AMBER LEIGH DIXON – WINNER OF THE SOLOIST 2018

PRESS RELEASE 13thAugust 2018

We are thrilled to announce that the Winner of The Soloist 2018 is Amber Leigh Dixon from Newry Co. Down. This year’s lucky winner will perform with the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland to audiences of over 50,000 people during our arena tour in Spring 2019. Performances will be held at iconic venues including the Simmons Court Arena, RDS, Dublin; the Odyssey Arena, Belfast; the Echo Arena in Liverpool, Limerick University Arena and Waterford Institute of Technology Arena. In addition to these exceptional performance opportunities, the Amber will also receive the coveted Soloist Trophy and a €1,000 cash prize. We are thrilled to be showcasing the outstanding talent of this young stellar performer, Amber Leigh Dixon, to audiences across Ireland and the UK.

Amber Leigh Dixon is a 17-year old Soprano from Newry, Co. Down. Amber is a A-Level student at Our Lady’s Grammar School Newry and she is a member of the Flynn School of Performing Arts where she receives tuition from Fiona Flynn. Amber has made numerous appearances on stage in Musical Theatre performances. She has also performed on Radio in BBC Television. This year, Amber won the very prestigious Girls U18 Vocal Solo, at the ESB Feis Ceoil, Dublin.  Amber was also the proud recipient of the Gilbert Award for ‘Best Female Singer’ at the AIMs awards this year which she won for her role as Maria in ‘West Side Story’. We are thrilled and very excited to welcome Amber to the CBOI Peace Proms Team.

Huge congratulations to everyone who took part in The Soloist Competition this year. From over 300 on-line entries, 40 of Ireland’s most promising and talented young performers made it through to the semifinal which was held yesterday afternoon (Sunday 12th August)at the Mill Theatre, Dundrum.

Our panel of judges had the unenviable task of selecting 12 performers to go through to the final. The finalists were Sarah Gordon, Dublin; Leah Kavanagh, Lucan; Emily Carrol, Bray; Rebecca, Emily & Orlaith Kelly (Classic Harmony Girls), Wicklow; Cobhla Surlis, Caven; Phoebe Dipple, Wexford; Aoife Goodison, Wexford; Sinead Cronin, Cork; Christopher Green, Lurgan; Woha Mcgerald Akeh, Galway; Sinead O’Donovan, Tipperary; and Amber Dixon, Newry.

All of the finalists gave outstanding performances and any one of them would have been a worthy recipient of the title.  Huge thanks to our judges whose impossible task it was to select the winners: Greg Beardsell, Conductor and Music Educator; Phil Ferguson, Performer and Music educator; Patricia Treacy, Virtuoso Violinist; and Paul O’Callaghan, CBOI Director and performer; Liam Monagher, Violinist and performer. At the end of a very intense and wonderful competition, the winner Amber Leigh Dixon, was announced.