AMATEUR pianist Nigel Rogers officially has the C Factor after winning a prestigious competition which is the classical piano equivalent of the X Factor.

Nigel, 55, of Ramsbury Road, St Albans, has scooped first prize in the Kemble Chopin Piano E-Competition for Outstanding Amateurs.

The research centre manager at the London School of Economics will be presented with a limited edition Kemble Chopin Piano valued at over �7,000 and has also won a lesson with competition judge Kevin Kenner.

The competition was launched in April following an overwhelming response by the public to find the nation’s most accomplished and passionate exponent of Chopin’s music.

Entries were invited from 18 to 77 year olds from all walks of life to showcase their talent on the Kemble Pianos YouTube Channel where members of the public were able to view and evaluate all performances before voting on the website www.kemble-pianos.com

The YouTube channel featured top tips for playing Chopin from professional pianists Freddy Kempf and Marina Nadiradze alongside eminent piano professors including Graham Caskie and Christopher Elton – the latter one of the competition judges.

With over 4,000 votes cast, 10 finalists went through to the final professional judging panel and, on Monday, Nigel was announced as the winner.

He said: “I’m delighted, as well as surprised, to have won this amazing prize and feel privileged to have been part of a competition which gives pianists the opportunity to really work towards a performance and to be heard by distinguished musicians and the public.

“The prize will encourage me to record more and give more performances and comes just in time as my current piano needs a good rest after 25 years of practice. My family will be especially pleased that I can also play the new Kemble with the practice pedal on!”

Nigel’s performance can be seen by looking up Nigel Rogers Piano on YouTube.