What it was like to perform at the royal wedding

From Harper's BAZAAR

At just before 1pm on Saturday, Sheku Kanneh-Mason sat in the flower-adorned entrance to the Quire of St George's Chapel, where the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex were signing the register in the closing stages of their marriage ceremony. The entire royal family, along with celebrities like George and Amal Clooney and Oprah, plus an estimated two billion people at home, watched the 19-year-old play Ave Maria on his cello.

"I could see the whole audience," Sheku, who is a student at the Royal College of Music, told Harper's Bazaar. "It was amazing to perform in such a special venue and in front of so many people. It was exciting. I wasn't too nervous."

Just a few months before the royal wedding, Sheku received a personal call from Meghan Markle inviting him to perform at the ceremony in Windsor Castle.

"It was such a shock and an honour to have been picked," he says. "I was expecting an important call but I didn’t know that I was going to be invited to perform."

Along with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonia, the teenager played three pieces - Sicilienne by von Paradis, Après Un Rêve by Fauré and Schubert’s Ave Maria.

"The first two pieces were pieces I suggested," Sheku explains. "I thought they would work really well. I emailed to recommend that Harry and Meghan listen to them and they really liked them both. Ave Maria was a piece that they suggested and I thought it would sound really great on the cello."

Markle's request came as a surprise, but Sheku's performance wasn't his first taste of fame. In 2016, he was the first black musician to win the BBC Young Musician Award. And a year earlier he and his five siblings competed as The Kanneh-Masons on Britain's Got Talent. He has played twice at the BAFTAs and even has experience in playing in front of royalty. Last year, Prince Harry spotted Sheku at an event in London in support of the work of Antiguan charity, the Halo Foundation, which could explain why he was hand-picked to perform.

Despite this short but impressive career history, his royal wedding set required weeks of practice. "I didn't rehearse with the orchestra until the Thursday and Friday before the wedding," Sheku says. "But preparation was key. It really helped me to focus and feel confident in what I was doing." His tailored suit, crisp white shirt and floral silk tie - gifted to him by Paul Smith for the occasion - also helped when it came to dressing the part.

Sheku, who had one of the best seats in the house, was able to sit back and enjoy the the ceremony before his big moment in the spotlight.

The powerful sermon given by Rev. Michael Curry, the first African American head of the Episcopal Church, was a standout moment for the young star. Curry's emotional address celebrated the power of love and service and quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and St. Paul.

"It was really lovely and there was an exciting vibe," he recalls. "I thought it was wonderful and he delivered it so passionately. He really believed everything he was saying."

The teenager has not yet heard what the newlyweds thought of his performance, but the reaction from his family and friends has been "wonderful". He has also received heaps of praise on social media, with many users describing Sheku as "sensational" and "pure talent".

Next up is another significant date in the diary - a concert in the Royal Albert Hall at the BBC Proms this summer. No doubt, the requests will continue to flood on.

"So many people watched me at the wedding, it was such a fantastic opportunity," he says. It's an exciting time."

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