The Peter Chase Award: Simon Goff

The Peter Chase Award gives financial support to talented young musicians in Sowerby Music’s catchment area.

My year at Birmingham has been a very exciting one. It has been amazing becoming a part of an institute especially for music and being surrounded by musicians all the time. If anything, this has developed me as a musician the most. I have started learning with Alexandra Wood this year, who is a brilliant teacher and is helping me develop in all type of music, pushing me to think about everything in the music world not just typical violin playing. She has opened my eyes particularly to contemporary classical music in which my interest is ever growing and I am hoping to do some work shadowing with her in an education project she is doing with the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group and local schools next year. On top of my lessons with Alex I have learnt about formal harmony, as well as musicianship and the history of music up to the romantic period.

I have met lots of amazing musicians and have started playing in a quartet with three other first years. This is something we are all hoping to push more next year and hopefully start to gig together. Alongside my violin I have had bass guitar lessons off Fred T Baker, one of the most sought after jazz bassists in the country. There are lots of performance opportunities here and I am regularly playing with the sinfonia as well as my quartet and also taking part in small lunchtime concerts to test out pieces I have been working on.

The main thing that Birmingham is teaching me that I value the most is how to become a musician, not just a violinist. The people I am surrounded by and being taught by are showing me how to become a working musician and develop myself in as many areas as possible to ensure I am able to be diverse, which is such an important attribute in the music business today.

Alongside all my studies, Birmingham is a great city. It is very vibrant with music running through it at all times. I have been to many CBSO concerts this year at Symphony Hall and I plan to see even more next year. As well as classical music, the city has an amazing jazz scene as well as popular and underground music too.

Thank you for the help you have given me this year, it as meant I have been able to be here and without it I may not have been able to have experienced such an amazing year.