In 2026, we partner with the University of Edinburgh to mark 300 years of medical education at Edinburgh Medical School.

At the heart of this collaboration is Silent Teachers, an ambitious, multistrand artistic project that brings together new music, performance, film and learning. Inspired by the individuals who donate their bodies to medical teaching and research (known within anatomy as ‘silent teachers’), the project explores how music can offer space for reflection, gratitude and remembrance, while opening new conversations between art and science.

Commissioned by the University of Edinburgh as part of the Edinburgh Medical School’s anniversary programme, Silent Teachers is a new work by SCO Associate Composer Jay Capperauld, written for clarinet and string quartet. The music is shaped by the dignity and generosity of those who become ‘silent teachers’ to generations of medical students, and by the care, pastoral support and rituals of remembrance that surround the anatomical bequest programme.

Silent Teachers will be premiered on 17 November 2026 in the Edinburgh Futures Institute, the University’s new interdisciplinary space for learning and innovation, to coincide with the 300th anniversary of the founding of Edinburgh Medical School. The performance will be presented alongside a public lecture, placing the music within a wider conversation about medicine, ethics, teaching and remembrance. 

An excerpt of Silent Teachers will live on beyond its premiere, becoming part of the Medical School’s annual memorial service, a rare example of a contemporary commission designed to have an enduring ceremonial life.

To extend the reach and impact of the Silent Teachers project, Jay’s new work will form part of two short films including an online performance of Silent Teachers and interviews with Jay Capperauld and Edinburgh Medical School staff. The films will be shared across SCO, University of Edinburgh and Scotsman platforms, creating a lasting artistic record accessible to audiences in Scotland and internationally.

Online broadcast date: Wed 18 Nov, 7.30pm | FREE to view [link to Silent Teachers event page]

Co-presented by The Scotsman

Soundbox

Running alongside the commission, Silent Teachers also seeds future creativity through Soundbox, the SCO’s mentoring programme for early career composers. Working closely with Jay Capperauld and SCO musicians, composition students from the University of Edinburgh will develop new solo works through workshops, feedback sessions and collaborative rehearsals. The programme culminates in a sharing event in June 2026, where the new pieces will be performed by SCO musicians, giving young composers the rare opportunity to hear their work brought to life at the highest professional level.