Page 39 - RPS Awards 2023 Coverage Book

Inspiration: Torbay Symphony Orchestra
The Devon band’s busy schedule includes chamber and orchestral concerts
(sometimes of specially commissioned works), as well as an impressive commitment
to music education in schools.

Instrumentalist: Abel Selaocoe
The cellist, vocalist, composer and communicator (and double 2023 BBC Music
Magazine Awards nominee) made great waves in 2021-22, with his superb debut
recording Where is Home and willingness to take risks and cross genres.

Abel Selaocoe won the Instrumental Award for his genre-straddling debut album Where is Home

Large-scale Composition: Gavin Higgins: Concerto Grosso for Brass Band and
Orchestra
Premiered by the Tredegar Town Band at the 2022 BBC Proms, Higgins’ large-scale
orchestral work is, in its composer’s words, a ‘love letter’ to the brass band world.

Opera and Music Theatre: Theatre of Sound / Opera Ventures: Bluebeard’s
Castle
This poignant reimagining of Bartók’s opera takes place in modern suburbia – and
replaces the original’s secrets and deceptions with a happy marriage clouded by
dementia.

Series and Events: Leeds Piano Trail
This innovative sculpture trail-cum-street concert series saw several sculptures,
created from recycled pianos, placed around the city alongside artist- and
community-decorated playable pianos.