A packed afternoon of woodwind performances delighted discerning audiences at St Leonard’s-in-the-Fields Church on Friday 20 March, as students from across Perthshire and beyond competed in a series of graded and open classes under adjudicator Heather Nicoll.

The programme began with the Level 5 Clarinet Solo, featuring competitors from St John’s Academy, Blairgowrie High School and Craigclowan School performing Hornpipe by Cecilia McDowall. This was followed by the Grade 5 Woodwind Solo, where Ellie-Louise Forbes impressed on flute with I Feel Pretty by Leonard Bernstein.

Attention then turned to saxophone, with both Level 5 and Advanced classes showcasing strong entries from schools including Morrison’s Academy, Perth Academy and Blairgowrie High School. The afternoon continued with high-level performances in oboe and flute categories, including advanced repertoire such as The Watermill by Ronald Binge and John Rutter’s Suite Antique.

Glenalmond College musicians featured prominently throughout, with multiple appearances across flute and oboe classes, while Morrison’s Academy and Blairgowrie High School were also well represented.

The later sessions highlighted open classes, including flute, oboe, clarinet and alto saxophone solos, with demanding works by composers such as Francis Poulenc, Saint-Saëns and Milhaud.

The afternoon concluded with the prestigious Open Woodwind Recital Class, competing for the Rotary Club of Pitlochry Trophy. Clementine Stevenson of Glenalmond College delivered a varied programme featuring Telemann, Mozart and Rutter.

Winners of each class were to be announced following adjudication.

Results

Strong performances across the woodwind sections saw several young musicians achieve high marks in a competitive afternoon of classes.

In the Level 5 Clarinet Solo, Finlaggan Wightman of Blairgowrie High School took top honours with 85 marks, ahead of Maciej Dlugolecki (St John’s Academy) and Illyria Hanrahan (Craigclowan School), who shared 79.

Ellie-Louise Forbes led the Grade 5 Woodwind Solo with an impressive 87 on flute. Saxophone classes also produced standout results, with Ben Homoncik (25th Stirling Boys’ Brigade, Dunblane) winning the Level 5 class with 88, while Joshua Escott of Perth Academy matched that score to top the Advanced section, followed by James Carr of the Community School of Auchterarder on 85.

In the Advanced Oboe Solo, Cecilia Lu of Glenalmond College secured first place with 84. Glenalmond College also featured prominently in the flute categories, where Savva Seredov achieved 87 to win the Advanced class, ahead of Emma Braham (Morrison’s Academy, 85) and Alexis Laverton (84). Esme Davies, also of Glenalmond, won the Open flute class with 83.

Savva Seredov added another placing in the Open Oboe Solo, scoring 79, while Zoe Currie of Morrison’s Academy took the Open Clarinet title with 75. In the Open Alto Saxophone class, Dexter Fraser of Larbert High School scored 84 to win.

The highest mark of the session came in the Open Woodwind Recital Class, where Clementine Stevenson of Glenalmond College delivered an outstanding performance to win the Rotary Club of Pitlochry Trophy with a score of 94.