BBC Young Musician is a televised national music competition broadcast biennially on BBC Television and BBC Radio 3. Originally BBC Young Musician of the Year, its name was changed in 2010.

The competition, a former member of the European Union of Music Competitions for Youth (EMCY), is open to UK-resident percussion, keyboard, string, brass and woodwind players, who are eighteen years of age or under on 1 January in the relevant year.

History The competition was established in 1978 by Humphrey Burton, Walter Todds and Roy Tipping, former members of the BBC Television Music Department. Michael Hext, a trombonist, was the inaugural winner. In 1994, the percussion category was added, alongside the existing keyboard, string, brass and woodwind categories. The competition has five stages: regional auditions, category auditions, category finals, semi-finals and the final. The biennial competition is managed and produced by BBC Cymru Wales.

To date, there have been 22 winners, the youngest being 12-year-old Peter Moore. In 2014, the BBC Young Musician Jazz Award was introduced; Alexander Bone, a saxophonist, was the inaugural winner.

As a result of the success of the competition, the Eurovision Young Musicians competition was initiated in 1982. The first edition was broadcast live from Manchester's Free Trade Hall. The presenter was Humphrey Burton and the producer was Roy Tipping. The winner of BBC Young Musician often went on to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Young Musicians.

For the tenth edition of the competition in 1996, a series of recitals given by past finalists were broadcast on BBC Two in a late-night timeslot. The competition celebrated its 30th anniversary in May 2008 with a documentary narrated by Gethin Jones on BBC Two and with former participants speaking to 2006 winner Mark Simpson for Young Musicians Grown Old on BBC Radio 4. BBC Four's documentary BBC Young Musician: Forty Years Young was aired on 3 April 2018. To celebrate the 40th anniversary, the first BBC Young Musician Prom was held at the Royal Albert Hall and broadcast live on 15 July 2018. Presented by Clemency Burton-Hill, the concert featured performances from past winners and finalists alongside the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Andrew Gourlay.

The 2020 competition was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, after proceeding as normal up to and including the filming of the semi-final. The five category finals were broadcast in May and June 2020, with broadcast of the semi-final and recording of the final postponed, at first until the autumn, and then into 2021. The Jazz Award final was broadcast as planned on 22 November 2020, having been recorded at Cadogan Hall in the absence of an audience. The grand final was recorded in April 2021 – also without an audience – and broadcast on 2 May, preceded on 30 April by the delayed broadcast of the semi-final.

The 2022 competition was deferred from spring to early autumn and was broadcast in October; the semi-final stage of the competition (introduced in 2010) was discontinued for that year. For the 2024 competition, a new format was introduced: category finals were replaced by two quarter-finals each featuring six musicians. A total of six musicians progress to the semi-final, and then three to the grand final.

Broadcast Regional heats were televised in 1978; a round before the category final was aired until 1994, and again in 2002 and 2004. From 1978 to 1984, all programmes were broadcast on BBC One until it was moved to BBC Two in 1986; however from 2002 to 2012, the majority of the competition rounds were moved to BBC Four, with only a highlights/preview show (in 2002 and 2004) and the final aired on BBC Two. Previously, additional programmes were broadcast as part of each competition alongside coverage in some later years on BBC Radio 3.

In 2010, highlights of the new semi-final stage were also broadcast on BBC Two. In 2014, all stages of the competition moved to BBC Four, and the category finals and the grand final were broadcast on BBC Radio 3. For the 2018 competition, Radio 3 broadcast a 30-minute concert starring each competitor in the week before their category final aired. For 2024, the grand final will be broadcast on BBC Two for the first time since 2012 in the form of highlights of the concerto performances, whilst the full concert programme is to be aired on BBC Four and BBC Radio 3.

Hosts The following have hosted stages of the competition:

Classical Award

Humphrey Burton (1978–1992) Ernest Lush (1978) 1978 regional finals Mary Marquis (Scotland) Alun Williams (Wales) Marian Foster (Midlands and East Anglia) Margaret Percy (Northern Ireland) Jeremy Carrad (South and West of England) Jane Glover (1986, 1988) J Mervyn Williams (1990) Edward Gregson (1990 final) Paul Daniel (1992 final) Sarah Greene (1994) Christopher Warren-Green (1996) Sarah Walker (1996) Stephanie Hughes (1998–2004) Iain Burnside (2002–2004) Alistair Appleton (2004) Howard Goodall (2006, 2010 final) Gethin Jones (2008) Aled Jones (2008) Nicola Loud (2008) Clemency Burton-Hill (2010–12, 2014 final, 2016, 2018 final) Josie d'Arby (2012, 2016 final, 2018, 2020, 2022 final) Alison Balsom (2014, 2016, 2018 final) Miloš Karadaglić (2014) Anna Lapwood (2020) Jess Gillam (2020 final, 2022, 2024) Alexis Ffrench (2022) Petroc Trelawny (2026)

Jazz Award

Josie d'Arby (2014, 2016, 2018) Soweto Kinch (2014) Joe Stilgoe (2016) YolanDa Brown (2018, 2020, 2024) Jamz Supernova (2022) Huw Stephens (2022, 2024)

Related awards

BBC Young Dancer

A competitive dance version, BBC Young Dancer, was launched in October 2014 and first awarded in May 2015.

BBC Young Jazz Musician A separate competition for a Jazz Award was first held during the 2014 season, with the final broadcast on BBC Four in the week after the classical final. In 2016, the Jazz Award final was episode 7 of the 8-part BBC Four series, broadcast two days before the classical final. In 2018, the jazz competition had an upper age limit of 21 and the final was recorded for BBC Four in November as part of the London Jazz Festival; it was broadcast on 25 November, six months after the main final.

Winners Classical Award Year Name InstrumentPlace of study Winning ageNotesFinals venue 1978 Trombone Royal College of Music 17 Orchestra member at The Royal Opera House Covent Garden and occasional solo performancesRNCM Concert Hall, Manchester 1980 Oboe Royal Academy of Music 18 International soloist and principal oboe of the Britten Sinfonia. Founder of the Britten Oboe Quartet and the Haffner Wind Ensemble. Has performed at numerous BBC Proms. 1982 Piano Chethams School, University of Oxford, Royal Academy of Music 18 Has since developed a reputation as a teacher, adjudicator and singer as Anna CrookesFree Trade Hall, Manchester 1984 Clarinet Sevenoaks School, Cambridge University 18 Solo clarinettist with a repertoire of over 40 concertos 1986 Violin Royal Academy of Music 17 Has since led the European Union Youth Orchestra and won the Young Musician of the Year award 1988 Horn Watford Grammar School for Boys 14 Youngest winner of the award at the time. Has performed at numerous BBC Proms. Principal at London Philharmonic Orchestra. 1990 Violin Royal Academy of Music, Juilliard School 15 Has appeared in multiple British orchestras and several abroad St David's Hall, Cardiff 1992 Piano St Edmund's School, Canterbury, Royal Academy of Music, London University 14 Became the youngest person at the time to win the award. Has since released numerous recital discs. Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow 1994 Cello Royal College of Music, Heinrich Schiff 15 Became the first British winner of the Eurovision Competition for Young Musicians. Has performed with several British orchestras. Barbican, London 1996 Violin Yehudi Menuhin School, Royal Northern College of Music, Herbert von Karajan Centre 18 Won second prize at the Luxemburg International Violin Competition. Performed in orchestras in Europe, the United States, South Africa, The Middle East and Zimbabwe. Symphony Hall, Birmingham 1998 Percussion Royal Northern College of Music 19 First percussionist to win the award. Has performed with an array of ensembles including the 4-MALITY Percussion Quartet. Principal Percussionist with the CBSO. Former Head of Percussion at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Waterfront Hall, Belfast 2000 Cello Chetham's School of Music, Eastman School of Music 18 A performance at the Royal Albert Hall made him the youngest soloist to appear on the first night of The Proms. Bridgewater Hall, Manchester 2002 Violin Chetham's School of Music, Guildhall School of Music & Drama 12 At the time, was the youngest ever winner of the award. Has appeared as a soloist with British orchestras and performed at other BBC events.Barbican, London 2004 Violin Yehudi Menuhin School 16 Performed with the BBC concert orchestra and recorded her debut album with Daniel Harding and the London Symphony OrchestraUsher Hall, Edinburgh 2006 Clarinet Royal College of Music, Oxford University, Guildhall School of Music & Drama 17 Was the Principal Clarinet of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Started studies at the Royal College of Music, but dropped out to go to the University of Oxford. The Sage, Gateshead 2008 Trombone Chetham's School of Music 12 Youngest winner of the award. Co-principal at London Symphony Orchestra.Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay 2010 Piano Purcell School, Royal College of Music 16 Nowadays known by the name of Lara Melda 2012 Cello Royal College of Music 15 Her debut album 1948 won the 2018 Edison Klassiek Award; the following year she won BBC Music Magazine's Newcomer of the Year Award. The Sage, Gateshead 2014 Piano Royal College of Music, Purcell School 17 He appeared in 2012 competition, at the age of 15, as a finalist in the keyboard category Usher Hall, Edinburgh 2016 Cello Royal Academy of Music, Trinity Catholic Comprehensive School 17 He holds the ABRSM Junior Scholarship to The Royal Academy of Music. Has played in the Chineke! Orchestra, as well as the JRAM Symphony Orchestra, and played chamber music with the Kanneh-Mason Piano Trio and the Ash String Trio. Barbican, London 2018 Piano Birmingham Junior Conservatoire, King Edward VI High School for Girls 16 Played the fiendishly difficult Prokofiev Concerto no.2 and was commended for her 'inherent musical intelligence' and 'exceptional technical ability'. Won first prize at the 15th Ettlingen International Piano Competition in 2016. First Asian winner of the competition. Symphony Hall, Birmingham 2020 Percussion Chetham's School of Music 17 Member of the China Youth Percussion Orchestra and has won percussions competitions in China, New York and Tokyo.Bridgewater Hall, Manchester 2022 Percussion Royal Birmingham Conservatoire 17 He has played with the National Children's Orchestra, National Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Brass Band. 2024 Piano Collingwood School, Eton College 17 His performance of Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto in the Final was described by judge Alexis Ffrench as "world class". Bristol Beacon

Jazz Award