Since 2008, the Butterfield Young Musician of the Year competition has been a highlight of the competitive calendar for talented young musicians. Sponsored by Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited and in association with the Department of Education-organised National Children’s Festival or the Arts, Cayman’s top music students will perform their best pieces in front of three highly esteemed judges at a public performance.

Now in its ninth year, the 2016 competition and awards evening will take place on Saturday 30 April 2016 at the Prospect Playhouse starting at 6:30 p.m. This year’s Judges are John McLaughlin Williams, Grammy Award-winning Conductor; Dr. Catherine Rand, Director of Bands, Associate Professor of Music at the University of Southern Mississippi; and Stephanie Williams, former Education Officer of Music and Cultural Development in the Cayman Islands. Members of the public are invited to support our young musicians at this year’s competition with tickets available on the door for only $5.

Past recipients of the title include: 2008: Michael Testori of St. Ignatius Catholic School; 2009: Aziza La Pierre of John Gray High School /Cayman School of Pan; 2010: Zoey Robinson of St. Ignatius Catholic School; 2011: Isabella Rooney of Cayman Prep & High School; 2012: Jaide Dixon of Clifton Hunter High School; 2013: Hannah Fowler of Cayman Prep & High School; 2014: Ethan Whittaker of Cayman School of Pan; 2015: Conor O’Dea of St. Ignatius Catholic School.