At the beginning of term, on 14 and 15 September, two girls from Lower Fourth and three girls from the Sixth Form, along with the piano teachers, headed northwards to hear the Final rounds of the Leeds International Piano Competition over the weekend.

The girls were enthralled by the performances they heard of famous piano concertos by Beethoven (No’s 4 & 5), Prokofiev (No’s 2 & 3) and Rachmaninoff’s Third, given by pianists from Australia, the USA, China, Italy, Switzerland and Latvia.

They particularly enjoyed meeting the soloists in the competitors’ area whilst we awaited the announcement of the awards, and sought out their autographs and photos. Our seats in the choir behind the orchestra made witnessing the action on stage all the more poignant. On the Saturday, the girls were able to explore the historic mansion at Nostell Priory and very much enjoyed the day out.