A FULL house saw Canterbury student Alexandra Fletcher become the 11th winner of the Marlowe Young Musician of the Year Award. The 16-year-old cellist, who attends St Edmund’s School in Canterbury, collected the Kent Messenger Group Trophy from Kentish Gazette senior editor Bob Bounds.

Alexandra also collected a cheque for £150 from Lord Mayor of Canterbury, Cllr Fred Whitemore. The other finalists, who received £50 each, were Simon Langton pupil Laura Biron and Elizabeth Povey, from Sidcup, who was awarded the conductor’s prize from Paul Neville.

He had led the Kent Concert Orchestra during an exhilarating night of music during which all three showed amazing virtuosity. Laura got the judges’ vote “by a whisker,” said chairman Susan Wanless. She had played Elgar’s Cello Concero in E minor.

Elizabeth, a three-times finalist, rekindled memories of the classic wartime film Brief Encounter with Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor. Laura, who is principal clarinettist in the South Kent Youth Orchestra, opened the evening’s performance with Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto in A.

Master of ceremonies for the evening was presenter of many classical music programmes and former newsreader Richard Baker.