to us with a very, very impressive CV as a musician.

Lovely guy, really studious, really academic.

But he's still very thirsty to learn.

And with an eye on his future career,

savvy Lewis is keeping his musical options open.

Outside the studio, Lewis still finds time to practise

with the trombone quartet he formed with some of his friends.

-We spent a long time trying to think of names.

-Yeah, we did.

We came up with Bone Appetit.

Tasty music, yeah?

Yes.

It's just a bit of fun, you know, entertain the local people.

It's all about enjoying yourself, I think.

# And as the years go by... #

He's a terrible player, really. No, Lewis is great.

He plays really musically, he's really free.

Got good chops, you know?

# You're going to see it's our destiny... #

Obviously, we are a lot better at the trombone than we are the singing.

-Yeah!

-Yeah!

'And here he is, our fourth competitor

'and final trombonist of the evening, Lewis Bettles.

'Lewis opens his programme with Defaye's Deux Danses, No 1.'

The thing about this piece is it goes very high,

it does test my range a lot.

But hopefully, I will be able to pull it off.

I'd say this is my most difficult piece,

the most challenging that I have got.

APPLAUSE

'Next, Lewis is going to play a movement from Handel's Concerto in F minor.'

APPLAUSE

'Handel's Concerto in F minor.

'To end, Lewis has chosen the 3rd Movement of Casterede's Sonatine.'

This one does test the stamina, because it goes on constantly.

It's very unusual and modern,

but it has a very... a slight jazz feel to it, as well.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

Trombonist Lewis Bettles giving us a fantastically bold

and varied programme there.

Let's find out what the judges thought of his performance.

So, what a reaction from the crowd!

Yeah, brilliant reaction. Very pleased with that.

You know, there were a few glips there, here and there,

but it's a performance and that's what happens.

We certainly felt that you were playing for the audience

-and having a very good time.

-Thank you.

-Bravo!

Thank you.

Some lovely expressive playing from Lewis at the beginning,

in the first piece, in his Defaye's Danses.

He really knows how to put a phrase together

and it was a really lovely, smoky, alluring sound.

There was some technical misfires in the rest of the programme

and I think he'll probably be a bit disappointed about that.

He had a nice style, sort of, jazzy vibrato style.

The Casterede, his final piece, he finished really well

and had a lot of energy.

Well, we've heard from 24 category finalists in the competition,

so far, and now our 25th, the very last to perform and last to compete

in this year's category finals is 18-year-old trumpeter Matilda Lloyd.

Tonbridge in Kent,

where 18-year-old Matilda Lloyd lives with her rather musical family.

There was always a bit of an instinct that, maybe,

music would be something to explore

because both my wife and I have done quite a lot of music.

One day, my husband got out his very beaten-up old trumpet and said,

"Have a look at this, see what you think."

In fact, here it is, and so, um, she just picked it up

and some people, I think, have a natural affinity

to being able to make a sound straightaway out of a trumpet.

He was completely amazed

because it was actually hard to get a sound out of the trumpet.

And she said, "Oh, I like this, can I have some lessons?"

And that was, really, the start of it.

Matilda is lucky enough to have an accomplished pianist for a mum

and she's always been on hand to help out.

I've always accompanied her.

I suppose, for exams and things,

it's something that we feel very natural doing together.

Let's just do the loud, high bit, in the middle of the Legende.

MUSIC: "Legende" by George Enescu

Virginia will accompany her daughter at the brass category final.

It's really helpful to have her there

because we can work together

and I can familiarise myself with the piano parts.

Can we just do the muted section at the end?

She's always been there to help, really.

Matilda is in the final year at her local grammar school.

As well as studying for four A-levels this summer,

she also finds time to conduct the school orchestra.

Right, guys...

I find it very hard to say no to things.

I really enjoy conducting my school orchestra,

it's sort of opened up a different side to music.

It's very exposed, standing up there at the front of an orchestra

and I think it's especially difficult with young people

because it needs to be fun all the time,

otherwise they're not going to come back next week.

Well done, everyone. That's sounding really, really good.

For ambitious Matilda there are no gaps in the schedule.

Like Isobel and Will,

she's another of tonight's category finalists who spends every Saturday

at the Junior Guildhall School of Music, in London.

And Matilda's day starts with a trumpet lesson from Andy Mitchell.

She's got a real suit of armour on now, that enables her to deal

with most of the trumpet repertoire with great assurance.

She comes in at eight o'clock on a Saturday morning

and we normally have a pretty good hour's work-out

and then she'll go on through the day with the brass band,

various groups that she's involved in, she seems to be tireless.

But it was joining the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain,

three years ago, that really helped develop Matilda's playing.

Just working with top conductors, top trumpet tutors,

hearing other people all playing to an amazingly high standard,

that has really spurred her on.

Recently, we played Mahler's Fifth Symphony at the Barbican,

in London, which was the most incredible experience of my life.

Some trumpet players regard playing Mahler as being

the zenith of orchestral playing.

The lights went down and I picked up my trumpet

and then I played by myself for about 11 bars.

MUSIC: "Symphony No 5" by Gustav Mahler

It was the most terrifying experience,

but exhilarating at the same time.

Not just the opening, which demands tremendous nerve and control,

but all the way through.

I've never heard it played better, really.

Music's always been at the forefront of my life, really.

I can't really imagine myself doing anything but music.

Given Matilda's ability,

she could really take playing the trumpet

to a very, very high level indeed.

APPLAUSE

And here is Matilda Lloyd,

the final competitor in these BBC Young Musician category finals.

Accompanied by her mum, Virginia and her sister, Verity, page turning.

First, we're going to hear her play Legende by Enescu.

The piece is very impressionistic.

It starts off very slow and quiet

and it's this sort of beautiful, lyrical melody and it ends

very reflectively with a cupped mute in it, which alters the sound.

APPLAUSE

To end this brass category final,

Matilda's chosen a real crowd pleaser,

the third movement of Peeters' Trumpet Sonata.

It's heavily influenced by Spanish flamenco dancing

and you can really hear all the castanets behind the music.

APPLAUSE

Well, the audience loved that.

What a remarkably confident performance from Matilda Lloyd,

bringing this brass final to a close.

Matilda's performance was very assured.

Some very technically secure playing, a sense of drama,

a sense of real panache in her performance.

Yeah, I think it was a complete performance

and possibly the most complete one we've had this evening.

Matilda played really well. She really performed her programme.

It was quite a traditional programme of trumpet repertoire.

Perhaps could have been a little bit more varied.

She played extremely well. A lovely, strong, fluid sound,

very, very secure in the high register

and I felt as though she was enjoying it.

Matilda finishing off our competition tonight

with such poise and control and such wonderful playing.

How are you feeling?

On top of the world, yeah. I had a lovely experience out there.

The audience was very responsive and very friendly

and I feel like I performed

and I just tried to convey my love of the pieces

and performing the trumpet, and I hope they got that.

Well, that's it - five fantastic performances

from our brass finalists tonight.

The sense of excitement is huge, the emotions are running high.

Only one of them can make it into the semi-final.

It's time for the judges to decide.

And making the decision tonight...

..trumpet player Andrew Crowley...

..trombonist Helen Vollam...

..and our general adjudicator Meurig Bowen.

So, Helen, what impressed you

about our first trombonist of the evening, Isobel?

Her sound was just stunning, really beautiful,

and even and just pure.

Lovely, lovely sound and it was a joy to listen to, actually.

She sounded so on top of everything.

Nothing seemed to present any difficulties to her.

She just floated throughout the range, it was great.

There was great character in the Guilmant, her last piece.

I really enjoyed her playing.

It's the first thing you notice about any brass instrumentalist,

is the sound, and it was very well produced.

The articulation and phrasing seemed to be very natural.

Will, our first trumpeter of the evening,

I think we have a showman in the making, if he's not already one.

Will had a lot of panache and flair.

He couldn't hide it.

He was obviously just really enjoying himself.

The other thing I do admire is what we call chops.

That's your muscles here.

-The stamina?

-The stamina.

Yeah, he didn't seem to suffer from that at all.

He just got stronger and stronger as he went along.

He's got that real cheeky trumpet player stereotype to the T.

His flugel playing was beautiful, really lovely.

Yeah, I particularly enjoyed that.

That was the high point for me. It sort of really came together.

-Lovely sense of phrasing and sound.

-And the intonation.

Perfectly stylish idiomatic playing, wasn't it?

-Beautiful.

-Like he's been doing it

-in dingy clubs for years.

-Yeah!

Ellena, really big, impressive trombone sound, I felt.

Yeah, strong player,

and her fortissimo playing was very impressive.

I mean, wow, for someone 14 years old, that's incredible.

And I think that Schumann,

a transcription of a clarinet piece, very hard to pull off.

Hmm, the legato passages in that -

very, very difficult on the trombone.

She did very well.

She was very in control of the instrument.

Slight reservation with intonation.

Every now and again it got a little bit high,

but I liked the programme.

A good, heavyweight programme for this type of event.

And then Lewis's programme, I had a sense that that was perhaps

the most ambitious programme of all this evening.

He obviously chose them because he enjoyed playing them,

but Defaye, the first piece, is very difficult, stamina-wise,

and a courageous choice.

He started well and then it was a little bit wobbly

and then he recovered really well and finished nicely,

but that's a tough piece to start a programme with.

Hmm. Well, funnily enough, I felt that he started it...

The first page or so was really very strong

and then he sort of fell off a bit.

He needed to get into it and let go a little bit more.

Our final performance tonight - Matilda.

Andrew, I think you had some reservations about the programme.

-You found it a bit samey.

-I did.

Well, the Honegger and the Enescu,

they're classic trumpet repertoire, recital pieces.

Together, in a way, they do the same sort of thing.

-Like having two main courses?

-Two main courses, yeah.

She can obviously play these pieces terrifically well.

-I was struck by her sound.

-Very punchy and bright, wasn't it?

-Yeah.

Lots of lovely definition.

A deep, quality sound she makes,

and finds it effortless going up into the high register.

It was all there.

I just wanted to hear something a little bit different.

Yeah, we didn't quite see all her shots tonight,

-to use a sporting analogy.

-Yeah, definitely not.

It's been such a thrill to witness these talented young brass players

all vying for the top spot,

-but there can only be one winner...

-APPLAUSE

..and here to announce who that is, Andrew Crowley.

I am very, very pleased to announce

a winner for the BBC Young Musician 2014

in the brass category...

..Matilda Lloyd.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well, what a delighted response to that announcement from our audience,

in particular, Matilda's family.

A real triumph for 18-year-old trumpet player Matilda Lloyd.

And let's not forget our other four brass finalists,

Lewis Bettles, Will Thomas,

Isobel Daws and Ellena Newton.

I think what we all noticed, really,

from the moment she came on and started playing,

was that she was really on top of it,

right to the end of her performance.

She was completely in control technically

and it was a very convincing, assured musical performance

and that's what we really went for in the end.

Matilda, you won it! You're holding the trophy. How does it feel?

Hasn't quite hit me yet.

It's very exciting.

I just went out there and just really enjoyed myself

and just wanted to share my love of trumpet playing

with everyone else, really,

so I was very pleased with how it went

and this is very exciting. It's a very lovely trophy.

-Congratulations.

-Thank you very much.

Your family must be so proud of you.

-I hope so.

-Bravo.

-Thank you.

-Bravo, well done.

She played with a lot of flair

and her sound within the first few notes that she played

really grabbed me. Throughout the whole programme that she gave,

she seemed very much in control.

She had a very, very high level of technical composure.

It just stood out for me.

-So this is it, this is the trophy?

-Yeah, it's lovely, isn't it?

-Fantastic. Isn't that beautiful?

-Don't break it.

Huge congratulations to Matilda Lloyd,

the winner of the BBC Young Musician 2014, brass category.

So now we have all our semi-finalists,

and what a line-up it is.

I'm really, really excited to see if I can give a better performance

and lift it up a notch.

I'm proud of getting here. I've watched it for so long.

It's so weird to think, "Oh, I'm actually here."

I would love to get through,

to go and play my concerto with the orchestra.

It means really everything to me.

I love having a live audience.

I really thrive off it and I love seeing them enjoying my playing.

It would be really fantastic to get through to the final.

There will be, obviously, some nerves,

but I feel confident that it's almost very likely not to go wrong.

The three performers who will progress to the final are...

Join us tomorrow night for the semi-final

of BBC Young Musician 2014.

Up for grabs are three highly prized places in this year's final.

Stay tuned for what promises to be

an exhilarating weekend of music making.

BOTH: Good night.