Tuesday 11 November 2025: The Ramsay Postgraduate Scholarship distinguishes itself through its unique multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional approach, empowering Australia’s future leaders and brightest minds to pursue their global ambitions.

In the music and creative arts space, current and past Ramsay Scholars have set high benchmarks and hit some incredible high notes during and post-study.

2022 Ramsay Scholar Hamish Wagstaff was supported by the Centre to study a Master of Arts in Organ Performance at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He aspires to revitalise the role of organ music in classical traditions, inspiring a new generation of listeners and enriching Australia’s musical landscape.

Hamish recently completed his study under British organist David Titterington, graduating with Distinction and the coveted DipRAM, awarded for outstanding performance in his final recital. Whilst at the Academy, Hamish appeared as a concerto soloist in the Duke’s Hall, won the Peter Le Huray Organ Prize for Baroque Music, and obtained the Fellowship of the Royal College of Organists with the Dixon Prize. He is presently Organ Scholar at St Paul’s Cathedral, London and prior to this was the Organ Scholar at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle and at All Saints Margaret Street, London.

2023 Scholar Holly Broadbent, also an accomplished organist, has completed a Master of Music at Yale University and returned to Australia to be the Principal Organist of St. Mary’s Cathedral in Perth.

“I remember when I was interviewed for the Ramsay Scholarship I said that my future aspiration was to be a cathedral organist and to work with choirs to educate young musicians,” Holly says. “At that time I didn’t know how I would achieve it and I felt I was taking a huge risk in leaving Australia to pursue my Masters. It’s hard to believe that I am now doing exactly what I set out to do and I am so thankful for the support that the Ramsay Centre has provided over the last two years as it allowed me to pursue a degree that gave me the ability to achieve my dream career.”

Violinist, 2023 Scholar James Tudball studied a Master of Arts (Performance) at the Royal Academy of Music in London, graduating in July this year.

He was awarded the LRAM (Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music in Pedagogy) with Distinction, was appointed to the board of the European String Teachers Association and, in recognition of his contribution, subsequently elected Vice Chair. He has taught undergraduate violin students as a faculty member at King’s College London and worked with young musicians at the Virtuoso International Music Academy at Winchester College where he is now Course Director. His performance highlights this year have included appearances at the Royal Albert Hall and the Courtauld Art Gallery, as well as regular engagements with the London Music Theatre Orchestra.

“I was also deeply honoured to be awarded the Freedom of the City of London (an historic civic honour dating back to 1237) in recognition of my cultural contribution as a city scholar, a particularly meaningful milestone after only two years in the UK,” James says.

Beyond the concert platform, James was invited to a political colloquium in Monaco in July, joining discussions on small and quasi states in global affairs alongside the Assistant Secretary-General to the Commonwealth, Ireland’s Director of Cultural Diplomacy, and Monaco’s Ambassador to UNESCO. He ran the 2025 London Marathon, raising funds for Children with Cancer UK, and attended a Shakespeare Colloquium at Cumberland Lodge, with the Head of the Royal Shakespeare Company. James is currently the Assistant Music Schools Manager at Eton College in Windsor, UK.  

“Above all, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Ramsay Centre. None of these achievements would have been possible without Paul Ramsay’s vision and the Centre’s generosity. The scholarship not only enabled me to pursue my studies at the Royal Academy of Music but also opened the door to the extraordinary opportunities that have followed,” James says.

Among those still completing their studies, 2023 Scholar Aidan McGartland is pursuing PhD research at McGill University in Canada. His dissertation focuses on the reception and analysis of musical modernism in mid-twentieth-century Britain through sketch studies and score analysis and is titled ‘Serial Composition and Ideology in Postwar Britain Through the Work of Elisabeth Lutyens and Benjamin Britten’.

“Over the past three years, the Ramsay Centre’s support has been invaluable in allowing me to engage deeply with my topic, present at academic conferences across North America, Britain and Australia, and contribute meaningfully to the scholarly community. The funding has allowed me to travel for the archival research required for my dissertation, most notably my recent placement as Visiting Researcher at the Music Faculty of the University of Oxford for Trinity Term 2025,” Aidan says.

2023 Scholar Izaac Masters has completed his first year of the Master of Early Music degree at the Amsterdam Conservatorium by giving a piano recital on three rare instruments from the 19th century. Recently, he was invited to present a recital at the world’s largest early music festival in Utrecht, Netherlands. Izaac says these recitals were unique because they gave the audiences a very rare opportunity to experience the sound of pianos from the 19th century, which all present a wide range of sonic colours and aesthetics from that time. The music he chose, by Beethoven among others, was used to bringing out the best sounds from each piano. 

Izaac also recently met with the Ambassador of Australia to the Netherlands Dr Greg French. “Our discussion was incredibly encouraging regarding the importance of the arts in all parts of the community, particularly music, and its ability to bring people together”. 

“This past year has been life altering for me thanks to the Ramsay Centre. As a pianist from Perth who specialises in early pianos, this scholarship has been extremely valuable and a once in a life time opportunity. It has enabled me to travel throughout Europe to build meaningful connections with some of the world’s leading classical music artists, and to undertake research in performance practices from the 19th century.” Izaac says. 

In addition to these scholars, the Ramsay Centre has supported many other Australian leaders and practitioners in the music and creative arts space including:

• 2021 Scholar Stephanie Shon – Doctor of Philosophy in Music, University of Oxford
• 2021 Scholar Emma Williams –  PhD in Artistic Research, Leiden University, the Netherlands
• 2022 Scholar Jasper Schoff – Master of Philosophy in Music, University of Cambridge
• 2023 Scholar Rafael Echevarria – PhD in Music, Durham University, UK
• 2024 Scholar Anna Freer – Masters in Music Pedagogy, Zurich University of the Arts
• 2024 Scholar Emma Nihill – Master of Studies in English Language and Literature (650-1550) – University of Oxford (pursuing a career in artistic directorship)
• 2025 Scholar Vedika Rampal  – Master of Contemporary Art Practice, Royal College of Art, London

Are you a musician or in the creative and performing arts space and interested in a Ramsay Postgraduate Scholarship?

Our scholarships support young Australian leaders to study at the world’s best overseas universities and are valued at up to AUD$90,000 p.a.

For more information visit: https://ramsaypostgradscholarship.com/

Media contact: Sarah Switzer 0407 816 098 / sarah.switzer@ramsaycentre.org