Testimonials

I was delighted to receive funding towards the costs of putting on workshops for the young people on the Isle of Arran as part of my winter tour in December.

These workshops were available to all high school students who played an instrument, traditional or otherwise and we had 30 participants.

The workshops were a huge success with Charlie Stewart teaching fiddle, Graeme Armstrong teaching guitar/multi instrument accompaniment and myself teaching the pipers. It was clear that the young people engaged with the new instructors.

The pipers learned a new tune to perform at the evening concert and also a couple of short melodies by ear which was a new experience and a different way of thinking. The fiddles and accompanists performed together playing two brand new tunes they had learned at the workshop and working on arrangement styles together as well.

Using the grant from the Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust allowed the musicians giving the workshop to be paid fairly and to offset the some of the costs of travel.

This is a model of workshop/performance in smaller local areas that I’d like to build in the future.

Thanks for everything that you do GDMT!

We would like to say a huge thank you to the Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust for their amazing support of the Strathmore Schools Pipe Band Project.

The funding we received has enabled us to employ specialist instructors to run weekly pipe band practices, completely free of charge to our young people. This support has removed financial barriers and ensured that pupils from a wide range of backgrounds can access high‑quality tuition and take part fully in pipe band activities.

It has been wonderful to see how much our young people have grown and developed through these regular band practices not only in their musical ability, but also in confidence, teamwork and commitment. The impact of this support is clear in both the progress pupils are making and their enthusiasm for being part of the band.

We are incredibly grateful for the Trust’s continued belief in our project and in the young people it supports.

Lewis & Harris Youth Pipe Band aspire to continue our group’s development aims by competing at and representing the Western Isles and North of Scotland at as many pipe band competitions and events as possible. As an island-based band, the costs of travel and subsistence for band players and supporters continues to be significantly higher than for other bands that are based on the mainland. All of the costs associated with running and developing the pipe band for our youth members, including travel and subsistence, are covered through fundraising and donations to the group from our many valued supporters.

We were delighted that The Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust agreed to award us £1000 to help with costs of travel to and from the SSPDT Championships in March 2025. Without this support we simply would not be able to travel and take part in competitions on the mainland and the players would miss out on the experience, learning and enjoyment of taking part.

The band represented themselves so well and did us all proud on the day and were absolutely thrilled and honoured to be awarded The Eilidh MacLeod Endeavour Award as recognition of all their efforts.

Thank you for helping us get there Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust!

Ros James applied for funding for the band from the Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust at a time when we were unsure if we were going to make the return trip to Barga in Italy to perform at their annual Scottish weekend in September.
The trip was possibly going to be too expensive to take the whole band and supervisors.
A small team of us set about fundraising to help pay for flights and accommodation, thats when Ros applied for funding, we were delighted when she was successful.
Raising money for trips like this isnt an easy task, without fundraising bands like ours would struggle, we are extremely grateful to receive this funding thank you for supporting us its very much appreciated.
The trip went ahead and was very successful, the band were extremely well received in Italy and many new friendships were formed.
We have been invited back next year but have decided as a band to do more competing, so aswell as the Scottish Schools Pipe Band Championships we are also hoping to compete in the World Pipe Band Championships for the first time so for now itll be lots of practice and back to the fundraising.

Garnock Valley Pipes and Drums would like to thank Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust for their generous contribution of £1,000 towards tutor costs for our ‘Wee Pipers in the Park’ Summer School 2025.

Thanks to your funding, we were able to bring together 30 enthusiastic young people for a full week of learning, creativity and community. Under the guidance of skilled and experienced tutors, participants had the opportunity to develop their piping and drumming skills, explore new musical techniques and grow in confidence. Many of our young musicians achieved noticeable progress over the week and several discovered new passions or strengthened their commitment to their instrument.

But the summer school offered far more than music lessons. The young people enjoyed a wide range of games and team activities, giving them time to relax, have fun and get to know one another. The atmosphere throughout the summer school was inspiring-filled with laughter, learning and the buzz of young people discovering what they are capable of.

Thank you once again for believing in the value of youth music and for helping us provide an experience that these young people will remember for years to come. We are deeply appreciative of your support and delighted to have you as part of our journey in nurturing the next generation of pipers and drummers.