Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year

Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year

Sevenoaks Young Musician Competition is open to instrumentalists between the ages of 12 and 21 years, who are grade 8 standard and above. Two adjudicators, eminent in their own musical field, are appointed, who at the end of the Competition Day give a brief adjudication of each competitor and announce the prize winners. The adjudicators for the 2026 Competition are Roy Robinson and Eva Maria Doroszkowska.


This year the Sevenoaks Three Arts Festival is delighted to welcome Finchcocks Charity Limited as a sponsor of the Sevenoaks Young Musician Competition and for continuing support from Black Cat Music and Acoustics. Prizes to be awarded at the 2026 Competition are as follows: first prize –The 2026 Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year receives a cash prize of £1,000; second prize - Sevenoaks School Prize of £500 cash; and third prize – Richard Burnett Memorial Prize of £250 cash. In addition, the Sevenoaks Music Club will present prizes of £100 each to the second and third prize winners and at least one pianist will be chosen to visit the historic instruments from the Richard Burnett Collection, receive a lesson on the instruments and learn about the collection. Each year Sevenoaks District Arts Council presents the winner of The Young Musician of the Year Competition with a silver June Clements Memorial Medal. This medal is in recognition of June’s outstanding contribution to the musical education and development of the young people of Sevenoaks. The competition, organised by Sevenoaks Three Arts Festival, was begun in 1995 by June Clements, a long-standing member of the Festival’s Executive Committee. Although June died in November 1996, the Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year Competition remains a thriving memorial.

Competition Report 2026

SUNDAY 22 MARCH 2026

The Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year Competition took place at The Ship Theatre, Walthamstow Hall Senior School on Sunday 22nd March. 


Fourteen young instrumentalists attended for this all day event, ranging in age from 13 to 20, giving performances which included the piano, cello, violin, clarinet and flute. Each presented a 15-minute recital in front of an audience and two professional adjudicators, Mr Roy Robinson and Ms Eva Maria Doroszkowska.

The title of Sevenoaks Young Musician of the Year 2026 and First Prize was awarded to 16-year-old Inés Maro Burgos Babakhanian, a violinist, who has been a student at the Yehudi Menuhin School since 2020. 


For her winning recital, Inés Maro played the Adagio from Bach’s Solo Violin Sonata No.1 in G minor and Saint-Saens’ Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso. 


Inés Maro was awarded her Prize by Sevenoaks Mayor, Cllr Tony Clayton.

Second prize, the Sevenoaks School Prize, was awarded to 14-year-old violinist Giovanni Viola, who played works by Bach, Saint-Saens and Paganini. 


Giovanni is shown receiving his prize from Mr Tom Danby of Sevenoaks School.

Third prize, the Richard Burnett Memorial Prize, was awarded to cellist Kiki Skinner, age 16, who played works by Prokofiev, Nadia Boulanger and Gaspar Cassádo. 


Kiki is shown receiving her prize from Mayoress Gill Clayton.

The pianist chosen by the Adjudicators to visit the historic instruments from the Richard Burnett Collection and to receive a lesson on the instruments was Rinchen Posel, age 16. 


Rinchen played works by Rodion Shchedrin, Rachmaninoff and Debussy.


The annual Sevenoaks Young Musician Competition, an important prestige event for Sevenoaks, has become a prominent part of the musical life of the town. 


We are extremely grateful to our sponsors Sevenoaks School, Black Cat Music & Acoustics, Finchcocks Charity Limited; and to our other sponsors Sevenoaks Town Council, Sevenoaks District Arts Council, Sevenoaks Music Club and the Lydian Orchestra.