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Rachel Marie Parkes beat thousands of other entries from across the globe with her self-penned song, Cradle.

You can listen to the track by clicking on this audio link:

Rachel, and her husband Richard, played live on 主播大秀 Somerset Sound's Live Music Friday with Alex Hapgood on 27 October 2006. You can listen back to the audio by clicking on this link:

A prestigious award

The UK Songwriting Contest is run annually by the BRIT Trust and the Music Aid Foundation, The Guild of International Songwriters and Composers, and the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters.

Rachel and her husband Richard

Having been singing and composing songs since the age of five, Rachel wrote the lyrics for Cradle, a song about the serious illness suffered by her mother, when she was a young child.

"I am honoured to have been awarded a place in the finals of such as prestigious songwriting competition," said Rachel.

"A contest such as this really does fulfil its aim of finding undiscovered songwriting talent, and has opened doors into the music industry for young musicians like me."

In October 2006, Cradle was also placed as one of the top-five songs in the prestigious VH1 Song of the Year Contest, judged by such Grammy Award winning artists as Norah Jones and Jon Bon Jovi.

Hoping for continued success

A classically trained soprano, as well as a contemporary songwriter, Rachel's achievements include performing in vocal masterclasses with the Cardiff Singer of the World's Ingrid Surgenor, premiering new compositions by the Royal Opera House's Julian Baker, and guesting as the soprano soloist with international ensembles.

Alongside her other musical commitments, Rachel is also a singing teacher, working in secondary schools in Nailsea, Backwell and south Bristol.

Rachel is currently working on completing her contemporary album, Sparks Under the Snow, and is entering other international songwriting contests, hoping for more songwriting success.