Welcome to the West Wight Arts Association
End of Season concert May 9th 2026
One of the musical events of which West Wight Arts Association is most proud is its biennial Bursary Award Scheme for young music students on the Island, the culmination of which took place in a concert on Saturday May 9th at the Memorial Hall, Freshwater.
Nine out of the 20 young Island musicians who had been given an award gave an appreciative audience a real treat. Their ages ranged from 12 to 18 and they included two singers, William Kent and Jazzmin Salter, three pianists, Joseph Pontin, Toby Temple and Kayleigh Tran, two violinists, Angelina Ortega and Keziah Brown, one cellist, Isaac Hood and one alto saxophonist, Jack Kilby.
The concert was introduced by WWAA Trustee Pam Wedgwood, who had organised the Bursary, and three of them were accompanied on the piano by fellow Trustee Richard Wilkins.
West Wight Arts Association then served wine and cheese, and the audience, the musicians and their families had an opportunity to socialise.
The next season, WWAA’s 80th, starts on September 12th 2026. Season Tickets at £125 for all nine concerts are available from Jackie Warner on jaxwarner@btinternet.com or 01983 755825, or forms can be downloaded from our ticket page. Tickets for individual concerts at £17.00 (£3.00 for students and children) will be available after August 4th from our ticket page or Totland Parish Office on 01983 756028. Details of all the concerts are on the website.
Where There’s Muck There’s Brass
We are pleased to share a recording from our December concert featuring A4 Brass performing Where There’s Muck There’s Brass, a piece commissioned by West Wight Arts Association from Pam Wedgwood.
The performance was filmed by Alan Benns and captures this lively and characterful work beautifully.
A4 Brass have also asked us to share details of their newly released CD, now available from their website:
https://www.a4brassquartet.co.uk/shop/albums
Shadows on the Wall
At her concert on 7 March Margaret Fingerhut gave WWAA audiences a memorable encore in the form of Shadows on the Wall by leading UK composer Pam Wedgwood. Many people have since commented on the power and emotional effect of the piece, and now Pam herself has recorded it.
She says that the piece 'is an expression of sadness and hope as we find the world in a difficult place'. Her instructions to performers are: 'The repeated one-beat notes in the left hand represent heart beats. Play this from the heart!' Listen to this, and we think you'll agree Pam does just that.
Thank you to the photographers credited at the end who provided the striking images of Ukraine featured in the video.
Dementia Carers’ Friendship Group
The collection at the end of the concert by Amiri Harewood for the Dementia Carers’ Friendship Group raised £518.62!
We'd like to take this opportunity to thank the audience for their great generosity.
Thomas Luke releases debut album - See Me Now
The pianist Thomas Luke is having his first album See Me Now released on January 16th and has asked us to let his loyal audience on the Isle of Wight know.
CDs are now available for pre-order at this link: https://www.thomasluke.co.uk/shop
All CDs will be shipping as soon as the album releases in a couple of weeks.
See Me Now, Thomas Luke's debut album, features eight original compositions. The album was recorded in September 2025 at Studio Falkland Lodge on a Venables & Son Custom-218 grand piano, affectionately known as “Maurice.”
The music moves between intimate solo piano and expansive, multi-tracked sound worlds, with subtle production and natural textures woven throughout. Resisting easy genre definition, the album draws freely from classical, jazz, ambient, minimalist, and other influences, whilst not being confined by them.
Deeply personal in nature, See Me Now stands as a statement of intent and a reconciliation of identity, shaped through curiosity, honesty, and a desire to create something deeply human.
Do support our young IoW star!
Steinway Grand Piano
The Steinway ‘B’ grand piano in the Memorial Hall, Freshwater, which belongs to West Wight Arts Association, is available for hire by arrangement with WWAA.
Please check the availability of the Memorial Hall with the administrator Debbie McAteer on memohall1960@gmail.com or 01983 752956 in the first instance and then email Richard Wilkins on wilkins.r@btinternet.com for further details.
West Wight Arts Association Bursary
West Wight Arts Association has a long tradition of promoting promising young musicians through our bursary scheme, which we run every two years. The next one will be held in February/March 2028.
To encourage talented and aspiring local music students who would welcome financial support to further their studies, a sum is set aside every two years to provide bursaries for young Islanders aged between 11 and 21 years at the time of auditioning.
Some comments about previous concerts
“The concert was one of the best I have been to anywhere, the gut stringing added to their brilliant interpretation of the Mozart which was thrilling.”
“Absolutely wonderful that music of this quality is available in (dare I say it) sleepy old Freshwater. I wish WWAA every success in the future.”
“I thought it absolutely fabulous and their interpretation masterful and magical – I thought Amadeus himself would have been smiling.”
Previous Concerts
