ONE of the major awards of this year's Urdd National Eisteddfod has been won by a former pupil of Ysgol y Preseli, Crymych – while her brother also claimed a major musical prize.

But the winner of the composer's medal under 25, Siriol Jenkins, aged 20, was unable to attend the crowning ceremony in Cardiff last week because she was sitting her final music exams at Oxford University.

And on Friday her brother Talfan, 18, who is sitting A-levels at Ysgol y Preseli followed up his sister's success by winning the under 19 woodwind solo competition.

Siriol, who entered more than one composition and also came second in the medal competition said: “It was incredibly disappointing both personally and for the Eisteddfod that I couldn’t be there. But I am in the last year of my music degree at Magdalen College and had back-to-back exams.”

Siriol is well-known on the west Wales music scene as a pianist and originally trained locally and at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff.

Although classically trained she has her eyes set on a career as a jazz pianist and composer when she finishes her studies.

She plays keyboard for Oxford’s jazz outfit Donut Kings and has her own quartet Chow which will be visiting this year’s Tenby Arts Festival in September.

“I’ve always written music as well as performing it and I hope my compositions draw on all those influences. A lot of modern classical music is quite hard to listen to but I’m not afraid to write music with a good tune, although rhythmically and in chord structure my sound is very different,” she said.

Brother Talfan has won the woodwind solo competition on a number of occasions over the years in his age category. He will be studying jazz saxophone at Trinity Laban Conservatoire in London from September.