From the age of just two, when she started playing the violin thanks to her grandmother's encouragement, to winning the first prize in the internationally recognized "BBC Young Musician 2026" competition, 18-year-old Sofia Demetriades managed to turn her childhood passion for music into a great distinction.
Speaking to "F", the young violinist, who was born in Leicester, England but has Cypriot roots, characterizes her victory as a dream come true, reveals her next steps in her music career and sends her own message to Cypriots, thanking them for their love and support.
The great distinction
The 18-year-old won first place in the final on October 15, 2026 at the Bristol Beacon, performing the demanding Violin Concerto by the great Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The young violinist was accompanied by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by conductor Alpesh Chauhan. The announcement of her victory was made on November 1, 2026.
Her success is of particular importance, as she stood out among hundreds of candidates, in an event that proved to be historic as for the first time in the 48 years of the institution, the three finalists of the final were women.
The jury praised the technical excellence, musical sensitivity and maturity of her interpretation, with the pianist and member of the jury, Joanna MacGregor, describing her as an excellent musician, highlighting her special musicality and expressive approach.
The award comes with a prize money of £3,000 to support her music studies, as well as recording and radio broadcasting opportunities through BBC Radio 3.
Who is Sophia
Speaking to "F", Sofia explained that she has Greek Cypriot and Russian roots, but was born and spent the first years of her life in Leicester, England. She moved to London when she was 11 years old, to follow her musical career, and now – as she said – she considers it her home.
Today, she is in her first year of undergraduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London, one of the UK's most important music educational institutions. He had previously studied at the Junior Academy, while today he is studying violin under the distinguished violinist So-Ock Kim.
Despite her young age, she has already carved out a remarkable artistic career, with significant distinctions in international competitions, including first prize at the Lipinski-Wieniawski International Competition in Poland, in 2024, as well as first prize at the Haslemere International String Competition.
She has also appeared as a soloist in concerts in the United Kingdom, European countries and Canada, gaining significant stage experience and developing her international artistic presence.
"I started playing the violin when I was just two years old"
When asked what inspired her to take up the violin, she said that "classical music was always heard at home, either from a CD or from the radio, or from my grandmother who played the piano. In fact, she was the one who made me start playing the violin and I fell in love with it. I started experimenting and playing the violin for fun from the age of just two!"
Sophia, in addition to playing the violin – as she told us – also loves to play the piano. "I think it's incredibly important to play the piano, especially when you're a string musician. It completely changes the way you perceive music and helps me both on the violin and in understanding how everything comes together in the score. Also, sometimes I sing and, in fact, I like to sing the anti-melody while playing the main melody on the violin, as part of my practice!", she explained.
"It looks like a dream that came true"
Asked how she managed to develop her violin skills at such a high level, Sofia Dimitriadis replied that it takes a lot of practice.
"It's something that needs to be built both over the years and in the preparation of the pieces we're going to play in a competition or concert. Having the right teacher is also crucial to succeed. Not just someone who tells you exactly what to do, but someone you really fit in with and who wants to help you grow as an artist. I think that's why I feel so lucky to be studying with my wonderful violin teacher, So-Ock Kim," she added.
Asked what winning the 1st prize in the competition and being named BBC Young Musician 2026 means to her, she said that "it looks like a dream come true. I've always wanted to participate in the competition, as I've been watching it on TV for as long as I can remember. Just getting to the grand final felt like I had won, but when the win itself came it was really the icing on the cake. Following in the footsteps of previous winners, who are now internationally acclaimed artists such as Nicola Benedetti, Jennifer Pike and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, is an inspiration to me. I hope to chart my own, unique path and collaborate with musicians who share the same mentality as me," she continued.
Next stop is the English Chamber Orchestra
As for her next steps, Sofia said she is excited to have the opportunity to continue her music career, even having some exciting new projects coming soon.
More specifically, she said that "next year I will make my debut with the English Chamber Orchestra, performing Piazzolla's 'Four Seasons', and in fact I am the first artist to participate in their new program "New Horizons"".
"I feel flattered by the support of the Cypriots"
It is worth noting that Sofia had not realized the dimensions of her success in Cyprus, stating that she just saw some Cypriots writing to her on Instagram and thought it was too sweet on their part.
"I feel very flattered, thank you very much for your support. I hope I can continue to offer you joy through my music and share with you my love for it," she continued.
Furthermore, she stated that he loves Cyprus, which she regularly visits once a year with friends, dividing her time between the Cypriot mountains and the sea.
Our conversation ended with Sofia sending "a big thank you to all of you for your support!".
