©Jonathan Glynn-Smith

The Gift of Music

On behalf of the Music Department, I have a special thanks to David Lees-Jones (Grenville 65), who has kindly gifted some very precious and valuable instruments to the School. David left Stowe to study music and went on to be the Head of Music at Epsom College and, subsequently, the Headmaster of Marlborough House School and Lockers Park.

David kindly donated a pair of precious Boosey & Hawkes Symphony 1010 Clarinets, long considered the orchestral instrument of choice and a precious Selmer Tenor Saxophone – the chosen saxophone of John Coltrane and Courtney Pine amongst others.

These are top class instruments and are worth around £8,000! We are hugely grateful for David’s generosity. In truth, the instruments are probably too good to be kept by the Department for occasional use, so David has agreed to allow the Selmer Saxophone to be sold and for the funds raised to be used to purchase a new instrument for the Department and also provide bursary support for a planned Choir trip to sing at the Carnegie Hall in New York later this year.

Craig Greene (Chandos 07), Director of Music

“[In recent years] my instruments have been sadly neglected and recently I have felt that the wind instruments must deserve a first-rate ‘home’; to that end I have recently had great pleasure in donating these instruments to the Music Department at Stowe.”

David Lees-Jones (Grenville 65)