Rowan Pierce BBC Music Magazine June edition 'Rising Star' !

Rising stars have to be so very careful. They need to pace their 'rise' and make sure all is slow and steady. Many youngsters who are extremely talented and thrillingly capable just over cook their workload and wear themselves out, almost before they realise it. The ability to say 'no' when it is necessary and 'yes' when the time is right takes strong mental discipline and some caring support in the background. Soprano Rowan Pierce is a model of perfection in her build up and pacing of that all important career building technique, and has been since she was a teenager. She has mental and vocal control combined with quiet emotional passion which is a completely winning combination for her future. She is a true product of Betty Middleton via a long line of teachers from that redoubtable stable of singing - she was indeed Middy's last pupil and so benefitted from that priceless foundation, and then she spent a useful two years at the Junior Royal Academy before moving on to Miranda Wright who brought her to the top of her pre conservatoire 'game' and subsequently has used and made the most of her time as a Scholar at the RCM. 

She took advice, pondered it and came up with her own route to a career and as yet has kept on this strong road to a stellar future. Her head is firmly sitting strong on her delicate shoulders, and her feet are planted firmly on the ground, but her heart is absolutely bursting with music and song. She came to Song School for a couple of years, always improving, always performing beautifully, and always needing a push to come out of her comfort zone, and in between I have had the pleasure of masterclassing her and working with her at home in Saltburn. What a joy to teach her, and I feel lucky to have had her respect over the years.

The main purpose of this post is to show to young aspirants that patience, hard work, tenacity and the ability to listen are the foundations for a solid career. As singing teachers we have to take the natural talent as read - without that they are not a candidate for the job anyhow ! The aforementioned virtues are definitely not the decorations, they are the ESSENTIALS ! 

Rowan, you are the best role model I know, and many congratulations upon being a BBC Music Magazine 'Rising Star'.

Totally deserved, hard earned and Middy would have been over the moon.