LOOKING BACK… Breaking boundaries and setting new standards

For 50 years, St Mary’s Music School has been a shining beacon of specialist music education in the UK, producing some of the country’s most brilliant and talented instrumentalists, singers and composers.

Our origins go further back, however, right back to 1880 when we were founded to educate the ‘new’ St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral choristers and hone their musical skills. It was almost a century later, in 1972, when we expanded into a specialist music school, opening our doors to our first instrumental pupils with Yehudi Menuhin as our Patron. From there, the School soared to new heights of musical excellence.

Breaking boundaries and setting new standards, in 1978 the Cathedral invited girls to sing alongside boys in the treble line –the first choir in the UK to make this bold move. The choristers then joined the School’s primary classes, young instrumentalist numbers increased and, as the School roll expanded, premises were outgrown and in 1995, we moved to our present home at Coates Hall.

Over the years, St Mary’s Music School has continued to expand and innovate, evolving into a centre of musical excellence and attracting students from all over Scotland and beyond. Today, we are one of five Government-supported specialist music schools in the UK and the only one of our kind in Scotland. From offering a full academic curriculum to modernising our facilities, we have consistently maintained our unwavering commitment to open our doors to outstanding young singers, instrumentalists and composers who show potential, regardless of their family’s financial circumstances.

Over the years, we are proud that St Mary’s Music School has produced a long list of notable alumni, including some of the most renowned names in music and entertainment – we are

A musical memory…

“As the only bass player coming into what was, at that time, a predominately strings school, I was immediately very busy! I remember feeling like I was in every ensemble available – a brilliant experience as a young musician. I found the expectations of my playing a bit of a shock, but it made me learn fast and it was also my first experience of a very happy and fun boarding house. I had a very happy time at the School and made lasting memories – brilliant like-minded friends, trips to Drumsheugh swimming baths, evenings in the boarding house, music tours of the North, barbeques on the beach, concerts across Scotland, playing in jazz clubs through in Glasgow, lunchtime concerts in the Chapel at Coates Hall, double bass conventions in the RSAMD (now RCS) and the Royal Northern, and art lessons in Old Coates House. A musical education equipped me with confidence and the knowledge that if you work hard, anything is achievable.”