Music college delight for Shropshire pupil Rowena

Rowena Jones, from Calverhal,l near Whitchurch, has gained a place at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester to study the harp.

The pupil, from Packwood Haugh School in Ruyton-XI-Towns, had her induction at the college earlier this month and her first day of learning on Saturday.

Rowena, whose love for music started at about the age of three when she started playing the recorder, hopes to be in an orchestra and become a royal harpist.

She said: "I was jumping up and down when I found out.

"Music is just so nice and relaxing. The harp is a beautiful instrument."

Her mum Jayne Jones said her daughter has a lot of enthusiasm for music and was hopeful she will go a long way.

"At first we had to calm down when we found out she had been selected," she said.

"She didn't think her audition had gone well. We said it doesn't matter, she was only young and had plenty of time.

"But when she got the letter she jumped off her seat and screamed at the top of her voice. Also, at the side of her bed she has stuck the letter on the wall.

"Rowena started playing the recorder when she was three. She had her first exam at the age of five and things have gone on from there.

"At about six she started wanting to play the harp. She wants to be a royal harpist.

"She has met her teachers and will be doing music theory, music and dance, hours in harp lessons and hours in recorder lessons. It's just packed.

"Rowena wants to change people's perception of recorders as well. She gets cross when people say it's just a recorder.

"She has so much enthusiasm and energy for music. She is ready to go. People say she just needs experience.

"She has had a lot of support from people in Shropshire.

"A lot who don't usually get any recognition, like private teachers."