Mitzi Clarke - Royal College of Music

Mitzi's Letter of gratitude

"Dear Mrs Grahame and Members of the Honourable Society of the Knights of the Round Table,

My name is Mirabelle Marley Clarke, (most people know me as Mitzi) and I am a second-year undergraduate student at the Royal College of Music, joint principal study in violin and viola.

I was born in Hackney but moved to Cornwall when young where I took up the violin, two years later gaining a place at Chetham’s School of music in Manchester. I left home to board there aged 8 and stayed until I left to take up my place at the Royal College of Music last year.

While at Chetham’s I started viola lessons alongside my violin and finding them complimentary decided to continue. Playing both gives me the greatest possible scope as a string player to participate and perform and despite the work involved, I am determined to continue.

I chose the Royal College as it is the only UK Conservatoire to offer applicants the possibility of joint principal study. This means I have the rare opportunity and privilege of studying both instruments at equal intensity.

I was so grateful to receive a Scholarship on my arrival at the RCM, but this year, to have become a Knights of the Round Table Award Holder is a such an honour. It really is lovely to have a named donor and your support – it is fascinating to see the list of previous recipients and the diverse work you support. Whilst I was lucky to receive a DFES bursary at Chethams, the move to London, added to the extra cost of studying two instruments with two cases, two bows, two continually wearing out sets of strings has been an expensive one, and so on behalf of both myself and my family I would like to say a genuine and heartfelt ’thank you’.

Yours faithfully,

Mitzi Marley Clarke

Biography

Mitzi Marley Clarke is a student at the Royal College of Music as Joint Principal Study on violin with Detlef Hahn and viola with Andriy Viytovych where she is currently a Knights of the Round Table Award Holder.

She began learning the violin at primary school in Cornwall leaving to join Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester in 2010 aged eight, as a violinist. Shortly after starting at Chetham’s she started her viola studies and won the Junior Concerto Competition in 2013.Whilst there, she enjoyed numerous opportunities for performance including solo and ensemble performances at the Lowry Theatre, the Bridgewater Hall, the Whitworth Gallery, Stoller Hall, Sage Gateshead, The RNCM, the RBC Cecil Aronowitz Competition, The Barbican, Queen Elizabeth Hall and The Duke’s Hall. She has performed internationally in Italy, Switzerland and Norway at the Barrat Due Institute and has enjoyed teaching and masterclasses with Louise Lansdown, Soon-Mi Chung and Alf Richard Kraggerud"