Promising young performers (school age) from the Maidstone Music Festival 2025 were chosen to perform in the Maidstone Young Musicians Finals 2026.
Maidstone Young Musician 2026 Competition Winner: Anxo Garcia
Anxo was born in 2008 and started learning the piano at the age of five.
He also plays the organ and the violin. He currently studies music, history and English at the sixth form at Royal Russell School in Croydon and attends the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department on Saturdays, where he studies the piano with Mark Nixon.
Anxo performs regularly in concerts at his school, at the Academy and further afield, as both a soloist and a chamber musician. He has taken part in several masterclasses and in December 2023, Anxo passed his DipABRSM with distinction. He also took part in the ArtePiano Festival in Italy in July 2024 and 2025.
Runner Up: Jessica Powell
Jessica is 16 and is currently in year 12 at Chethams School of Music.
She is studying A-Levels in Music, Music Technology and English Language and is enjoying the musical opportunities that Chethams offers.
Her passion is playing the saxophone; she also plays the clarinet and piano. She is a Junior Member of Eynsford Concert Band when she is at home and enjoys rehearsals and concerts with them whenever she can.
Outside of music Jess enjoys going to live concerts, shopping and going to the gym. In the future she is unsure what she wants to do as a career but hopes that music will be a key component.
Young Musician of Promise: Emily Lu
Emily started learning piano at 6 and violin at 7, gaining grade 8 with both instruments at age 11.
She is working on her LRSM for piano and ARSM for violin with Nancy Litten. She started learning oboe at 12, achieving grade 5 just one year later at age 13, and is now working on her Grade 7.
She has performed piano in the Elgar room, Royal Albert Hall at the Star Prize Festival in May 2025. She was a member of the National Children’s Orchestra in 2022 and is also a member of the Kent County Youth Orchestra since 2022. Recently she has joined the Maidstone Symphony Orchestra as well.
Maidstone Young Musician 2025 Other Finalists
Ruby Terry
Ruby, 17, is a dedicated musician studying A-level Music and Psychology at Valley Park School. She has played the Tenor Horn since 2017 and began learning the French Horn in 2023.
Alongside her school studies, she attends the Junior Department of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where she learns with Richard Steggall.
Ruby performs regularly with ensembles including the Kent Youth Wind Orchestra, Kent County Youth Orchestra and the Maidstone Symphony Orchestra, gaining experience in both orchestral and sectional settings.
She plans to continue her musical training beyond sixth form and pursue a career in music.
Morihide Fujiyama
Keeley Prior
Maidstone Young Musician 2026 Adjudicator
- Alison Moncrieff-Kelly ARAM ARCM
