Trinity Sixth Form student Nathan appeared on national television last weekend, performing in the live auditions of BBC Young Musician 2026, one of the UK’s most prestigious competitions for young classical musicians.

The talented oboist was selected as one of just 40 young musicians to reach the live audition stage, from more than 260 entrants nationwide. It is a fantastic achievement and another milestone in what has been an exciting year for Nathan.

Accompanied by Trinity’s Musician in Residence (Pianist), Andrei Iliushkin, Nathan performed Four Personalities No. 4: Red by Alyssa Morris, impressing the judges with both his musicality and stage presence.

“I thought he had a wonderful stage presence,” commented one judge, while another praised the warmth and intensity of his playing. A third remarked: “I feel like there’s a lot of music inside him, you can see it in the way he presents himself.”

Although Nathan did not progress to the final stage, reaching the last 40 musicians in this national competition is a remarkable achievement.

Mrs Regan, Trinity’s Director of Music, said: “To reach the final 40 of BBC Young Musician is an extraordinary achievement, and we’re incredibly proud of Nathan. It’s wonderful to see his talent, hard work and musical personality recognised on a national stage. The judges’ comments really captured what makes him such a special musician.”

Nathan joined Trinity in the Lower Sixth and has made quite an impression on the school’s musical life. A member of Trinity’s Symphony Orchestra and Wind Quintet, he was selected for the prestigious National Youth Orchestra last year and was crowned Trinity Musician of the Year 2026 in May, following a beautiful performance of Vaughan Williams’ Oboe Concerto alongside an orchestra of Trinity students and professional musicians from the London Mozart Players.

For Nathan, who has been playing the oboe for seven years, music is about much more than performing. He has previously said, “It’s a motivator, a destressor, it can be whatever you want it to be at different times.”

Watch Nathan’s BBC Young Musician performance on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0032wth/bbc-young-musician-2026-2-live-auditions-part-2 at approx. 25 minutes into the programme.