South Bank honours

NINE young flautists from West Cornwall joined more than 700 students from around the UK to take part in the National Suzuki Concert at London's South Bank Centre.

Suzuki flute teacher Sarah Hanley from St Erth directed the 70-strong national flute group, at the Royal Festival Hall concert last month.

The show, hosted by Jamie Crick from Classic FM, was part of a weekend of music-making, which celebrated the musical achievements of young people.

Sarah said: "It was especially wonderful to see and hear the musicians play so beautifully, without the music in front of them, to a packed 3,000-seat auditorium."

Ellie Thomas, Katrina Barton, Verity Williams, Chloe Payne, Amy Roskilly, Abbie Wall, Rosie Pentreath, Iona Jordan and Katie Lower are all students of Sarah Hanley.

Three of the youngsters – year seven students at Cape Cornwall school, Amy and Chloe, and Verity, a year five student at St John's School, Camborne, were chosen to play solos in the Purcell Room.

Sarah, Cornwall's only Suzuki flute teacher, studied with the great music educator Shinichi Suzuki in Matsumoto, Japan and was the first European to graduate as a Suzuki flute teacher.

The Suzuki method is an educational philosophy which strives to create high ability and beautiful character in its students through a nurturing environment.

She teaches the Suzuki flute method in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the US.