Bedales music scholar begins National Youth Orchestra residencies

After playing four concerts and travelling 844 miles, Block 4 (Year 10) student Elliot Cundy’s first of three residencies with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (NYO) came to a close on 8 January.

Music scholar Elliot, who passed his ARSM Diploma Double Bass exam with Distinction last year, successfully auditioned for NYO – celebrated as “the world’s greatest orchestra of teenagers” – in September 2022. He is one of 12 double bassists in the extended orchestra of 160 young people aged 13-19.

Led by the distinguished Alexandre Bloch, Music Director at the Orchestre National de Lille, Elliot’s residency began with five days of intensive rehearsals at the University of Warwick, before the first concert at the Barbican, London, on 5 January, followed by a further three concerts at the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham (6 January), Warwick Arts Centre (7 January) and Liverpool Philharmonic Hall (8 January).

The programme comprised Four Sea Interludes from the opera Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten, Rift by Anna Clyne and Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss, which famously featured at the start of Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The young musicians were rewarded with glowing reviews in the national press, with The Guardian praising the orchestra for “visible delight in music-making” and The Telegraph giving the concert five stars for a “highly accomplished performance” which “set the Barbican ablaze”.

Elliot will now complete two further residencies with NYO during the 2022/23 academic year, culminating in a BBC Proms performance in the summer.

Elliot said: “Whilst the residency was incredibly busy and challenging, the musical experiences that I had would never have been gained at my age elsewhere. I can’t wait for our next tour which will see us perform at the Royal Festival Hall in April.”

Bedales Director of Music Doug McIlwraith commented: “We are exceptionally proud that Elliot won a place to play double bass in the NYO this year. Hard work is the bedrock of any achievement, so well done to Elliot for securing this opportunity by sheer hard work and dedication to his art.”

National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (NYO) | Music at Bedales Senior