Radio 3 - New Generation Artists

Jennifer Pike (2008-2010)

Watch Jennifer Pike's interview
Watch Jennifer Pike perform César Franck's Violin Sonata (1st movement)

Biography

"...Britain's foremost young fiddler: the 15 year old Jennifer Pike stepped on to the platform and delivered the prelude (and gavotte en rondeau) from Bach's Third Partita with perfect poise and assurance, her instrument sounding clear and strong..."
(The Independent)

In 2002, at the age of twelve, Jennifer Pike became the youngest ever winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition, following her performance of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. Public recognition of her unfaltering success continued at the start of 2008 when Jennifer was honoured with The South Bank Show / The Times Breakthrough Award, in acknowledgement of the impact that she made throughout the arts during 2007.

Recently named as a BBC New Generation Artist for 2008-2010, Jennifer has already performed with many of the UK's major orchestras and has given recitals around the UK, Europe, the Middle East and the USA. At the age of fifteen she made her BBC Proms début in the Royal Albert Hall and has since made recital débuts in London's Wigmore Hall and Purcell Room to great critical acclaim. Past engagements include performances with London Mozart Players, City of London Sinfonia, European Union Chamber Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, with the London Symphony Orchestra at the Gramophone Awards Ceremony and with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at the Vienna Festival, televised throughout Europe.

During the 2007/8 season, Jennifer made her debut with the Philharmonia in addition to two engagements with the BBC Symphony and concerts with the BBC Scottish Symphony, English Chamber Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Manchester Camerata, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Tampere Philharmonic. She also gave recitals at Wigmore Hall, the Harrogate Festival and at Town Hall, Birmingham for the BBC.

The 2008/9 season includes return engagements with the BBC Scottish Symphony, Philharmonia Orchestra, Tampere Philharmonic and Manchester Camerata, in addition to débuts with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, City of Birmingham Symphony, Auckland Philharmonia and Brussels Philharmonic. She will also make her Australian debut with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, premiering and recording Andrew Schultz's Violin Concerto. Her chamber music engagements this season include recitals at the City of London Festival, Delft Festival and London's 02, the former Millennium Dome, and at The Bridgewater Hall. In January 2010 she will make her Japanese debut in a Tokyo recital for the Musashino Cultural Foundation.

At the age of 16 she was awarded a postgraduate scholarship to study with David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, winning the Derek Butler London Prize in 2007. In 2005 she won the prestigious Manoug Parikian Award administered by the Musicians' Benevolent Fund. She is also grateful for the support of the Philharmonia/Martin Scholarship Fund.

Jennifer plays a Matteo Goffriller violin of 1708. It is currently made available to her by the Jennifer Pike Violin Trust, which is being established by Nigel Brown to raise the funds needed to secure the instrument. Please visit Jennifer's website for information about how to contribute to the Trust.

"...Pike's growing maturity as an artist was immediately apparent..."
(The Daily Telegraph)

"...Equipped at 16 with phenomenal tuning, pace, control of timbre and range of dynamics, she brought the house down..."
(The Independent)

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