91Èȱ¬

James Findlay, a 20-year-old singer, guitarist and fiddle player from Dorset, has won 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2's Young Folk Award 2010.

James and five other finalists performed at an evening of music at the 91Èȱ¬ Radio Theatre. He was presented with his trophy by musician and singer Jon Boden.

Highlights from the final, which includes performances by each of the six finalists and the announcement of James' win, can be heard in an extended edition of Mike Harding's Radio 2 show tonight (Wednesday 9 December) at 7.00pm.

James is a traditional singer, guitarist and fiddler based in Dorset. Coming from a family of traditional singers, his love lies in English folk music and ballads.

His presentation and musical style is inspired by guitarist and singer Nic Jones and singers such as the Watersons and Young Tradition.

Mike Harding, who hosted the final, says: "Last year a terrific young singer-songwriter, Megan Henwood, won the 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2 Young Folk Award along with her brother Joe.

"As if to prove what a broad church the folk scene is, this year's winner is James Findlay, a brilliant young traditional singer, guitarist and fiddle player who plays and sings with all the fire and dedication of masters like Nic Jones and the late Tony Rose.

"The standard, as ever, was extremely high and James was a deserved winner. I'm really looking forward to seeing what he does over the course of the next 12 months– winning the Radio 2 Young Folk Award often seems to spur the winners on to some quite amazing things."

James' prize includes a session for Mike's Radio 2 show and slots on the bill at three of the UK's most prestigious festivals – the Cambridge Folk Festival, Fairport's Cropredy Convention and Towersey Village Festival.

James and the five other acts were selected by a panel of judges to go through to the final which took place at the 91Èȱ¬ Radio Theatre on Friday 4 December.

The Radio 2 Young Folk Award is the network's annual search for the most promising folk musicans in the UK.

Now in its 12th year, the initiative is open to anyone aged 15 to 20 who performs traditional and acoustic music with roots in any culture as a band, duo or soloist.

Last year's winners were Megan & Joe Henwood, a brother and sister duo from Oxfordshire.

The other finalists this year were:

Cinnte: six-piece group from County Derry. Cinnte are a group of friends, and brothers, who have played Irish traditional music together at fleadhs and festivals just for the fun. They decided to form a band late in 2008 to launch a local cultural festival and since then have added a sixth member, appeared on Irish national TV and are preparing to record their first album.

Niamh Boadle: singer, songwriter and guitarist from Lancashire, aged 15. Niamh grew up with folk music, in particular traditional Irish music. She began step dancing when she was four, has since gone on to play bodhran, fiddle and guitar as well as singing and lilting. This year Niamh has had a summer travelling to new festivals and playing with her band, Tri. Her solo highlights have been performing on the main stage at Brampton Live and winning the Fred Jordan Memorial Singing Competition at Bromyard Folk Festival.

The Carrivick Sisters: duo from Devon who sing and play fiddle, mandolin, guitar and dobro, aged 20. Twin sisters Charlotte & Laura Carrivick have grown up playing and writing music together. Although distinctly English (many of their original songs are based on old stories, legends and folklore from their local area) their passion for American bluegrass and old time makes their sound unique. The sisters combine a wide range of instruments with their tight vocal harmonies to create a varied set of mostly original songs and instrumentals.

Mairi and Steaphanaidh Chaimbeul: sisters from the Isle of Syke who play clarsach, saxophone and sing. Mairi (aged 16) plays clarsach and sings, while Steaphanaidh (aged 15) is the lead singer in their duo and also plays the saxophone. They are both native Gaelic speakers and, apart from their great love of traditional Gaelic singing and clarsach, they also play a variety of other instruments between them. They are both pupils at St Mary's Music School in Edinburgh and are taught clarsach by the renowned Catriona McKay and jazz by Richard Ingham.

Chris Keatinge: button accordion player, aged 20, from the Scottish Borders. Chris has been playing the button accordion for 15 years now, under the tutorage of Ian Lowthian. In 2005 Chris won the Rotary Club's Young Musican of the Year and was a 2006 finalist in 91Èȱ¬ Radio Scotland's Young Traditional Musician of the Year. Since then Chris has performed across Scotland with the TMSA Young Trad Tour 2006 as part of Harris Playfair's Coel Mor at the Aberdeen International Festival and, most recently, as part of the Border Tunesmiths, a collaborative project and concert of nine Borders musicians.

Highlights from the final can be heard tonight (Wednesday 9 December) on Mike Harding's Radio 2 show at 7.00pm.

SH3