Ross High School violinist Thomas Bull has been named East Lothian Council Young Musician of the Year 2025.
The annual Young Musician of the Year Competition, organised by East Lothian Council's Instrumental Music Service, took place at St Mary's Church in Haddington on Thursday 20 March.
Nearly 90 talented secondary school musicians participated in their respective school competitions, vying for the chance to represent their school in the East Lothian Council Young Musician of the Year 2025 final.
Solo and ensemble performances
The evening began with 16 talented soloists showcasing their skills in the Young Musician of the Year Soloist Competition. The second half featured captivating performances from the Brass, Woodwind, Guitar, and String ensembles.
Thomas Bull, an S6 student at Ross High School, was declared the winner by adjudicators Katrina Marzella-Wheeler, an award-winning brass instrumentalist and conductor, and guitarist, festival director and conductor Michael McGeary. Thomas’ outstanding performance earned him the opportunity to represent East Lothian at the Scottish Young Musician of the Year Final, to be held on 25 May at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow.
Most promising young musician
Two runner-up awards were presented to pianists Emily Atkinson (S5), also from Ross High School and Luca Ronchi (S6) from Preston Lodge High School, in recognition of their excellent performances on the evening. Additionally, the Haddington Concert Society generously continued its tradition of awarding a prize for the Most Promising Young Musician, which this year went to Steinar Christiansen (S1, Rosehill High School) for his charismatic guitar performance.
East Lothian Provost Councillor John McMillan presented Steinar with his award. Councillor McMillan said: “I was delighted to attend this wonderful event. The standard of performance was incredibly high and all of the young people were a credit to themselves, their families and their schools. As patron of the Haddington Concert Society I was proud to present the prize for Most Promising Young Musician and I’m sure we will see Steinar at future year’s events. I was pleased to be able to congratulate all of the young people on the evening and I wish them every success with their musical journey. On a personal note, I am also delighted that a fellow ‘wee boy from Macmerry’, Thomas, will represent East Lothian when he attends the Scottish Young Musician of the Year Final. We all have every confidence in him.”
'Huge privilege'
The Senior Woodwind Ensemble was also awarded the most commendable performance on the evening and will start preparations for their entry to represent East Lothian in the Scottish Young Musicians Ensembles Competition for 2026.
Cabinet member for Education and Children’s and Family Services Councillor Fiona Dugdale said: “It was a huge privilege to attend the final of the Young Musician of the Year competition final. The musical performances were fabulous and included voice and many different instruments and musical genres. Each and every musician illustrated the depth of their commitment to developing these wonderful performances which connected with the audience. It was a truly joyful evening of music and a celebration of these wonderful young musicians.”