Ezo, age 9, from Duvand Academy, Brixton is having the time of her life. “This is the second time I’ve been to SLYO.” Although Eso is a Grade 8 violin, she says she didn’t find sight-reading easy before. “I was quite upset I couldn’t do it at first, but my tutor, Ivo, gave me lots of advice, like how I could improve by using more vibrato, more energy, or sometimes playing more slowly in the Waltz we’re doing. I can do it! He tells me clearly and I put it all together so I can play the piece more confidently.”

It’s good to see the enthusiasm shining through. Ezo says her conductor, Jonathan, tells her section rehearsal how to interpret the music, to feel the pulse. “It’s like a see-saw – when we have the melody we play loudly, but when the flutes have the melody, we play ‘piano’.”

There’s nothing up in the air about Ezo and her views – she’s very grounded. “I think people should come to SLYO because it’s a good place to make friends and to play music I like.”

Ezo and SLYO 2 will be in concert with SLYO 1 at 7pm today in the Holst hall at JAGS. SLYO 4 plays in concert at 3.30pm and SLYO 3 at 4.30pm, both in the JAPS Hall.

Happy Christmas to all 190 young people on the Christmas holiday course and to their indefatigable tutors!

Read more about SLYO, hosted at James Allen’s Girls’ School, at www.jags.org.uk

Alison Venn
21.12.2011