Winner of John Ireland Competition announced

Students at the University of Surrey’s Department of Music and Media have been competing in the annual John Ireland Competition.

L-R: Prof Tony Myatt, David Wordsworth, Dr Chris Mark, Zixuan Yu and Prof Vince Emery

University of Surrey student Zixuan Yu during her winning performance

This year, three students participated in the challenging piano competition showcasing the music of English composer John Ireland. John Ireland (1879-1962) was an English composer and teacher of music whose work included piano miniatures and songs with piano.

David Wordsworth, Director of the John Ireland Trust, announced the winner of the competition as Masters student Zixuan Yu who was awarded a prize of £500. Mr Wordsworth said: “Zixuan captured the style of the music brilliantly and made the complexities of Ireland’s music seem effortless in her performance.”

Professor Tony Myatt

Professor Tony Myatt, Head of the Department of Music & Media, said: “For students, the competition is an opportunity to rediscover and explore the music of a memorable English composer. The judges saw a very competitive display of musical talent on the night and all three participants gave insightful performances which demonstrated high levels of technical achievement.”

Professor Myatt was joined on the judging panel by David Wordsworth and Surrey colleagues Professor Vince Emery, Senior Vice-President, and Dr Christopher Mark, Music Programme Director.

The competition, which has been running for three years at the University, has seen fifteen performances of Ireland’s piano music and is kindly sponsored by Professor Vince Emery.