Singing Teaching in Paradise: Exam results, festival success and the big day looms !

The exams came and went, and all the candidates sang very well ! Infact I heard the results yesterday and they are stunning ! Lots of distinctions and very high marks. Given that P was doing her Advanced Recital Certificate, I was positively ecstatic with her marks ! As one of that lovely group of ladies who jovially call themselves 'Ann's Ancients' she has proved that age is no barrier to high achievement ! The youngsters achieved fantastic results - all gaining distinctions ! What a set of figures to enjoy !

Myself, N, A and S all left the paradise Islands on Thursday to travel to Saltburn for our annual jaunt to the lovely Music Festival in this most beautiful Victorian town where I was born ! This year my old pupil Miranda brought a number of her superb young singers and so there was much beautiful and gloriously technical singing as well as healthy numbers in the classes !

Good competition is what we all need from junior classes at a local festival, to the Cardiff Singer of the World which is currently on at the moment. Competition spurs us on and makes us have to up our game and work harder. All of this is positive, and my youngsters did very well against tough odds. The thing is, I always consider miranda's pupils, and Sara's pupils as partially my own, and want them to do well, as much as I want my own to succeed.

A had an early knock back in her Operatic Aria class. She was nervous and very tense and so her throat closed and made those notes, already tricky due to a fragile top E, not work as well as usual. She was really disappointed with herself, but after a pep talk from moi, spouting the usual words of tough encouragement, she pulled herself together and things got enormously better ! S had her first experience of a music festival and acquitted herself so very well gaining confidence as the day went on, and really doing herself justice ! N sang beautifully and was successful but very tired by the end of the day. She goes from strength to strength, and combined with the fatigue of recently moving out of home, I was very pleased with her day's work !

A's recital programme was fantastic, relaxed and easy and full of character, she had made a huge journey since 10.30 in the morning, and the same with S, for a first timer she sang a gorgeous yet small recital with real aplomb and a sense of style, and N's Operatic Aria, the nasty Miss Baggott's aria from Britten's The Little Sweep was majestic, she pushed herself to new levels.

They came home to gorgeous Littlebeck with five trophies between them and ready for a Chinese meal and a relaxing evening ! All three of them made me very proud indeed !

Their car load left this Yorkshire paradise around 9.30am this morning and I was left here for a gloriously peaceful 24 hours. Now to bed in readiness for the start of the BIG week.