News

01.06.2021

The results of the 2021 CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition have been announced. Click here to read more.

Adjudicator Richard Bratby wrote: "In this, of all years, [the quartets'] achievement is an inspiration (and a tonic) to anyone who loves chamber music and believes in its future."


08.05.2021

This year's CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition took place at Wigmore Hall, spread over two long mornings on 7 & 8 May 2021.

Each quartet played Beethoven's Quartet in A major, Op. 18, No. 5.

The performances can be found here - and there is an online vote to award an Audience Prize.

Results will be announced here on 1 June 2021 at 9.00am.


17.09.2020

CAVATINA recently commissioned Classics Explained - a company that produces cartoon videos that introduce some of the various concepts, terms, and stories in classical music - to create a cartoon video for children in Key Stage 2, as an introduction to chamber music.


01.09.2020

CAVATINA is delighted to announce its support of a new programme of public concerts, the Bandstand Chamber Festival.


The festival will present a high-quality series of free, outdoor chamber music concerts. The performances will be part of the Love Parks Wandsworth campaign, which encourages residents to enjoy their local greenspace.


There will be four top string quartets, performing some of the greatest pieces of classical music to a socially-distanced audience in Battersea Park, using the beautiful Victorian bandstand as a stage.


Whilst the concerts are free to attend, because of social distancing measures, booking is essential.


14.05.2019

Competition Winners

The annual CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition took place on Monday 13 May 2019, kindly hosted by the Royal Academy of Music.

The adjudicator was Erica Jeal, classical music critic for the Guardian and deputy editor of Opera magazine. Five of the UK's music colleges took part, each playing the set work, Beethoven's Piano Trio in B-flat major, Op. 11.

The winners were the Mithras Trio (pictured above, left) from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, whilst in second place was the Mac-Talla Trio (pictured above, right) from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

The first prize is £500 per player and the offer of a paid, public concert. The second prize is £200 per player, donated by the Elias Fawcett Trust.


25.02.2019

CAVATINA U25s

Wigmore Hall is to become the new home for the nationwide activities of the CAVATINA Chamber Music Trust.

CAVATINA has introduced chamber music to over 130,000 young people since 1998, through its schools concerts, workshops, and a free ticket scheme, which allows young people aged 8 – 25 to enjoy chamber music without barriers to entry. Founded by Simon Majaro MBE and his late wife Pamela Majaro MBE, CAVATINA has worked in partnership with Wigmore Hall for over 20 years, and now forms a major part of the Hall’s ongoing commitment to new audiences and its strategy to make tens of thousands of tickets available to young people every season, either for free or for just £5.

John Gilhooly, Director of Wigmore Hall, said, “I am very grateful to Simon Majaro for trusting the Hall to continue CAVATINA’s wonderful work. Wigmore Hall is today accessible for anybody who wants to hear great music, and by becoming the new home for CAVATINA we reaffirm that vital message. I am very pleased to bring CAVATINA under our auspices and to continue its activities across the country.”

Simon Majaro MBE, Founder and Trustee of CAVATINA, said, “My dream is that every child in the UK will be given an opportunity to hear chamber music from a young age and learn to appreciate this wonderful art form. CAVATINA has brought me great joy over the years, and I am so happy that the legacy will continue through Wigmore Hall, one of the greatest centres for chamber music anywhere in the world.”


18.02.2019

2018 Postcard

The winner of the 2018 postcard competition - in which the CAVATINA Trustees choose their favourite pupil response following a CAVATINA School Concert - has been chosen: a pupil in Year 5 from Crawford Primary School, following a performance by the Magnard Ensemble in October 2018.


16.08.2018

We are delighted to announce that Trio Opal will be the CAVATINA-Trio-In-Residence at the Royal Academy of Music for the 2018-19 academic year. Read more about them here.

Trio Opal


15.05.2018

As adjudicator Fiona Maddocks said, "Beethoven came off rather well" after seven excellent performances of his Quartet in C minor, Op. 18, No. 4.

In the end, the Accendo Quartet from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama took first place, with the Dréme Quartet from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance winning the second prize, sponsored by the Elias Fawcett Trust.

Members of Accendo Quartet with Fiona Maddocks


09.04.2018

CAVATINA's latest newsletter is now available online, detailing the charity's work in 2017.


19.05.2017

The Behn Quartet has been awarded, for the second year in a row, the CAVATINA Fellowship at the Royal Academy of Music for 2017-18.

The quartet has enjoyed a tremendously successful year, including winning a recital at Wigmore Hall, thanks to the Maisie Lewis Young Artists' Fund and the Worshipful Company of Musicians. The recital will take place on Monday 19 February 2018.


15.05.2017

This year's CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition was won by the Nemesis Trio from Trinity Laban, with the second prize (donated by the Elias Fawcett Trust), going to the Grajner De Sa Trio from the Royal Academy of Music. The adjudicator was Stephen Johnson and the set work was Beethoven's Piano Trio in C minor, Op. 1, No. 3.


01.02.2017

CAVATINA's latest newsletter is now out, detailing the charity's work in 2016.


31.03.2016

RPS LogoCAVATINA Chamber Music Trust was shortlisted for the RPS Music Award for Chamber Music and Song in 2016.

The annual RPS Music Awards, presented in association with BBC Radio 3, are the highest recognition for live classical music in the UK. Awards, in thirteen categories, are decided by independent panels consisting of some of the music industry's most distinguished practitioners. The awards honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. This year's RPS Music Awards celebrate outstanding achievement in 2015.

www.rpsmusicawards.com


20.02.2016

Pamela Majaro PortraitIt is with great sadness that we report the death of one of our two founders, Pamela Majaro MBE.

Pamela's family asks for no flowers, please, but donations will be welcomed instead by CAVATINA Chamber Music Trust.

You can donate online using PayPal, CAF Bank, or electronic transfer. Alternatively you can establish a standing order or discuss arranging a legacy with Tom Hancox: tom@cavatina.net or 020 3601 2978.