# BBC Young Musician of the Yeart



## DavidA

Anyone been following BBHC Young Musician 2018? Watched the keyboard final last night and was astounded by the standard. One lad of 16 played Gaspard de la Nuit by Ravel and Mazeppa by Liszt and didn't even win! I was absolutely amazed at the talent. Anyone else got a comment?


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## DavidA

Just heard the winner - a 16 year-old girl - playing Prokofiev's second piano concerto. Completely gobsmacked! Surely the composer would have been amazed at a teenager playing this fiendishly difficult piece with such assurance


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## CnC Bartok

She was unbelievable, wasn't she?! Lauren Zhang. My suspicion would be the composer would have been pretty annoyed with her, his original intention having been to compose something virtually unplayable!

The expression on her face throughout was remarkable. Just completely immersed in the music. It's one of my favourite PCs, by the way, as well!


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## Frances Metcalfe

*Young Musician of the Year, But Too Advnaced For Her Years?*

I was utterly astonished at Lauren Zhang's performance, so assured and immensely physically strong and mature beyond her sixteen years. I couldn't help being very sad too, wondering where her childhood had disappeared to, given how many hours of practise each day is required to meet such an exacting standard. Is that sacrifice too great? Is it healthy? And, should she ever have children of her own in the future, what is she going to expect of them? Nevertheless, her playing reduced me to tears and I'm conscious that I'm the beneficial recipient of tireless sessions alone with her instrument. A difficult one, don't you think?


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