This is a free recital, however we welcome donations from the audience. As part of our covid-secure measures, we have a socially-distanced seating plan, with reduced overall capacity. The audience should pre-register on the Eventbrite link above - registrations open 5 days before the concert. For guests that haven't pre-registered, admission will be based strictly on available capacity.
Ben Tarlton was selected as one of the three 2020 Guildhall Gold Medal Finalists, resulting in the opportunity to perform Elgar’s Cello Concerto in the Barbican Hall. Recent Concert highlights include an Award-winners’ Recital at Wigmore Hall, Recitals at both St James’s Piccadilly and St Martin-in-the-Fields, Brahms’s Double Concerto at St John Smith’s Square and the UK premier of Anders Hillborg’s work ‘Duo’ for cello and piano in a BBC ‘Total Immersion’ Concert in Milton Court Concert Hall which The Guardian commented ‘here…Ben Tarlton and Ben Smith did wonders with it, playing with extraordinary precision and insight.’
Born in Wales, Ben studied with Sharon McKinley and Alexander Baillie before attending the Yehudi Menuhin School to study with Thomas Carroll. He received a Scholarship to study at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama under Louise Hopkins, kindly supported by Help Musicians UK , The Countess of Munster Trust and The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He was awarded The Suggia Gift by Help Musicians UK, The David Goldman Award from The Worshipful Company of Musicians and was the recipient of the John Fussell and Raphael Sommer Awards. Ben is a Concordia Foundation Artist, a Park Lane Group Artist and a Yeomen of The Worshipful Company of Musicians; regularly performing for these organisations in major London venues.
In 2016, Ben was selected as a Fellow to participate in the Piatigorsky Cello Festival in Los Angeles. In November that year, he performed Schumann’s Cello Concerto with The Guildhall Symphony Orchestra for The LSO’s Donatella Flick Conducting Competition Semi-Finalists. Ben participated in the masterclasses at IMS Prussia Cove in 2017 and has frequently attended The Open Chamber Music Seminar since. Also in 2017, he performed as a soloist in a gala concert at Zurich’s Hochschule Der Künste with The Youth Classics Orchestra.
Ben has performed in venues and Festivals such as Cadogan Hall, Wigmore Hall, St Martin-in-the-Fields, St John’s Smith Square, St James’s Piccadilly Church, West Road Concert Hall in Cambridge, Wales Millennium Centre, Cowbridge Music Festival, Casa da Musica in Porto, the Tonhalle in Zurich, the Muziekegebouw in Amsterdam and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. He has played in masterclasses for Frans Helmerson, Ralph Kirshbaum, Colin Carr, Raphael Wallfisch, Heinrich Schiff and has had chamber music coaching with Andras Keller, Rita Wagner, Ralf Gothoni, The Takacs Quartet, The Brentano Quartet, The Gould Piano Trio and The Endellion Quartet.
Ben is Artistic Director of The Llantwit Major Chamber Music Festival and has recently started teaching at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. He regularly performs Chamber Music Concerts across Wales for Sinfonia Cymru.