Top Security Award helps young Cork music student achieve her dream

15th August 2014

Violinist Mairéad Hickey (18) from The Lough in Cork city, winner of the Top Security’s Fr Frank Maher Music Award for sixth year post-primary students, has now won a place at top German music college, Kronberg Academy. The Academy, based in the town of Kronberg near Frankfurt, is an international cultural institution providing one to one education and support to highly gifted young violinists, violists and cellists.

Mairéad said, “I had to travel to Germany right in the middle of my Leaving Cert exams to audition for a place at the Academy but it was worth it. Each student receives a huge amount of support and individual tuition and there are also many masterclasses throughout the year with famous musicians which I am really looking forward to attending. Winning the Fr Frank Maher Music Award was wonderful and a big financial boost as I plan to put my €2,000 bursary towards the first year fees.”

The Fr Frank Maher Music Award, sponsored by Top Security, is Ireland’s largest classical music competition for post-primary schools. Mairéad was one of seven young finalists from Dublin, Cork, Roscommon, Waterford and Donegal to compete and it is the second year in a row that the competition winner has come from Cork city. Last year’s winner, Sinead O’Halloran from Blackrock, is currently studying in the US.

Joe Doyle general manager of Top Security in Cork, presented Mairéad with the €2,000 bursary at a photocall in the Crawford Gallery in Cork city. Joe said, “Mairéad is an outstanding example of the calibre of young musical talent that the country is producing at the moment. She will be a great ambassador for Ireland and we wish her the very best for the future.”

Mairéad comes from a musical family and began playing the violin when she turned three using the Suzuki method and attending the CIT Cork School of Music at age seven under the tutelage of acclaimed violinist Adrian Petcu. Mairéad was the Irish National Concert Hall Young Musician of the Year from 2010 to 2012 and has won numerous other competitions in Ireland, as well as international competitions in Romania and Italy. Mairéad also plays traditional Irish music and has won eight All-Ireland fiddle titles.

The Award sponsor, Top Security, is one of Ireland’s largest security and alarm monitoring companies with offices in Cork, Dublin, the UK, Canada and South Africa.

ENDS

Captured: Mairead is pictured with Joe Doyle, general manager of Top Security Cork, at the Crawford Gallery in Cork who presented her with the €2,000 winner’s bursary from the Fr Frank Maher Music Award to go towards her first year fees.

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