Pianist wins Young Musician of the Year

Pianist Ruby Lo is the winner in the 40th year of the Hawke's Bay Young Musician of the Year. Photo / Warren Buckland

Pianist Ruby Lo was named the Freemasons Hawke’s Bay Young Musician of the Year 2023 last Friday, following the finals concert at the Blyth Performing Arts Centre.

Eight talented young musicians competed this year in the annual contest organised by the Institute of Registered Music Teachers, with six selected as finalists.

The event gives advanced young students aged 15-20 studying piano, instruments and voice with registered teachers an opportunity to perform in a concert. This year was the 40th anniversary of the event.

The adjudicator was Auckland pianist and teacher Dr Justin Bird, who commented on the high standard of skill of the young musicians, who performed in front of an audience of approximately 160 people.

“It was a superb concert, with the audience commenting on the variety of music performed at such a high level by talented young people, making this concert a very special way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this competition,” said Mary McHattie, chairwoman of the Hawke’s Bay branch of IRMTNZ.

Lo, who turns 16 next month, played a programme consisting of a classical piece by Mozart, an impressionistic piece by 19th-century American composer Amy Beech, and a jazz-style piece by the contemporary Turkish composer Fazil Say.

She received the $1500 Gold Ribbon scholarship prize sponsored by Freemasons Hawke’s Bay, plus the Peter and Valerie Williams Cup.

Ruby has been playing piano for 11 years and is a pupil of Frances Te Weehi.

She is a Year 11 student at Sacred Heart College where she is the accompanist for the school choir, and has received the Student Accompanist Award in the Big Sing for the past two years.

Outside of school, Lo is a flautist and pianist in the Hawke’s Bay Youth Orchestra, and accompanist for the church choir at the local parish. She is tutoring music to three families and undertaking the IRMT Teaching Foundation Course.

Second place was awarded to Joseph Clinton, a baritone studying with Dianne Abraham. He received the Freemasons Silver Ribbon scholarship of $750 and the Walter and Beryl Gollner Cup. Clinton is in his final year at Havelock North High School and is one of the cultural leaders. He also plays guitar, electric bass, saxophone and piano, and is learning double bass.