ISM NEWS: Lady Walton made Honorary ISM Member
04 May 2005
Lady Susana Walton MBE, the composer’s widow, has been made an Honorary
Member of the ISM.
The Society’s Bye-laws say that ‘persons who have given Public Service to the
Art of Music or to kindred Arts and Sciences shall be eligible for nomination
and election as Honorary Members’. In 1992, Council decided as a matter of
general policy, Honorary Members should not be drawn from the ranks of
professional musicians, but should be distinguished figures from other
disciplines. In recent years, Dr Norman Cooper, Sir Ernest Hall, Katharine
Duchess of Kent, Elizabeth Poulsen, Leopold de Rothschild, Paul Strang, Sir John
Tusa and Nicola Wallis have been elected to Honorary Membership. They have
joined figures such as Lord Harewood, Lady Aberdeen, Sir Edward Heath, Ursula
Vaughan Williams, Robert Ponsonby and Sir John Tooley.
Council decided unanimously at their meeting in March to offer this distinction
to Lady Walton. Her name was put forward by Past President Professor John
Morehen, supported by the President, Professor George Caird, and Ordinary
Councillor Oliver Gledhill, South London Regional Councillor Margaret Turner,
and PCS Warden Philip Fowke. The citation read:
‘During Sir William Walton’s lifetime, Lady Walton devoted herself primarily to
supporting him in his work. He and Lady Walton had resolved that, on his death,
the substantial income accruing from royalties and performing rights would be
channelled into charitable trusts promoting music education. Accordingly, in
1984 Lady Walton established the William Walton Trust. The Trust promotes
creative music-making in schools with limited music provision, particularly in
deprived areas. In this way, children who would not normally have an opportunity
to handle musical instruments are able to work with a professional orchestra
and, eventually, perform part of an opera. Each year, thousands of children aged
between seven and 11 participate in these workshops. In 1999, for instance, the
Trust funded a six-month project in schools in Nottinghamshire, enabling
children to access classical music in a dynamic and exciting way. The project
incorporated creative workshops, visits to rehearsals with the Royal
Philharmonic Orchestra, and specially-targeted family concerts. The final event
of the programme brought together all the participating schools to share the
pieces they had created in their classrooms, culminating in a final performance
for their parents.
‘In 1989 Lady Walton established the Trust’s ‘twin’ – the William Walton
Foundation. She built a Recital Hall and Walton Archive on to her superb home,
located within the magnificent estate of La Mortella in Ischia in the Bay of
Naples. There the Foundation promotes regular masterclasses for aspiring young
British and Italian musicians, particularly opera singers, thus bringing the
Waltons’ plans to fruition. The students, who are selected after fiercely
competitive auditions held in England and Italy, participate under the guidance
of the world’s leading teachers. All the students’ costs are fully underwritten
by the Foundation. Supporting events, particularly weekend recitals, are staged
throughout the summer months, with artists drawn from music conservatories in
Naples and Florence. La Mortella also provides a quiet environment for study
visits by promising young composers.
‘In 2002 Lady Walton agreed to become a patron of ‘Funding a Future’, an
initiative set up by the Worshipful Company of Musician to assist young artists
at the outset of their professional career.
‘In the Millennium New Year’s Honours List, Lady Walton was appointed MBE for
her contribution to Anglo-Italian relations, receiving her award from the patron
of the William Walton Trust and the William Walton Foundation, HRH the Prince of
Wales.’
Accepting the offer, Lady Walton said: ‘I am delighted to accept and honoured to
be made an Honorary Member of the Society’
Details of the William Walton Trust, including La Mortella, are at
www.waltontrust.org.uk.
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