MMS Scholarship

Morpeth Music Society awards a scholarship each year to a promising music student from King Edward VI (KEVI) School. The £300 award is intended to be a contribution towards the cost of the student’s music lessons over the next year.

The scholarship was started in 2007 with a donation from MMS member Peter Angus in memory of his late partner Dr. Eileen Bowler.

2024-25 scholarship winner - 

Isobel Ellerbrook

A grade 8 clarinettist, Isobel has been playing clarinet since she was seven years old. She is currently in Year 12 at King Edwards School and is studying music as one of her three A-Levels. Izzy plays first clarinet in the school’s concert band, is part of the choir, and has also been made the principal alto saxophone player in the jazz band since picking the instrument up in September. Additionally, she was recently promoted to first clarinet in the local Coquet Concert Band at Swarland, in which she has enjoyed playing for two years. 


Morpeth Music Society 2024 Isobel Ellerbrook

Seeking to further broaden her musical horizons, Isobel founded a small clarinet ensemble at KEVI which she is hoping to expand next year. After completing her A-levels, Isobel plans to go to university where she hopes to continue playing in music societies and bands.


Click on the photo to watch a video of Izzy performing with pianist Nick Taylor at the MMS 2024 AGM!

2023-24 scholarship winner - 

Will Cottiss

Will is currently in Year 12 at the King Edward Vi School (KEVI) where he is taking four A-Levels, amongst them both music and music technology. He is a prestigious drummer, achieving a distinction Grade 8 whilst he was in lower school and is currently working towards his Grade 8 on piano. 

 

He is in the school's choir, chamber choir, jazz band, steel pans and deps for concert band and has recently been made one of the four senior students for KEVI. As a dedicated all-round musician, Will makes the most of every opportunity to get involved, attending masterclasses, getting involved in school productions and playing and singing solos in concerts.

Morpeth Music Society 2023 Will Cottiss solo

Will had brought a complete drum kit and played an exciting mix of contemporary and jazz pieces for those present. There was then a photo call when Neil handed him the cheque and wished him well in all his future musical endeavours.


Click on the photo to watch a video of Will performing at the MMS 2023 AGM!

2022-23 scholarship winner - 

Lydia Fraser

Lydia  is a very talented flautist who will be taking her ABRSM Grade 8 exam soon. Although a comparatively late starter on the flute, she has gained a distinction for every flute exam that she has entered so far.


Lydia is in her final year at the King Edward VI School (KEVI) and will be taking music as one of her A Level subjects this coming summer.  Lydia plays 1st flute in our KEVI Community Orchestra and has performed several solos in concerts with this orchestra over many years.

Morpeth Music Society 2022 Lydia Fraser

Apart from her flute playing, Lydia is a lead player with our steel pan bands and has performed in numerous concerts around the North East and during European music tours. As a dedicated all-round musician, Lydia makes the most of every opportunity to get involved in the widest possible range of musical styles and she is both a composer and player with the KEVI Ceilidh Band and also sings in our choir and chamber choir. 


Lydia also enjoys being part of our musical and theatrical productions, and has just completed a starring and multilevel role in the play Teechers by John Godber.

2021-22 scholarship winner - 

Elizabeth Bennett




Elizabeth pictured on right with Dave Mann of the Hexham Violin Shop where she did her work experience!



Morpeth Music Society 2023 Elizabeth Bennett with Dave Mann

Elizabeth gained A* grades in both music and music technology A Level whilst studying at KEVI. She is at present an undergraduate studying music at Harvard University, USA.  She was the leader of the KEVI Community Orchestra and played many solos during her time with this orchestra, including the solo violin part in Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld overture.

 

Elizabeth is a Grade 8 violinist but also, unusually, also a Grade 8 classical guitarist, who enjoys a wide range of music from classical forms to folk genres and gypsy jazz styles.  She has sung with both our choir and chamber choir and has performed with our steel pan bands both here in the UK and also abroad during European music tours.  On one music tour, Elizabeth had the distinct honour of performing Massenet's Meditation in a concert in Barcelona's huge cathedral.  Elizabeth recently played the prominent solo violin part in the professional band that accompanied our highly successful musical production of Annie.

2020-21 scholarship winner - 

Angus Winton

Angus is currently studying music at Birmingham University. He is a prolific composer with rare talent for creating a wide range of music from powerfully imaginative film scores to intense multipart vocal ensembles.


Angus is a gifted brass player who plays both tenor horn and French horn to a very high standard. In our local community, Angus has performed many times at concerts, weddings and regional events with the famous Ellington Colliery Band which is one of the busiest and most highly rated brass bands in the North East.


He has also performed in many concerts with the KEVI Community Orchestra and when only in Year 11, performed in a brass quintet made up of classmates from KEVI, in a successful concert in the King's Hall, Newcastle.


Angus is also a keen singer with a wide ranging bass voice who has sung with our choir and chamber choir in many concerts both here in the North East and during European music tours.

2019-20 scholarship winner - 
Suzy Hull

Suzy Hull is studying music, music technology and English A level at KEVI. She started her musical career at the age of 5 by  learning the cello at the Sage Gateshead, moved to the violin and then swapped to woodwind, learning both clarinet and saxophone with Madeleine Garside and Leanne Todd. She plays saxophone in the Morpeth Community Jazz band and Jambone, the youth jazz ensemble based at the Sage, as well as clarinet in the KEVI orchestra. 

Suzy hopes to study either jazz or film music composition at a conservatoire starting next year. She put her scholarship towards finally buying a good quality instrument, which she can take off to college next September. 
Morpeth Music Society 2019 Suzy Hull

2018-19 scholarship winner - 
William Brown

William played the trombone in KEVI Jazz Band and was a lead bass singer in the KEVI choir and chamber choir.  In 2015, he sang Elgar's 'The Dream of Gerontius' with Quay Voices in the BBC Proms in a performance conducted by Sir Simon Rattle and accompanied by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.  William studied music, maths, further maths and physics and  plans to study Computer Science at university. 


Watch William's performance of 'The Foggy, Foggy Dew' for our 2018 AGM in the video!

2017-18 scholarship winner - 
Alistair McCubbin

Alistair studied music, maths and physics at The King Edward VI School and was in his final year in 2017-18.  Alistair was a very dedicated member of the music department as a leading member of the ceilidh band, choir, chamber choir and, from September, co-leader of the KEVI Community Orchestra.  Alistair plans to take his Grade 8 Violin exam in November 2018 and recently gained a Distinction in Grade 8 Singing. 

After his A levels, Alistair plans to study music or physics at university. Alistair used his MMS scholarship award to help to fund an Eton Choral course at St John's College, Cambridge.

 For the 2017 Morpeth Music Society AGM, Alistair performed Jerome Kern's 'Ol' Man River’ and John Ireland's 'Sea Fever' as well as performing the first movement from J.S. Bach's 'Cello Suite No. 1 in G' on the Mandola.

2016-17 scholarship winner -
Amy Locks

Amy is a violinist (grade 8) who co-led the KEVI Community Orchestra and was a senior member of the Ceilidh Band. She also sang in the KEVI chamber choir and choir, and took part in the school's music tour to Salzburg in July 2016 where they put on five concerts.

Amy gained a high A grade in AS music and an A* in GCSE music.


At the 2015-16 MMS AGM, Amy performed Handel's 'Harmonious Blacksmith' theme and variations on the piano and 'Polish Dance' by Edmund Severn on the violin with her mother accompanying on the piano.

2015-16 scholarship winner - 
Scott Martin

Scott was a student at King Edward VI School.  He gained A* grades in 2015 for his GCSE music solo and ensemble pieces, both of which were awarded full marks.
Scott led the Northumberland based regional folk ensemble, The Northumbrian Ranters, with whom he has toured to the U.S.  Scott is equally passionate about classical and folk music styles, and was a leading first violinist in KEVI Community Orchestra. 
Morpeth Music Society 2018 Scott Martin receiving cheque

2012-13 scholarship winner -

Rachael Steel

MMS president Ian Armstrong presenting a cheque to scholarship winner Rachael Steel at the 2012 MMS AGM.

Morpeth Music Society 2012 MMS scholarship winner Rachael Steel receiving cheque from MMS President Ian Armstrong

2011-12 scholarship winner -

Charlotte Kennedy

MMS chair Kathy Smith presenting a cheque to pianist Charlotte Kennedy at the 2011 MMS AGM.

Morpeth Music Society 2011 MMS scholarship winner Charlotte Kennedy receiving cheque from MMSchair Kathy Smith

2010-11 scholarship winner -

David Forbes

MMS President Ian Armstrong presenting a cheque to David Forbes at the 2010 MMS AGM.

Morpeth Music Society 2010 MMS scholarship winner David Forbes receiving cheque from MMS President Ian Armstrong

2007-08 scholarship winner - 

Kathryn Lawson