Rufus Edwards wins prestigious Pendine Young Musician of Wales Award
Christ Church is delighted to congratulate undergraduate Rufus Edwards on being named the Pendine Young Musician of Wales 2025 at the North Wales International Music Festival.
Rufus, a pianist from Bersham near Wrexham who has just begun his third year reading Music at Christ Church, impressed the judges with a dazzling performance in the final, held at St Asaph Cathedral and recorded by BBC Radio Cymru. He was awarded the Pendine Trophy and a £2,000 prize, presented by Mario Kreft MBE, whose Pendine Arts and Community Trust sponsored the competition.
Speaking about the occasion, Rufus reflected on his choice of repertoire: ‘It felt right to include a piece by William Mathias at the festival he founded. His grave is just outside the cathedral, and it was quite special to play it.’
Rufus began playing the piano at the age of five and currently studies with pianist John Gough in Chester. His many achievements include twice winning the Instrumental Blue Ribband at the National Eisteddfod (2019 and 2023), and earlier this year receiving the Eleri Evans Memorial Prize for Accompanying at the Wrexham National Eisteddfod. At Christ Church, he frequently performs in lunchtime recitals.
It was incredible to perform in such a beautiful cathedral, and having won this competition presents a host of great opportunities for me.
It was incredible to perform in such a beautiful cathedral, and having won this competition presents a host of great opportunities for me.
The final saw four outstanding young musicians compete for the title. The chair of adjudicators, soprano Rebecca Evans, praised the exceptionally high standard of performances: ‘This has been a special evening. They are all winners who will go on to have glittering careers […]. We are all agreed that the standard has been simply incredible this evening, and our decision was unanimous.’
Festival Artistic Director Professor Paul Mealor also described the performances as ‘fantastic,’ highlighting the growing national significance of the competition.
Rufus was delighted to win the award: ‘It was incredible to perform in such a beautiful cathedral, and having won this competition presents a host of great opportunities for me. I am grateful to my family and my piano teacher, John Gough, for their support and encouragement throughout the months of preparation. I look forward to building on what I have learned from this experience as I continue to develop as a musician.’
We warmly congratulate Rufus on this remarkable achievement and look forward to his future performances, both here at Christ Church and beyond.
Music has played a central role in the life of Christ Church throughout its history, not least thanks to the work of our world-famous choir, established in 1525 with John Taverner as the first Organist and Master of the Choristers. The Christ Church 500 Music Festival begins on 1 October celebrates the music and musicians who have played and continue to play a role in the life of the College, Cathedral, City and beyond. Find out more and book tickets here.
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