Edinburgh International Festival announced Honorary Vice-President.
At last night’s Opening Concert of the 67th Edinburgh International Festival, Director Jonathan Mills announced Dr Carol Colburn Grigor as Honorary Vice-President of the Edinburgh International Festival Society.
The first Honorary Vice-President was the Countess of Rosebery who was a founding member of the Festival back in 1947 and who alongside Rudolf Bing, Henry Harvey Wood, Sidney Newman and John Falconer, civic leaders of the city at the time, breathed life into the Festival.
Festival Director Jonathan Mills said:- ‘For the past 66 years the Edinburgh International Festival has been extremely fortunate in the range and diversity of passionate advocates devoted to its success and well-being. Those that work for the Festival are deeply indebted and fired by these rare and remarkable individuals who derive pleasure from sharing their ‘love of humanity’ through their philanthropy with the rest of us.
‘The depth of Mrs Grigor’s contribution to the visual and performing arts, and particularly to music and opera, throughout the UK but especially in Scotland, is simply astonishing. With characteristic self-depreciation Carol explains her behaviour in terms of genetics; suggesting that she was born with the ‘giving gene’. It is our honour to have her accept this role as Honorary Vice-President of the Festival.’
This year’s celebrated Opening Concert at the Usher Hall featured Prokofiev’s rousing film score for Eisenstein’s Alexander Nevsky. An all star Russian line up joined with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Edinburgh Festival Chorus to open the Festival to a packed hall. The Festival’s Honorary President Valery Gergiev conducts the home talents alongside glittering mezzo soprano Yulia Matochkina and the trail blazing young pianist Daniil Trifonov whose debut raised Festival audiences to their feet in a standing ovation last year.
American-born former concert pianist Carol Colburn Grigor has been described as one of the most ‘significant, prolific, and dedicated’ philanthropists in the UK.
Her deep passion for the arts could be said to be in her genes; her music-loving businessman father, Richard D. Colburn, donated generously and strategically, though quietly, to classical music, particularly in Los Angeles.
Through family-founded Dunard Fund and Dunard Fund USA, Grigor has provided tens of millions of pounds for a wide range of arts organisations including the Edinburgh International Festival, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Monteverdi Choir, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Scottish Opera, Dunedin Consort, the National Galleries of Scotland and most recently the new studio space of Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre.
In particular her commitment to the work of the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) represents the most significant contribution of private support received from one source in its 65-year history; over £8m has been given in the last 15 years alone. Her contributions have been recognised by a number of prestigious appointments and awards including honorary Commander of the British Empire (CBE), as an inaugural recipient of the Prince of Wales Medal for Philanthropy, the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettre, and by an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Edinburgh Napier University.
Grigor’s whole life is oriented around music philanthropy, and without it the EIF say that the UK’s cultural sector would be considerably poorer and less innovative.
Photo by Stuart Armitt.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
