Euphonium virtuoso David Childs has added to his impressive CV of artistic achievements with the news that he will be one of just 14 professional artists to be a recipient of a 2014 Creative Wales Award.

Welsh culture

Presented by the Arts Council of Wales, the awards recognise the potential of individual artists and their significant individual achievement in the arts along with their aim to raise the profile of Welsh culture outside their home country.

David’s achievements have already gained international recognition, with Karl Jenkins OBE referring to him as, ‘...a wonderful musician of the highest quality. A joy to write for both him and an instrument of such beauty and agility.’

Exciting

Professor Dai Smith, Chair of Arts Council of Wales added: "Arts Council of Wales believes in risk taking and nothing is more exciting than to invest in the creativity of those individuals who make the art that delights and challenges us as a dynamic society."

The £12,000 award will be used to pursue the development of the euphonium in a new and very different manner, experimenting with non-traditional / Western-classical settings, particularly working with electronics and new technology.

Performance opportunities

David told 4BR: "This is something I believe could lead to considerable additional performance opportunities for the instrument, vital for a solo instrument developing in an ever-increasingly digitally-based era."

This is something I believe could lead to considerable additional performance opportunities for the instrumentDavid Childs

Composers

With the focus on electronics at present, David is keen to hear from brass players and composers who have worked in the medium previously.

Interested parties can contact David via the link at: Euphonium Foundation UK