Martin James Bartlett awarded Benjamin Britten Piano Fellowship
Wednesday 30 September 2020
Outstanding pianist Martin James Bartlett has been announced as the recipient of the Benjamin Britten Piano Fellowship for 2020–21, awarded by the Royal College of Music (RCM) and generously supported by the Philip Loubser Foundation (PLF). This Fellowship, named after the renowned composer and RCM alumnus, is awarded to an exceptional pianist who has been accepted on to the RCM’s Artist Diploma course.
Martin, who studies with Professor Vanessa Latarche, said: ‘It is an honour and a privilege to be the Benjamin Britten Piano Fellow. I am extremely grateful to the Philip Loubser Foundation for their generous support. It’s very exciting for me to be associated with a composer whose music means so much to me’.
24-year-old Martin James Bartlett is an exclusive recording artist with Warner Classics. His first disc for Warner was released in May 2019 and explores the theme of love and death in works by Bach, Liszt and Schumann. Martin James Bartlett’s early public success was as the winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2014. This led to engagements with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as recitals across the country. He made his BBC Proms debut in 2015 performing Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In the following year, he performed at Her Majesty The Queen's 90th birthday thanksgiving service, which was broadcast live on BBC One from St Paul's Cathedral. During this period, he received support from the Young Classical Artists Trust (YCAT). Martin graduated from the Royal College of Music with a Masters in Performance in 2020 and will embark upon the Artist Diploma course in September 2020.
The Benjamin Britten Piano Fellowship is awarded by the Royal College of Music in association with the Philip Loubser Foundation, which supports young talent in dance, music and theatre. The Fellowship commemorates Britten’s achievement as a pianist, as well as his years as a student of the RCM and one of its most famous alumni. Michael Loubser, Creative Director of the Foundation, says: ‘The PLF is honoured to be associated with the prestigious Benjamin Britten Fellowship, which has helped to launch the careers of several previous Fellows. We are delighted that Martin James Bartlett is the latest recipient. I am sure this award will give him a good opportunity to expand his musical horizon’.
