John Wallace

This is Professor John Wallace, Principal of the Royal Conservatoire and a very notable trumpeter in his own right.

I was at the Conservatoire this morning and I always enjoy my visits as it is such a positive and life affirming place.

John is a key part of that atmosphere and during my discussions this morning he produced from his pocket a mouthpiece for a trumpet which he had made specifically for playing the Trumpet Concerto "Epiclesis" by James MacMillan, a work which was written for him. He also let slip that he is involved in manufacturing mutes for brass instruments which are of the highest standard and made for top professional players.

I had already decided I had to blip John today, as he is standing down from the Conservatoire in September. Those stories however made the picture even more essential and I noticed the right shot when we were walking through one of the construction studios at the Speirs Lock premises, though the sounds John then made with just a mouthpiece were things to treasure, not block out.

By the way , later on he dropped another wonderful piece of information into our willing ears - the fact that James Watt not only developed the steam engine, but also made musical instruments some of which are in the Hunterian Museum in Glasgow. So manufacturing and music can go hand in hand - or STEM subjects and the arts as he put it.