The 2026 National Youth Music Competition (NYMC) is pianist Madison le Roux’s fourth round as a contestant in the competition.
The first-year student at the South African College of Music at the University of Cape Town hails from Pinelands. Earlier this year she was a finalist in the Fine Music Radio Music Awards in the classical category.
“It is my last year to be able to participate in the NYMC, and I find it to be a very valuable experience. It motivates me to learn repertoire.
“Through the competition, I gain discipline and improvement in memory. It teaches me to manage anxiety when it comes to performing. On top of that, one makes many friends,” she smiles.
She grew up with music. Both her parents and one of her aunts are music teachers. Her mother plays the piano and the violin, and her father plays the clarinet and saxophone. Her grandmother was a church organist, and her aunt also plays the piano.
The rising star’s musical career started at the age of five, being taught by her mother. Currently, her music teacher is Dr Esthea Kruger. Madison also plays the cello. Interestingly, her favourite musical instruments are the bass guitar and the bass clarinet.
Her musical role model is the 85-year-old Argentine pianist, Martha Argerich. “She is so honest and humble when it comes to her playing. I can really hear her deep love for music in her playing. And it’s inspiring that a woman has become one of the greatest pianists ever.”
The talented musician practised two to three hours per day. In her free time, she does long-distance swimming, reading, learning Spanish, and puzzle-building.
Madison’s favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach. “I love the harmonies he uses. I can connect well with his music. It is technically demanding and requires precision and articulation – I love that challenge,” she enthuses.
On completion of her studies, she would like to travel the world and perform as a soloist, or in chamber music ensembles and orchestras.
She describes herself as loyal, and her motto in life is: “Have hope and wait for it with patience.”
If she could be an inanimate object, she would like to be salt. “Salt preserves, which symbolises preserving goodness and truth in a world where it can be lost or discarded. It also brings out the flavour which, metaphorically, can mean bringing out the best in other people and encouraging them. We are called to be the Salt of the earth,” she says philosophically.