Wight Proms Wednesdays: Rodney Earl Clarke (Voice)

 

He starred in Raymond Gubbay's show Crazy for Gershwin, BBC Radio 2 Friday Night is Music Night and most recently Les Misérables. He performed for HRH Princess Anne at the military musical spectacular The Sword & The Crown on Horse Guards Parade.

Rodney joined the BBC team of TV presenters for the Proms, accompanied by Suzy Klein and has since enjoyed numerous invitations to present. After mastering the obstacles of stuttering, Rodney dedicates his efforts to aiding others facing difficulty with communication and speech in his online platform Singing Speaking. Rodney is also a patron of STAMMA the British Stammering Association.

Marina Savova
Marina Savova is an accomplished pianist who has performed at many competitions, concerts, and festivals in Europe. She was born in Varna, Bulgaria and was educated at the Dobri Hristov School of Music and Arts and then at the National Music Academy Pancho Vlagiderov in Sofia with Professor Doctor Atanas Kurtev. In 2000 she was accepted with scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London where she completed her Postgraduate Studies in Piano Accompaniment with Geoffrey Prattley.

Marina has been the recipient of many prizes including Winner of the International Competition for Young Composers (10 years old), Winner of the National Contemporary Music Competition 1996, Winner of National Competition for Accompanist 1996, Winner of the National Competition for the best performance of Slavic Music 1997. Marina has performed as a soloist with Varna Philharmonic Orchestra and she has made recordings for the Bulgarian National Television and Radio, and Radio Classic FM.

During her studies at the Royal Academy Marina formed Duo Sonaris with violinist Ivo Stankov. In 2003 they made their debut at the Bulgaria National Hall in Sofia under the patronage of the Bulgarian President. The concert was broadcasted on National TV and they were finalist at the Classical Musician of the Year Awards. They have performed numerous concert recitals in the UK and abroad. Marina also performs with the baritone Rodney Clarke. In 2002 they won first prize of the Concordia Foundation for English Singers and Speakers and performed at the Purcell Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall, and other venues. They keep working together and are currently performing “Aspects of Love” recitals with songs of Schumann, Duparc, Ravel and Finzi.

Marina has a passion for teaching, coming from her mother, who is also a Pianist and Teacher. Marina has taught at various private schools in England, including University College School, Hampstead, and St. Paul's Cathedral School in the City of London. She currently lives in Surrey with her husband and two children.