GREG LAWSON TELLS SCHOOL PUPILS TO HAVE NO BOUNDARIES
Greg talks to the class. Image by Douglas Robertson
City of Edinburgh Music School pupils. Image by Douglas Robertson
Greg Lawson and City of Edinburgh Music School pupils. Image by Douglas Robertson
Greg Lawson, City of Edinburgh Music School pupils and their teacher Tudor Morris pose in front of the painting of Martyn Bennett. Image by Douglas Robertson
In a visit to the City of Edinburgh Music School at Broughton High School on Wednesday 26 March, Greg Lawson, violinist, composer and arranger gave a talk about the legacy of the late Martyn Bennett. Martyn, a former pupil of the school, was hailed as a fine example to these young music students.
In the recital room of the school a large painting of Martyn adorns the wall, though few of the youngsters were sure of who he was. Greg’s enthusiastic seminar gave them some examples of his recordings and an overview of the work of one of the finest musicians Scotland has ever produced.
Greg talked about the respect Martyn had for the past and how important this knowledge of our combined musical heritage was for anyone considering a career in music. He marvelled at how it is possible now to find any kind of music at the touch of a screen and that it is crucial to use that ease of access to explore what came before, to understand the history of tunes and songs you’d like to perform.
Another key theme was the idea of no boundaries in music. Martyn Bennett himself was as keen to explore traditional music as classical, to explore jazz as electronica. Greg talked about his own background being one of eclectic tastes and being told by teachers, and his contemporaries, that he should concentrate on one genre.
Greg said that Martyn Bennett brought everything together in a grand celebration of the human existence. He talked about how Martyn’s life was cut short at just 33, and after he died others talked about ways to preserve his legacy. Martyn’s final album Grit, put together largely on computer, had never been performed in his lifetime.
The big idea was then to build a grand ensemble of folk, jazz and classical musicians to play this great work and Greg had the job of orchestrating the music. This became the Grit Orchestra who first played at Celtic Connections in 2015.
If the pupils thought that this was a big, scary job, they were probably right, but Greg explained it as building a big instrument or big frequency machine made up of humans with voices and instruments.
The visiting musician left the pupils with a few closing ideas: that perfection isn’t really attainable, but that you can walk towards it all your life; that curiosity is stronger than fear; and, during his own career, that the desire to work across the genres has been stronger than everyone who told him not to!
The school’s head of music, Tudor Morris reported that he has had lots of positive reactions to the talk. “Greg is an amazing character,” he said, “And has excelled in so many areas of music. It was an inspiring and entertaining afternoon.”
Watch Martyn Bennett play live >>
Watch the Grit Orchestra play live >>
Greg Lawson is this year’s Edinburgh Tradfest-sponsored tutor at the City of Edinburgh Music School. He will be performing as part of Ross Ainslie and the Sanctuary Band on Friday 2 May at the Queen’s Hall. Martyn Bennett: the music lives on is at The Traverse on Sunday 4 May.