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A passion for success 

Nicola Benedetti is a world-famous violinist. She was the  

BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2004 when she was 16.  

She lives in Chiswick, west London, near her sister, Stephanie,  

who is also a violinist. Their father, Gio Benedetti, is a  

businessman. He lives with his wife, Francesca, in Scotland. 

Nicola Benedetti – a passion for music 

‘When I was young, music wasn’t very important in our  

house. Then, when I was four, I started playing the violin. In  

my first lesson, I was so happy, I couldn’t stop crying. 

My dad, Gio, was always busy. He was very hard-working.  

His parents were poor, so he wanted to give me and my sister  

everything. I like hard work too, and I know what I want – if  

someone says to me “You can’t do that”, I think “Oh yes I  

can!” That’s very like my dad. 

But my dad’s a businessman, and I’m an artist. Money is  

very important to him, but for me, success isn’t the same  

as earning lots of money. He likes the music I play, but he  

doesn’t like classical music very much. I teach him about  

music, and he tells me about business. 

My sister and I are very close. We sometimes play together –  

not professionally, but at family occasions like weddings and  

at Christmas. 

I live for my work. I never want to stop. Music is my life.’ 

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