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Two of the UK's most respected arts institutions today announced a series of joint initiatives designed to create a lasting arts legacy for Scotland.

The Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama are developing a unique partnership that will give Academy students unparalleled opportunities to learn within one of the UK's leading orchestras, working alongside one of the world’s most eminent conductors.

Conducting masterclasses with Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO Chief Conductor Donald Runnicles in addition to concerto masterclasses for soloists and a unique postgraduate conducting placement, are among the new initiatives announced today.

These joint ventures will augment an expanded RSAMD / Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO Student Mentoring Scheme. The scheme, which has been running for the past two years, is now open to all orchestral students from the Academy, presenting an opportunity to rehearse and learn in the challenging atmosphere of a leading broadcasting orchestra.

Students are invited to audition under professional conditions, and if successful will spend four sessions with the orchestra, working under the professional scrutiny of the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO's players, conductors and radio producers. Auditions for the current Mentoring Scheme took place in early November, and the first successful applicants will join the orchestra in rehearsal from December 2009.

The Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO's Chief Conductor Donald Runnicles has been appointed the first International Fellow in Conducting at the RSAMD as well as recently being invited onto the Academy's Board of Governors.

Recognised as one of the finest international conductors of symphonic and operatic repertoire, Maestro Runnicles will lead a group of RSAMD students in a Conducting Masterclass in January 2010. Under his expert guidance, each student will have the opportunity to conduct the entire Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO on core items from the symphonic repertoire.

This partnership also provides a unique opportunity for the Academy's first Postgraduate Conducting Fellow, Jessica Cottis. Since October 2009, she has been Donald Runnicles' assistant conductor with the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO, working closely with him on projects that have included such epic works as Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe and Mahler's First Symphony.

Ms Cottis, who will participate in the conducting masterclass, is a graduate from the postgraduate conducting course at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she was the winner of the Ernest Reed and Fred Southall Conducting Prizes. For the RSAMD, Jessica Cottis will conduct performances of Rory Boyle's new opera Kasper Hauser and Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro.

Advanced performing students from the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the School of Music will be invited to audition for Concerto Masterclasses. Four students will be selected to work on items from the concerto repertoire and mentored and coached on their performance by principal players from the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO. Following the coaching sessions, each student will have the opportunity to perform their concerto with the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO before an invited audience.

Principal of the RSAMD, Professor John Wallace, said: "I am delighted that we are reinforcing our relationship with the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO. We have been involved with them for some time now and this formal association shows that Scotland is at the heart of music education in the UK. Donald Runnicles is a valued and important member of the Academy's Board of Governors and it is an honour to have someone of his calibre investing so much of his time in our City."

Donald Runnicles said: "It is important to instill a real sense of collaboration between Scotland's conservatoire and our great orchestras and companies, and these initiatives are an excellent starting point. This is a marvellous investment on the part of both the Academy and the Ö÷²¥´óÐã in our new generation of artists, creating a lasting legacy for Scotland. I am thrilled that the world class Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish Symphony Orchestra and I are part of it, and I can think of no better environment for aspiring players in our profession to really learn the tools of their trade."

Director of the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Gavin Reid, said: "It is vital that we develop the strongest possible links with our national conservatoire in order to further develop Scotland's position as a major force in music education and performance."

Both the Conducting and Concerto Masterclasses will take place at the Ö÷²¥´óÐã SSO's home at City Halls, Glasgow on 26 January and 3 February 2010 respectively.

SD3