Leading experts reveal their ‘dismay’ at council plans to axe music tuition
A group of leading Scottish musicologists have written an open letter to a local authority expressing their “dismay” at plans to axe school music tuition in its schools.
More than 30 academics have warned that failing to invest in the next generation of musicians will leave Scotland “poorer in every possible sense of the word.”
It comes ahead of today’s full council meeting at Midlothian Council which will discuss how to bridge a budget gap of more than £7.7 million.
The musicologists said they held “deep concerns” over Midlothian Council’s controversial proposal to end musical instrument teaching in schools for pupils not studying for a qualification in the subject.
They said that while the council may face “hard choices” in balancing its budget, cutting the tuition would have “far reaching implications”.
In all, there are 31 signatories to the letter, drawn from the Reid School of Music at the Edinburgh College of Art, the University of Glasgow, Napier University, the University of Aberdeen, and Queen Margaret University.
Their letter states: “We are writing to express our deep concern in response to reports that Midlothian Council intend to reduce drastically the provision of musical instrumental tuition for school children.
“We are dismayed by the dismantling of educational and social provision that should rightly serve all children in Scotland, shaping the opportunities available to them through their lives.”
The plans have also been criticised by members of the public.
A petition against local authority’s proposals, hosted on the 38 Degrees website, has attracted nearly 12,000 signatures to date.
A spokesman for the council said: “Councillors share the concerns about the detrimental impact this may have on our young people, as will other areas of proposed budget cuts in education and beyond.
“This proposal has been put forward by council officers as part of a range of measures to balance the council budget. This proposal, like others, is due to the non-statutory nature of music tuition and our first obligation is to deliver our statutory function.”
He added that while the council has received many complaints, “only one organisation” has proposed a possible solution, citing Denbighshire Council in Wales, which runs a “music co-operative”.
The spokesman explained: “This may offer alternative solutions to the musicians and staff affected by this proposal.”