A PRODIGIOUS ten-year-old is looking to take a diploma in jazz saxophone after passing his grade eight with a merit.

The diploma that Alexander Bone wants to take next year is the equivalent level to the exams taken at the end of the firstyear of a university m u s i c degree.

Alexander, who lives with his parents and sister in the village of Caldwell, near Richmond, North Yorkshire, has been playing the saxophone since he was six.

He received confirmation of his grade eight pass last week, having sat the London College of Music examination earlier in the year.

Alexander, a pupil at Barnard Castle Prep School, Barnard Castle, County Durham, comes from a musical family; his father and sax tutor, Steve, teaches woodwind at Teesside High School and mother Fiona is a p r o f e s s i o n a l singer.

As well as playing for his school bands, he also busks around the region with his father and sister, with all the m o n e y t h e y r a i s e g o i n g towards a saxophone, which will cost at least £1,400.

The trio have also made a CD of their music, called Saxobone.

Mr Bone said: "Alexander just loves his jazz. His favourite saxophone player is Stan Getz.

"He's also started playing piano too. He's obviously not as competent at it as the sax, but his boogy-woogy piano is pretty good.

"We're not forcing him to do anything he doesn't want to do - this is all off his own back."

Alexander said: "Playing saxophone is a hobby, but it's also a working thing, because I know I have to practice it.

"My friends have all been really good.

"There's a lot of people in my school now who are starting to play saxophone too."

The youngster passed his grade one saxophone only months after first picking up the instrument and had passed his grade four by the time he was eight-years-old.

He has broken all records in his school for musical achievement, with no other student in the school's history getting to such a high grade so young.

To get his diploma, Alexander will have to play a number of pieces, for 45 minutes, for a panel of judges.

"The standard is very high.

"The public can come in and watch him play and the judges will be expecting the quality of music to the sort of thing people would pay to hear at a recital," said Mr Bone.