On the evening of 9 March the Haberdashers' Musician of the Year brought students, staff and Members from across the country together for a highly enjoyable evening of musical entertainment at Haberdashers' Hall.

Competition Format

Competitors. Each school was invited to send one competitor from each of their senior schools, making ten competitors in total. Competitors must be individual performers but they may bring an accompanist of their choice.

Judges. Dame Jane Glover DBE, Freeman, acted as Head Judge, along with Alessandro Fisher, Freeman and opera singer, and Adrian Bradbury, cellist. 

Prizes. The Haberdashers’ Musician of the Year trophy was kindly donated by the Glover family.

The Performances

Jose Gaza (Clarinet) - Haberdashers' Hatcham College
Una Lagrima Sulla Tomba Dell'immortale Rossini (composer Cavallini)
Accompanist – John Human

Kira Lee (Violin) - Haberdashers' School for Girls
Baal Shem: Il Negun by Ernest Bloch
Accompanist – Bethany Phillips 

Tobey Danes (Piano) - Haberdashers' Crayford Academy
Liebestraum - Franz Liszt

Hazel Lau (Flute) - Monmouth School for Girls
Georges Enescu’s Cantabile e Prest

Joel Assouan (Piano) - Haberdashers' Adams
Franz Liszt La Campanella from Six Grades études de Paganini, S.141

Leandro Landolina (Flute) - Haberdashers' School for Boys
Concertino by Chaminade
Accompanist - Isabel Mair

Aziza Lagzouli (Piano) - Haberdashers' Knights Academy
Chopin: Nocturne op.9, no. 2

Rowan Davies-Moore (Singer) - Haberdashers' Borough Academy
Being Alive (Sondheim) & Waly Waly (Britten)
Accompanist – Emily Segal

Marco Ho (Piano) - Monmouth School for Boys 
Ballade no 1 in G minor - Fryderyk Chopin 

Mia Holt (Baritone Saxophone) - Haberdashers' Abraham Darby
Schwarzer Tanzer by Nigel Wood
Accompanist - Nykko Gregorie

Some more about the judges

Dame Jane Glover DBE, Freeman

Acclaimed British conductor Jane Glover has been Music of the Baroque’s music director since 2002. From 2009 until 2016 she was Director of Opera at the Royal Academy of Music where she is now the Felix Mendelssohn Visiting Professor. She was recently Visiting Professor of Opera at the University of Oxford, her alma mater.  Jane Glover has conducted major symphony and chamber orchestras, and opera companies, in Britain, Europe, the United States, Asia, and Australia.

Alessandro Fisher, Freeman

Alessandro was a member of the BBC New Generation Artists Scheme between 2018 and 2021. An Associate Artist of The Mozartists, he won First Prize at the 2016 Kathleen Ferrier Awards.  He made his Salzburg Festival debut as Lucano L’Incoronazione di Poppea and his operatic engagements have further included performances with Garsington Opera, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, The Grange Festival and the Royal Opera, London. 

Adrian Bradbury

Adrian was principal cello in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain before winning scholarships to Churchill College, Cambridge (where he read Veterinary Science and Music) and then to the Royal Academy of Music. After further study in Berlin he developed an international career in chamber music as the cellist in Composers Ensemble (winners of the Royal Philharmonic Society Chamber Award, 2002), Jane's Minstrels, Trio Gemelli, Touchwood Piano Quartet and Chamber Domaine, giving world premieres of solos and chamber works.

It was a truly wonderful evening of sublime music played by an extremely talented group of young people - the judges had a very tough job to do. As the Master said in his summing up, "you are all winners tonight". But there had to be one overall winner...

... and the winner was

Leandro Landolina with his magic flute. Many congratulations, Leandro, on an outstanding performance! 

And congratulations to all our young musicians, with many thanks for entertaining us all so beautifully - you are all winners.