Carys Wood, Deputy Head Girl of Haverfordwest High VC School’s sixth form, is renowned in Pembrokeshire for her staggering musical achievements. These include being co-principal trumpet in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and even achieving the Future Talent Team Archie Brass Award- Carys is an inspirational musician destined for endless future encores.
Delving deeper into Carys’ personal life, this exclusive interview takes us deeper into how she first discovered her passion for music to how she tackles challenging concertos.
When did music become more than just a hobby?
“When I was in year 10 I played with the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain in a joint concert with the Royal Marines Band Service. That’s when I decided that music was a potential career for me, it was something that I absolutely loved and I looked up to the people in the Marines.”
How did the support you received shape your future?
“Well my parents have driven me around the country since I was 8 years old and I couldn’t have really got where I am if they hadn’t done that for me. I’ve had the opportunities given to me and my parents have made them accessible to me.”
If there was another instrument you could master, what would it be?
“Definitely the piano, I have tried and tried and tried but I just don’t have the coordination to be able to do it.”
How do you handle breath control during long or intense performances?
“It’s just practise, if I’m doing a big concert or recital I’ll practise the recital over and over again so that I know that I’ve got the right endurance and techniques to get through it.”
Who is your role model- who do you aspire to be?
“I haven’t necessarily got one role model, I want to be myself but I want myself to be made up of little bits of everyone else. There’s someone called Carol Jarvis and she’s a trombone player and she’s touring all over the world playing with people like Rita Ora.”
“Also, my music teacher Philippe Schartz, he’s so excited by everything that happens in music and that’s what I want to be when I grow up- I want to keep being excited about music.”
What’s the toughest piece you’ve ever encountered and why?
“Brass bands have test pieces which are what they say, they are a piece that’s meant to test you. I went to a rehearsal with the Cory band and they were playing the test piece Harrison's dream. I got sent the music two days in advance. That was probably the scariest thing for me, it was very hard to prepare for that in such a short space of time.”
Looking back, what advice would you give to your younger self when you were just starting out?
“Don’t be so hard on yourself, you’re not expected to be the finished product at just 14 years old.”