Edgar Francis is a Welsh violist with an eclectic musical life. As 1st Prize Winner at the 2021
Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Competition, his debut album will be released on Champs
Hill records. He has performed in leading venues such as The Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall
and The Royal Festival Hall, as well as playing with groups such as Sinfonia of London and the
jazz trio Enemy.Edgar started his musical journey with Sheila Nelson, before studying with
Matthew Souter at Wells Cathedral School. He is currently studying for a Masters at the Royal
Academy of Music with Hélène Clement. While at RAM he has won 1st Prize in the Wilfrid
Parry Prize, as well as receiving a Regency Award, the Sir John Barbirolli Memorial Prize and
the Olwen Doreen Leyshon Prize.Edgar’s real passion lies in chamber music. He has played at
festivals such as Mendelssohn on Mull, North Norfolk Music Festival, Southwell Music Festival
and Kinnordy Chamber Music Festival, and has performed on BBC Radio 3. Edgar has also led
orchestras under the baton of some of the world's leading conductors such as John Wilson,
Edward Gardener, François-Xavier Roth and Jac Van Steen, including multiple performances at
the BBC Proms. Also in demand as a soloist, he has played solo recitals at venues such as
Powderham Castle and the Millennium Centre.Edgar plays on a 2012 Mario Miralles viola,
generously on loan from RAM through the Calleva Foundation and is supported by a Countess
of Munster Musical Trust Derek Butler Award, Harold Craxton Memorial Trust and The Stephen
Bell Charitable Trust.