Winners of 2018 RNCM Entrepreneurship Award announced

Launched in 2016, the RNCM Entrepreneurship Award is an opportunity for RNCM students to win a financial award and mentor support for projects and businesses they are developing.

This year, a total of 29 hopeful students submitted business plans and project proposals. Ten students were put through to the final on March 20, where they pitched their ideas to a panel of external judges: Alex Connock (founder of MISSILE), James Sergeant (Institutional Business Manager, YAMAHA) and Carolyn Mellor (CEO Homes4u).

Judges will now act as mentors for the winning students, along with other specialists from North West businesses and arts organisations.

‘I was incredibly impressed by the amount of passion that was shown by all of the entrants and I’m really looking forward to seeing where they end up in five years’ time. It was a great afternoon and some really great entries,’ said Mellor.

Hannah McCabe, RNCM Fellow of Creative and Professional Practice, added: ‘The 2018 Entrepreneurship final has been extremely impressive. The panel were overwhelmed with the level of professionalism, creative ambition and artistic quality that the students demonstrated in their pitches. We were faced with an extremely exciting line up of diverse projects that are going to be a catalyst for exciting collaborations, artistic productions, business development and social entrepreneurial leadership.’

The full list of this year’s winners:

Sam Davies – Untold Orchestra: A for-hire session orchestra that brings the music of bands to life through a larger ensemble.

Dennis Tjiok – ODM Project: A touring multi-media event combining the world of church music with music for film & games, synth rock and electronic dance music (EDM).

Jasmine Allpress, Eliette Harris, Rosie Spinks – Larisa Trio Collaboration: A performance by the Larisa Trio with Excessive Human Collective, a contemporary dance group based in Leeds, in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of World War I.

Nina Pryce – Concert Series for Adults with SEN: A series of relaxed, mixed genre concerts for adults with learning difficulties and other special needs.

Two of last years’ winners have also been selected for the further development of their businesses:

Ellie Slorach – Kantos Chamber Choir: Founded in 2015 and comprising top choral singers from across the North West.

Sebastian Winter – Winter Score: A music publishing company which provides an online platform for young composers to share their musical works with instrumentalists and chamber ensembles.

4 April 2018