NEW ROOTS COMPETITION

New Roots Finals April 13^th 2008

Having sent a c.d. in at the very last minute, we were delighted when Trevor’s 14-year-old son, Ben, was told that he had made the finals of this national competition.

Held in St Albans, the event ‘s aims were to showcase young talent. Ben was the last act of the morning, and very different from the previous performers, who were mostly traditional players, with one or two singer songwriters. After lunch the older contestants performed. Once again, there was a lot of traditional music, with some singer songwriters.

The judges for both categories were: Lynne Heraud, Andy Stafford, Eliza Carthy, and Pete Coe.  They spoke to each contestant offering advice, and constructive criticism.  Mostly, the criticism was to do with timing, as most had run over the allotted ten minutes.  There were no outright winners, but prizes of spots at Folk Clubs and Festivals will be allocated to the lucky ones.

Ben performing at Leigh Folk Festival - the first of two gigs that he has won.