Ilkley’s Alexandra Keeley is one of the brightest and fastest rising stars of classical music in the UK.

What makes her even more memorable and special though, is that she is just 11 years of age.

As part of Grassington Festival’s classical repertoire, Alex will be performing her first local concert in nearly two years, at St Margaret Clitherow in Threshfield on June 13.

Mum Tracy, herself an accomplished violinist and former head of strings at Bradford Grammar and Giggleswick School, began teaching the young Alex violin at just four years old. By the age of five she had won her first festival, beating competition from musicians three years her senior.

By the age of six Alex had successfully auditioned for the National Children’s Orchestra. By seven she had gained a place in the junior department of the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. However her greatest accolade to date is when at the age of nine she successfully gained a place at one of the best and most prestigious music schools in the world; the Yehudi Menuhin School in Surrey - whose alumni include British violinist, Nicola Benedetti.

“We’d lived in Ilkley since 1997, and Alex was born there,” explains Tracy. “So moving to Surrey was a hard decision to make, but we had to do it for our daughter so she could take up the wonderful opportunity she’d been offered. Despite the fact that we all really miss Ilkley and the Dales, it was the right decision - as she absolutely loves the Menuhin school.”

Speaking to Alex herself, she reveals that the school operates very differently to her old school in Ilkley, with the school day starting at 7.50am and ending at 6.15pm. “If there’s a concert coming up I may have to practice in the evenings, or perhaps finish my homework, but sometimes I can just come home and relax and play with my pet rabbit Gingi,” explains Alex. The school in fact hosts some 250 concerts every year to ensure that pupils practice hard, perfect their technique, and become used to performing in front of live audiences.

Although Alex cites her inspirations as being Hilary Hahn and Julia Fischer - who was part of the BBC Proms last year, one can’t help but imagine that her Mum Tracy, must be up there with the best of them, having played in Monte Carlo with Stevie Wonder and Shirley Bassey, and more latterly being one of the founding members of the Skipton Building Society Camerata with Ben Crick.

Tracy and Alex have dueted together often – at the age of seven Alex played the Bach Double Violin Concerto with Tracy as part of Tracy’s leaving concert from Settle Orchestra, an event which was filmed and televised by the BBC. Some Ilkley locals may also have been lucky enough to see Alex perform around the town a few years ago as she and Tracy performed a series of duets in Booths supermarket and La Stazione café in their bid to raise money for Children In Need.

With her grandparents travelling from Lancashire for the concert, and close family friends from Ilkley coming, Alex and her family are not surprisingly extremely excited by her forthcoming performance, “It’s exciting and really nice to come back to play,” enthuses Alex. Tracy concurs adding, “Alex is so proud to be from Yorkshire, and it’s really important for us to keep that affinity with the area going for her, and as regulars at Grassington Festival ourselves it will be very special to return to watch her play there.”

The full festival programme and further information about Alexandra’s concert is available online at www.grassington-festival.org.uk, or call the Box Office on 01756 752691.