Young Voice – Carlton Sykes

Tuba player, Carlton Sykes, is at home wherever there is music. The 23-year-old was born in Scotland and raised in the southwest of England before studying in Wales. Mark Good charts the musical journey of the flourishing performer who was recently crowned Flowers Band’s Player of the Year

How do you feel your playing career is progressing at the moment?
Well, I’d like to think it was going pretty well! I don’t have a specific trajectory in mind - I just keep playing and seeing what opportunities arise. I really enjoy playing with Flowers Band. Getting to play in a top band twice a week, with such a talented bunch of people, is incredibly gratifying.

What has been the highlight of your time so far with the band?
Probably the British Open performance in 2014 on Vita Aeterna Vartiations. It was my first contest with the band and I opened the piece on my own. I was so nervous, but managed to get through unscathed and it was one of the best band performances that I’d ever played, which got us a well-deserved third place. A great way to start a career off with any band!

Being part of such a musical family, was it inevitable that you would begin playing?
I guess there was certain inevitability about it. When I was a kid, music was…

This excerpt is taken from November 2016’s BBW. Access the article in full, right now, by subscribing to BBW Digital. Alternatively, subscribe to the printed magazine delivered by post: £40 (UK); £68 (Europe); £81 (Rest of the World)