Scottish Young Musicians (SYM), Scotland’s leading festival of music competitions and leading music education charity, is returning for 2025 to give young people across the country the chance to compete for the titles of Solo Performer of the Year, Ensemble of the Year and Brass Ensemble of the Year. Participation in this career-enhancing competition has been offered to every Local Authority in the country as well as independent schools, in the hope that more young people than ever before will take up the opportunity to perform and take part.
These competitions give young people from all socio-economic backgrounds a life-changing experience, as well as the confidence to continue to compete at the highest level, providing them with a unique opportunity.
In a new addition to the competitions, those entering Ensemble of the Year and Brass Ensemble of the Year will have the chance to compete in a live final for the first time. The chosen entries will be submitted via video recording to be judged by a panel of adjudicators who will select six ensembles to go on to compete at the National Final in the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow on Sunday 9th March 2025 with the deadline of 1st January 2025 for video entries.
Since 2024, SYM have offered local authorities support to host their own Junior Competition and this is being continued to 2025, giving the country’s youngest musicians experience in performing in front of an audience and competing with their peers.
Solo Performer of the Year is open to all young musicians who go to school in Scotland, whatever age or standard. Each local authority will select a regional finalist, with all of them hosting local and regional heats across different schools to decide who will represent their area at the National Final. Musicians can enter through their school music teachers and a finalist will also be selected from Scotland’s independent schools with the National Final taking place at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow on Sunday 25th May 2025.
The career-enhancing competition is supported by almost all of the major music institutions in Scotland, with previous involvement and prizes from Scottish Opera, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, The Cumnock Tryst and more.
As part of a focus on bringing the competitions’ benefits to areas of deprivation, SYM partners with Young Sounds UK to help young musicians in Scotland find funding to further their goals. Through the Awards programme, young musicians can apply to access £100 – £2,000 funding towards their musical costs and gain access to Young Sounds UK’s programme of musical opportunities.
Chair of SYM, Alan Kerr said “…SYM is helping thousands of young people develop confidence, resilience, and teamwork skills through the power of performance, and remains the only national school music competition in Scotland, accessible to every young musician regardless of their background. …Receiving no government funding, SYM relies entirely on donor support and pro bono support from Scotland’s leading music institutions who are determined to support not only music education but the development of Scotland’s future generation.”
Irene Brown
Radio Summerhall Arts 