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Here are some of our 2022-23 Music Centre Award holders and Scholars. Click on the links below to find out more about the students and learn how they have benefited from their awards and scholarships.
Further information about the UEA Music Centre Awards can be found on our Music Centre Award page.
Further information about the UEA Music Scholarships can be found on our Music Scholarship page.
2022-23 Music Centre Award holders:
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Yuchang Bian (CMP) - Violin
I'm Yucheng and I am a first year BSc Computing Science student at UEA. I am extremely happy to have received a Music Centre Award. I have been playing the violin since primary school and between then and now I have achieved Grade 8, have been a part of many musical groups and have attended numerous musical events (The County Youth Orchestra, Orchestrate! Project, Wymondham Youth Music Society, and Wymondham Music Festival, just to name a few!)
At university, I am honoured to be a member of the very professional UEA Symphony Orchestra. In addition, me and some fellow members have formed an ensemble in which we play fun repertoire, that deviates slightly from the incredible classics that the Symphony Orchestra play. In the near future, I hope to give more solo and group concerts and hope that we are able to further cooperation between UEA Music Centre's wonderful talents and the rest of the institution!
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Anna Bruce (PSY) - Voice
I’m Anna and I’m a first year Psychology undergraduate student. From a young age, music has been a huge part of my life. At age 10, I started learning guitar to support my vocals. During school, I was heavily involved in music and performing art. Outside of school, I began playing in local open mics and acoustic events around Colchester and Suffolk, performing covers and originals. More recently, I’ve played live on Actual Radio Colchester and have been a support act for The Anti-Loo Roll Brigade Festival in Colchester, where Scouting For Girls also performed!
As well as continuing to gig, I love being able to use music as a form of therapy. From a young age, I sang and played in care homes, and saw how music connected with individuals. I worked at a special needs school for a year before University, and I did music sessions with classes. I continue to volunteer for a special needs camp each summer called Camp JoJo, where I use music to engage and connect with the children and families. I think it’s something particularly special to be able to give back to the community, and see how music has such a special place in so many people's lives.)
Christopher Davis (MED) - Drums
I’m Chris and I am currently doing a masters by research at UEA, researching the effect a protein has on the ability of macrophages to carry out their immune function. I play drum kit, auxiliary and orchestral percussion, and have been playing for nearly 15 years now. I have loved being a part of the music community at UEA, with it giving me a chance to meet lots of wonderful people, who are now some of my closest friends. I have enjoyed playing drums and percussion in lots of Music Society ensembles such as Jazz Collective, Big Band and Concert Band, as well as the percussion ensemble. I am also vice-president of the UEA Music Society this year, a role which has been a pleasure to fill. I am also a part of UEA Symphony Orchestra’s percussion section. It has also been a joy to apply my musical abilities to orchestras and ensembles outside of the university environment. I have performed as part of the Pops Symphony Orchestra, Norwich Sinfonietta and City of Norwich Brass Band. However, these opportunities were still gained through friends I made whilst at UEA. I was also band leader for Minotaur’s Cabaret performance this year, organising the music, band, and getting to play drums for the performance. It has been a privilege to be able to perform with so many different talented musicians and I look forward to any opportunities I get with them in the future. This year, I used my award to fund a Sibelius subscription, which I used to arrange lots of the music for Minotaur’s Cabaret performance, a rewarding and fun experience. It has been a fantastic year, contributing to the wonderful experience I’ve had with music at UEA and in Norwich.
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Chloe German (PSY) - Voice (Soprano)
I’m Chloe and I’m a first-year Psychology student at UEA. I started singing lessons 13 years ago and have loved it ever since. I passed my grade 8 classical singing with distinction in 2021 and currently, I am working on my ARSM performance diploma for singing. My programme includes works by the famous French romantic composers Fauré, Chausson and Debussy, which is one of my favourite musical genres alongside Musical Theatre and Opera. Here at UEA, I am a member of the UEA Choir, which has allowed me to continue to keep music in my life whilst at university and make friends with other people who love music.
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Niklas Henderson (CMP) - Cello
I'm Niklas. I have been a cellist since the age of 7, and a cellist at the UEA since 2016. Since being at UEA, I’ve had the opportunity to play not only in a high-quality orchestra, but also play with smaller ensembles; from the early baroque works of Charpentier to 20th century works of Poulenc and Britten. UEA has opened doors of musical opportunities for me, for which I am very grateful. Outside of playing the cello, UEA also gave me the opportunity to learn musical directing and conducting, being the MD and conductor of the UEA Music Society Concert Band for 3 years, and helping MD and conducting the 2023 Cabaret with the Minotaur Theatre Company.
I’ve been a cellist within the UEA Symphony Orchestra since I joined UEA, and this was one of the factors for me coming to UEA in the first place. I’ve been lucky enough to play as principal cellist for the last 5 years, for which I am very grateful. 2023 marks my last year as principal cellist for UEA Symphony Orchestra as I have been given the opportunity to play principal cellist for the Norwich Philharmonic Orchestra, something I would not have been able to achieve had I not come to UEA.
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Natalie Jaromin (MED) - Percussion and Piano
I’m Natalie and I’m a 2nd year medical student at UEA. I’ve completed a formal 14-year musical education covering music theory and history, percussion, and piano in my hometown – Wroclaw, Poland. I’ve always been passionate about playing in ensembles and orchestras, and it has been an important part of my musical experience. In 2017, I performed in The Polish National Forum of Music, as a percussionist for the Symphony Orchestra conducted by Artur Wrobel. In 2019, I played at a national audition held by the Centre of Artistic Education, where my percussion duo was awarded a nationally recognised distinction. This year, I’ve taken on a committee role in the UEA Music Society, where I’m leading the newly formed percussion ensemble. I’ve been awarded the Music Centre Award and I continue to engage in the music life at UEA.
I regularly perform on percussion in the UEA Symphony Orchestra, UEA Music Society Concert Band and solo during the Music Centre Lunchtime Concerts. This year, I’ve also formed a duet with Matthew Rhodes, where we’ve been working on four–hand piano pieces and marimba duets.
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Marcus Leung (PSY) - Trumpet
I’m Marcus, second year Psychology student, secretary of UEA Music Society and I play the trumpet.
I’ve been playing the trumpet on and off for 15 years, under the tutelage of Danilo Delfin (former trumpet Hong Kong Sinfonietta) and Chris Avison (former principal trumpet Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra). I currently hold a Trinity ATCL diploma and am working towards a LTCL. My main focus is on classical solo and orchestral repertoire, but am also immensely interested in jazz.
I’ve been a regular member of the UEA Symphony Orchestra, Jazz Collective and co-lead the Brass Ensemble.
Outside university, I’ve been a participant of the European Intercultural Youth Orchestra and the International Music Masterclass Festival.
I’ve also participated in masterclasses with distinguished trumpeters including Andre Schoch (trumpet Berlin Philharmonic), Kristian Steenstrup (international soloist, trumpet professor) and the legendary Reinhold Friedrich (international soloist, permanent principal trumpet Lucerne Festival Orchestra).
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Helen Li (MED) - Voice (Mezzo-Soprano)
I’m Helen, a Medical student at UEA. Being at UEA has allowed me to explore myself musically beyond my expectations. My primary instrument is actually Piano and I started singing around 13 casually as a hobby, entered a few vocal competitions for fun and it all started from there. My passion for singing grew along with my favorite genres being K-pop, RnB and Ballads. Coming to UEA, I really wanted to develop my songwriting skills, so I decided to join the UEA Music Production Society, where I collaborated with many talented musicians and formed an electronic band called 3TERNALS. Since then, our tracks have been released on all platforms, played on the BBC radio and even had interviews. I’m currently Publicity officer for the Music Production Society, helping to organize collaboration workshops for aspiring artists and musicians in UEA. I’ve been a vocal judge for the CSSA Spring Festival for 2 years and I’m also a singer in the UEA Jazz Collective, where we perform fun gigs all over Norwich! It’s been an incredible musical journey with UEA so far, and I can’t wait to see where it will take me in the future.
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Angelina Li (HSC) - French Horn
I'm Angelina. I have been playing the French Horn since the age of six and have achieved a performance diploma. I am now a second year Physiotherapy student at UEA and during these two years I have played in the UEA Symphony Orchestra concerts. I also enjoy playing in different ensembles, such as brass bands, horn ensembles, and wind bands. Before coming to UEA, I studied in the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts for 6 years, where I had the chance to play in a large variety of repertoire.
Music has been and will always be, a big part in my life. I have enjoyed every minute of my music journey so far, and am looking forward to the future opportunities to make music.
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Emily Saunders (BIO) - Drums
I’m Emily, I study Biological Sciences and I'm currently in my first year. I’ve been drumming for 12 years and in 2022, I passed my grade 8 drum exam with a distinction. I enjoy playing live gigs in venues around Suffolk/Norfolk, as well as taking part in UEA's percussion ensemble, where I am learning that percussion goes much further than just the drum kit. I also enjoy guitar, piano and vocals. UEA's Live Music Society has enabled me to meet other likeminded and talented musicians, allowing me to further develop my skills in performing along side new people. I couldn't be happier being able to pursue my interest in music, at the same time as my studies and I look forward to developing in other instruments.
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Mikolaj Szajkowski (PPL) - Composer
Hi! My name’s Nick and I’m a third-year Politics student. My music journey started when I was about 14 and was gifted a very first version of Ableton Push. Coming from a musical family, it was always assumed that I would pick up a conventional instrument and master it throughout the years. Instead, I was so amazed by different electronic music producers that I have decided that it was the thing that I wanted to do. With my push and a trial version of Ableton, I have been self-thought ever since the beginning and, after almost a decade of producing, I’m finally feeling comfortable with my skillset.
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Sum Yin Natalie Wan (NBS) - Piano
I started learning piano at the age of 4. During my years of playing the piano, I was the accompanist in the school assemblies and the pianist in a piano quintet. I have had the opportunity to participate in chamber music ensembles, and enjoy playing music together with my partners.
In 2017, I achieved the Music Performance Diploma LTCL Piano Recital with distinction. In recent years, I have enjoyed teaching piano as a part-time job, hoping to enlighten my students through playing music too. Though my piano skill and interest in music are nurtured in Hong Kong, I am so excited to join the music society in the UEA and am currently a member of UEA Chamber Choir.
2022 entry Music Scholars
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Hannah Rollins (MED) - Clarinet
I'm Hannah. I’ve been playing piano for as long as I can remember, having been taught by my Dad from a young age. When I was 10, I started clarinet lessons at school and loved how that enabled me to play in lots of different bands. I’ve achieved ABRSM grade 6 in piano and grade 8 in clarinet.
I’m a first-year Medical student at UEA and have always found it important to play with different bands to relax in my free time, so I’m involved with the Music Society as much as I can be. I enjoy playing clarinet in UEA Symphony Orchestra and Clarinet Choir, I play alto sax in Big Band and baritone sax for Jazz Collective. I love the variety I get from playing different woodwind instruments and want to keep expanding this.