A Fresh Start on Double Bass in London

Hi there! My name is Alex Verster, and I am a classical double bassist.

Having realised as a 23 year old jazz musician that I should have been playing classical music all along, I decided it's not too late for a fresh start and picked up the double bass.

After about 9 months, I had started performing regularly with several local orchestras, achieved a Distinction in Grade 8 and won the Gem Section of the Auckland Youth Orchestra Soloist Competition. I then travelled to London to audition at four of the most prestigious conservatoires in the world: The Royal Academy of Music, The Royal College of Music, Trinity Laban Conservatoire, and Guildhall. I received offers from all of them as well as large scholarships from two.

This year I will perform with the NZSO New Zealand Youth Orchestra before returning to London to begin my Master of Fine Arts in Classical Performance at Trinity Laban Conservatoire. However, I desperately require funding support to purchase my own double bass and bow. A good quality instrument is always a huge investment but a musician certainly needs his own instrument!

I was awarded a full fee entrance scholarship for the first year at Trinity, but the yearly cost of studying and living in London is at least $55,000, so any help is hugely appreciated. After all those solitary practise hours, I really can no longer do this alone!

Thank you for your time, and please have a look at the video at the top of the page!

P.S.
During my jazz years I composed and produced an album that is now available for free to anyone who is interested: https://averster.bandcamp.com/ Enjoy!