Benjamin Carter Photo: Supplied (Benjamin Carter)
When is Benjamin Carter going to make his mind up?
The 18 year old has played cello with the New Zealand Youth Orchestra, and his piano skills have just won him a scholarship to study at London's Royal College of Music. And then there's his prowess on his first instrument: the ukulele.
All this talent isn't too surprising, when you consider Carter's parents are both in the NZSO and have been all his life. His mother plays the cello, his father the trumpet.
In fact, Carter's mother is currently his cello teacher, while Victoria University Piano Professor Jian Liu has taken over at the keyboard.
Under Liu's guidance, Carter travelled to China where he took part in the Zhuhai International Mozart Competition for Young Musicians. He finished third, playing (among other things) Mozart's "Fantasia & Fugue in C K394" which was captured on camera, and which Carter chose to begin in his recital with.
You can watch it yourself if you scroll 2 hours 55 minutes into the video.
Speaking to RNZ Concert host Bryan Crump, Carter acknowledged being pretty nervous at the start of the piece. Not that Crump noticed - he was more impressed by Carter's programming choice, which shows Mozart in a completely new light, looking back to J S Bach but also forward to the sonic world of Beethoven.
"He [Mozart] was going through a Bach-loving phase ... yeah, I thought it was a very interesting piece to begin with."
Carter credits his experience taking part in the Zhuhai competition with helping him to prepare for the audition recording he sent to London's Royal College of Music.
"I think [competitions] are a really good way to improve your playing and to learn more about you play, how you perform, particularly when it comes to stress, because I think it's one of the most stressful situations you can perform under."
Carter was one of only two winners of international scholarships from the College for 2024.
London. Plenty of music going on here. Photo: RNZ / Nick Monro
His first of four years of study for a BMus begins in September.
After that, will he come home, Crump asks? Probably not, too much music to be had in Europe.
And then there's the question of what instrument he's eventually going to specialise in.
Both cello and piano for as long as he can.
Fair enough, we say. If it was good enough for J S Bach to play the fiddle and the keyboard, why not Benjamin Carter?
