Piano masterclass with Libby Burgess


Talented pianists on our Thrive programme recently took part in a day of masterclasses with the incredible Libby Burgess! The day saw five musicians take part in 45-minute masterclasses each, working on repertoire of their choice, including Chopin, Mozart, Liszt, Rachmaninov and Bach.  

These masterclasses were attended by an invited audience of younger pianists from our Thrive programme, along with parents and carers. Between the masterclasses Libby led a set of bite-sized workshops for the full group covering all things piano, including the physicality of playing, performance communication, and, preparation and well-being. 



Well-known on concert stages across Britain, Libby shared valuable insight into the life of a professional musician with a question-and-answer session led by longstanding Young Sounds supporter Julia Roth.  

We were also delighted to welcome back one of our Thrive Alumni, Alex McChrystal, who we supported for five years during their teenage years.  Now in their final year at Guildhall, Alex supported Libby to deliver the bite-sized workshops and shared their experiences with current Thrive participants.   

In 2017, age 15, Alex took part in a chamber music project, with Libby as their mentor, as part of our partnership project with the Southwell Music Festival. Click here to find out more.



The day was filled with enthusiasm and everyone left glowing from the experience. One young musician commented:

“I really enjoyed the friendly atmosphere, and priceless knowledge from Libby about the art of practice and how to deal with nervousness before the performance. The main thing I’ll take away from the experience is understanding that everyone can make mistakes, but the main thing is to enjoy the performance.” 

We’d like to thank Libby, Julia, Alex, National Opera Studio and all the young people, parents and carers who made it a special day. 


Thrive in 2025


Masterclasses are just some of the opportunities available to young people on our Thrive programme. Last year we held a violin masterclass with Young Sounds Patron Thomas Gould and we look forward to providing more experiences like this in the future.

Help a young person apply

If you are, or if you know, a young musician, aged 5-17, with bags of musical potential who could benefit from financial support and musical opportunities like this, Young Sounds UK could help!  Visit www.youngsounds.org.uk/thrive to find out more!

Support our work

In order to develop and expand our work we rely on the committed generosity of hundreds of supporters. Will you join them so that more young people have the chance of a musical life? Visit https://www.youngsounds.org.uk/help-us/ to find out more.

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