2025 Syllabus

A copy of the 2025 Syllabus can be downloaded here, it’s also in web page format below.

The Burton upon Trent, Competitive Music Festival is a Member of The British and International Federation of Music, Dance, and Speech.

Burton upon Trent Music Festival aims to provide a platform to amateur performers to enable them to perform and receive a professional adjudication about their performance.

Management Team 2024/2025

PRESIDENT: Coral Gould MBE
VICE PRESIDENT: John Gould
CHAIRMAN: Sharon Plummer LLCM
VICE CHAIRMAN: Patricia Thorpe
TREASURER: Chris Moss
FEDERATION FILES SECRETARY: Anne Andrews
ENTRIES SECRETARY: Vacant
TROPHIES SECRETARY: Patricia Thorpe
STEWARDS SECRETARY: Jean Edwards
PUBLICITY SECRETARY: Sian Plummer
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS: Robert Adcock, Carol Brittle Kahn, Christine Eales, Katie Robb

Message From the Chairman

Thank you for taking the time to look at the Burton Music Festival 2025 syllabus. You will be pleased to know that the entry fees and accompanist fee remain the same as 2024. We continue, as ever, to give the competitors a platform to perform and be assessed by professionals in the Music field.

The first point to note for the 2025 Festival, is the move back to the 1st Sunday in March. The 2025 Festival will be held on 2^nd March, at the Brewhouse Arts Centre. 2024 was a very successful Festival and we hope that 2025 will be the same. Much of the syllabus for 2025 remains the same as last year apart from the following change: We will no longer be able to accept entries to the main vocal classes from applicants who in part, or full, teach Singing. We have however included another Vocal Class for “Vocal teachers and professional Singers “, this also includes Full time student singers.

· We are continuing to offer 6 solo Piano classes for Beginner grades to Grade 8. Competitors must have achieved the grade they are entering or be working towards that grade.

· Ensemble classes will remain restricted to between 3 and 12 participants in each Ensemble, to avoid large gatherings and excess numbers of audience members.

· Entries to the Jazz class are welcomed from competitors singing “Jazz Standards” from the 1920’s to 1939 or something from a more modern composer. Jazz is a very individual interpretation of a song and again we are also offering a choice to entrants to use a backing track or piano accompanist in this class.

· The Junior Duet Class is split between under 11s and 12-17 years to recognise the differing capabilities of the age groups. The lower age group are not expected to sing in harmony whereas the upper age group would be expected to demonstrate a basic level of harmonisation.

We welcome 3 new adjudicators and hope they will enjoy the day and offer much encouragement and advice for the participants.

Once again, we are fortunate to receive sponsorship from wonderful supporters without whom, the Festival wouldn’t be what it is. However very sadly one of our long time sponsors, Keith Gould, passed away in September. This unfortunately leaves us looking for further sponsorship for 3 classes. If you or anyone you know would be willing to provide some financial support towards the awards for those classes, we would love to hear from you, please contact us on burtonvocalfestival@gmail.com

As always, we welcome your suggestions for any part of the Festival before during and after the day. We strive to make it as welcoming and as inclusive as possible whilst retaining our high standards and ethics.

If you have any questions about anything, please email burtonvocalfestival@gmail.com and one of the Team will contact you.

Thank you again and we look forward to receiving your application.

Sharon Plummer

Chairman

Management Team

2025 Timescales

Saturday 28^th September 2024	Online applications open Apply Here
Saturday 18^th January 2025	Deadline for online applications, including choice of pieces to be performed.
Saturday 18^th January 2025	Deadline for application payments. Applications will be denied if any payments are not received by midnight.
Saturday 8^th February 2025	Deadline for submission of music for accompanist. To be submitted in PDF format, by email to: burtonvocalfestival@gmail.com
Saturday 8^th February 2025	Deadline for submission of backing tracks for Pop and Jazz classes. These should be submitted in MP4 format and further information of the provision of these files will be provided to entrants after application.

Adjudicators 2025

Bryan Husband – Vocal Adjudicator

GRSM (Hons), ADWCMD

Bryan studied at the Royal College of Music, London, and The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff. He has homes in London and Worcester, having spent some years abroad, performing in continental opera houses.

He is a Vocal Professor at Trinity Laban Conservatoire, runs a private practice, gives workshops (‘belting’ to audition techniques), performs, adjudicates, and works as a ski instructor! Performances include tv and radio broadcasts, opera, oratorio and recital.

In 2005, Bryan was selected to become an adjudicator for The British and International Federation of Festivals. Adjudication has since taken him to many Festivals around the UK and Ireland, and also to Hong Kong, Gibraltar and Trinidad & Tobago.

In 2012, Bryan was invited to become a music examiner; his most recent examining work was in Malaysia for classical music, and Thailand for Rock and Pop.

Frith Trezevant – Vocal Adjudicator

Frith is a teacher with over 30 years’ experience of teaching singers of all abilities and over a wide age range. She competed successfully in competitions and festivals in Auckland, NZ, her home town, until she was 16.

In 1981 Frith went to Adelaide, South Australia and studied on the Diploma of Performing Arts (Opera) course, and in 1982 moved to the UK to study with David Harper. She won an Ian Fleming Award to help with her studies and was awarded three scholarships for courses with the Britten-Pears School. Frith performed in concert, opera, oratorio and street theatre in London for the next 7 years.

She became a stay-at-home mum for the next few years, but ran a Colourstrings Music Kindergarten while the children were small. Frith is indebted to the British Voice Association and the courses that it has run over the last 20 years or so for introducing her to voice science, and she is pleased to have been a Director of the BVA from 2010 to 2015.

She was a Singing Teacher with the Junior Dept of the Royal College of Music from 2018-2023 and has been Teacher, Teacher in Residence and Auditions Panelist with the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain. She teaches singing at St Paul’s Girls’ School in Hammersmith and runs a thriving private practice.

Frith enjoys writing about singing and has had articles published in Music Teacher, in BBC Music magazine and in Communicating Voice, the magazine of the BVA and she graduated from the Royal College of Music in July 2023 with an M Ed in Music Education.

Nadia Hinson – Piano Adjudicator

GRSM(Hons),LRAM,LTCL

Nadia graduated from the Royal Academy of Music after having studied the violin with Manoug Parikian and the piano with Jean Harvey. She was awarded first prize for Aural studies and her quartet won the string chamber prize in her final year. Nadia was the featured soloist playing the Lark Ascending and Bach double violin concerto for the Benslow Trust at St. James’ Piccadilly having been awarded an instrument to continue her studies. Other concertos in her repertoire include performances of the Mendelssohn, Mozart no.3 and 4, Haydn in C, De Beriot, Viotti, and works by Beethoven and Finzi.

She began her career as a freelance violinist playing in many London based orchestras. As an accompanist to singers and instrumentalists, she met her musician husband Nigel and together they founded the Veloce Ensemble (string quartet and clarinet quintet) touring throughout Britain performing specially commissioned works for that genre. Appearances at festivals and stately homes inspired a regular concert series at Belvoir Castle and Holmepierrepont Hall. As a recitalist throughout the East Midlands, Nadia has been highlighted in festivals and BBC features locally.

She is also currently the owner and director of the Hinson School of Music in Nottingham, and is an International examiner for the ABRSM, an adjudicator for The British and International Federation of Festivals, and a member of the Royal Society of Musicians.

Nadia has recently been appointed a senior consultant for the LEAD Academy trust, involved in developing music departments in schools in Nottinghamshire. She has set up composition workshops to inspire children to explore feelings and ideas through music and is a mentor for the Trust to develop self-confidence and communication through learning and performance.

Nadia has also recently been appointed to the ABRSM jazz examining panel.

Classes 2025

General Information

Ages refer to age of entrant as of 1^st March 2025.
Trophies are given to be kept for 1 year and are to be returned to the Trophies Secretary before the 2026 festival.

Class Number and Name	Song Type	Max. Song Duration	Sponsor and Award Name	Prize	Entry Fee
Class 1: 10 Years and Under	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Heron Video Trophy and The D&C Eales Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 2: 11 to 14 Years	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Albion Trophy and The Caroline Owen Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 3: 10 Years and Under	Show or Musical Film song 1970 – present	Max. 3 mins	The Mellow Dramatics Trophy and Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 4: 11 to 14 Years	Show or Musical Film song 1970 – present	Max. 3 mins	The Vadis Insurance Brokers Trophy and Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 5: 15 to 16 Years	Show or Musical Film song 1970 – present	Max. 3 mins	The Murray’s Funeral Directors Trophy and Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 6: 15 Years and Under	Classical song	Max. 3 mins	The Eric Reynolds Trophy and The Ivy Smith Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 7: 16 to 18 Years	Classical song	Max. 3 mins	The Tim Lawrence Trophy and The Nick Lawrence Award	£50	£7.50
Class 8: Open Folk Song	Traditional, Unaccompanied	Max. 3 mins	The Anne Leatherland Trophy and The Kate and Brian Robb Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£8.50
Class 9: Open Foreign Language	Foreign Language	Max. 4 mins	The Darquise Bilodeau Trophy and The Barbara May Award	£50	£8.50
Class 10: 17 Years and Over	Show or Musical Film song 1970 – present	Max. 4 mins	The New Era Trophy and The JASS Award	£50	£8.50
Class 11: Classical Operatic or Oratorio Aria	Classical song	Max. 4 mins	The Mason Family Trophy and The Friday’s Friends Award	£50	£8.50
Class 12: English Classical	Art Song	Max. 3 mins	The Carol Brittle-Khan Trophy and Award	£50	£8.50
Class 13: Gilbert and Sullivan	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Mike and Karen Thompson Trophy and Award	£50	£8.50
Class 14: Recital (three contrasting pieces)	Own choice	Max. 12 mins	The Thornley Trophy and The Festivities with Friends Award	£50	£11.50
Class 15: Duet 11 Years and Under	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Keith Gould Trophy and The Andrew Last Award	£50	£11.50
Class 16: Duet 12 to 17 Years	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Rachel Gilman Trophy and The Alice Rose Bridal Award	£50	£11.50
Class 17: Duet 18 Years and Over	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Keith Gould Trophy and the Steven Mansfield Award	£50	£11.50
Class 18: Duet Musical Theatre Open	Show or Musical Film song	Max. 3 mins	The Crescendo Vocal Trophy and Sharon Plummer Award	£50	£11.50
Class 19: Junior Ensemble *Ensemble classes limited to between 3 and 12 participants*	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Edwards Electrical Trophy	TBC	£11.50
Class 20: Open Ensemble *Ensemble classes limited to between 3 and 12 participants*	Own choice	Max. 4 mins	The Burton Musical Theatre Company Trophy and Award	£50	£11.50
Class 21: Jazz Solo *(optional backing track)*	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Syd Jones Trophy and Award	£50	£8.50
Class 22: Pop Song *(Backing Track in MP4 format)*	Pop Song	Strictly 4 mins	The Edwards Electrical Trophy and The ‘Jenny’ Award	£50	£8.50
Class 23: Open 1940 – 1969 Musical Theatre	Show or Musical Film song	Max. 3 mins	The Coral Gould Trophy and The Thorpe Award	£50	£8.50
Class 24: Beginners Piano	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The David Mansfield Trophy and The Excel Music Schools Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 25: Grade 1 – 3 Piano	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The March Trophy and The Mike Mear & Margaret Jolland Award	1st – £25 2^nd – £15 3^rd– £10	£7.50
Class 26: Grade 4 – 5 Piano	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Music with Carol Trophy and Award	£50	£8.50
Class 27: Grade 6 – 7 Piano	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Edd Thorpe Trophy and Award	£50	£8.50
Class 28: Grade 8 and Above Piano	Own choice	Max. 3 mins	The Festival Trophy	TBC	£8.50
Class 29: Vocal Teachers, Professional Singers and Full Time Vocal Students	Own Choice	Max. 4 mins	TBC	£0	£10.00

Overall Winners

Winners from each class compete for the Junior, Senior and Piano Overall Winner awards. The Overall Winners will be selected by the adjudicators.

Junior Overall Winner

Winners from classes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 15, 16 & 19

The BADAC Trophy and the Little Theatre Company Award of £50

Senior Overall Winner

Winners from classes 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22 & 23

The Coral and John Gould Quaich and The Coral and John Gould Award of £100

Piano Overall Winner

Winners from classes 24, 25, 26, 27 & 28

The Nannette Mansfield Award, donated by Denis Mansfield, of £50

Special Awards

The adjudicators will be responsible for awarding the special awards.

The Mabel Millin Award

Awarded to the most promising vocalist under the age of 21. The receiver of this award does not need to have been placed in any of their classes.

The Marilyn Baker Award

Awarded to the most promising female vocalist throughout the competition. The receiver of this award does not need to have been placed in any of their classes.

The Robert Adcock Award

Awarded to the most promising male vocalist throughout the competition. The receiver of this award does not need to have been placed in any of their classes.