Rising Simcoe County Piano stars recognized for talents

Simcoe County piano stars shine bright A group of rising piano stars from Simcoe County are being recognized for their incredible skills.

A group of rising piano stars from Simcoe County are being recognized for their incredible skills.

Cheryl Graham is a certified piano instructor for The Royal Conservatory of Music, and recently had five of her students from Barrie and Oro-Medonte become semi-finalists in this year's Music Lights the Way competition.

The North American competition receives thousands of entries in several categories each year. Graham said it is an achievement that her students worked hard to complete.

"It is a process of day-to-day, excellent practice over so many years, and it was a shock to see that so many finalists were able to qualify for the competition semi-finals," said Graham.

According to Graham, each student had to submit videos of their talents to qualify and be judged by a panel of piano experts.

"It is a process from when they first start lessons; it's not something that you can decide that they are going to go into a big competition," said Graham.

Graham said the Royal Conservatory of Music gold medal ceremony was held on January 8 in Toronto, with several Simcoe County students receiving exam marks in the 90 per cent category.