Duncan Ferguson
Students from Duncan’s Studio have gone on to excel in institutions such as the Royal Academy of Music, Colburn, Julliard and Guildhall. Many are now enjoying professional roles in quartets, orchestras and teaching environments.
Duncan Ferguson is an eminently experienced violist. As a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician and teacher he has performed at the highest levels worldwide, developing a multi-faceted career.
He graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1992, studying viola with the renowned pedagogue James Durrant MBE for seven years. After winning multiple prizes and competitions, he was awarded an Exhibition and Full Scholarship to study with the Amadeus Quartet at the Royal Academy of Music, London.
Duncan was subsequently invited to join the highly regarded Medea Quartet, studying with many of the world’s great string quartets including The Amadeus, Borodin, Alban Berg, Bartok and La Salle. The quartet had five highly successful years of competing, recording and performing internationally, were awarded Leverhulme Fellowships from the RAM and held the String Quartet Residency at The University of York for 3 years before going their separate ways into the wider profession.
He joined both the English Chamber Orchestra and The Academy of St Martin in the Fields in the same week in late 1996 allowing a continued focus on chamber music; both orchestral and with the ASMF Chamber Ensemble with whom he toured extensively from 2003-2013 playing octets, sextets and quintets with the likes of Joshua Bell, Stephanie Gonley and Janine Jansen. He has performed concerts to diverse audiences in over 70 countries – ranging from all the world’s major concert halls to Soweto townships, from Buckingham Palace to local schools – and has a wealth of experience in coaching and teaching.
Duncan has appeared as a soloist on many occasions and performed frequently with most of the London-based orchestras, appearing as guest principal on many occasions; he has spent many hours in the most prestigious recording venues in London and can be heard on hundreds of classical, film and commercial recordings; he has taken part in numerous education projects (mainly for children with autism) and was a core member of the ASMF for 18 years. He joined the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in 2016 as sub-principal Viola but is now focusing his efforts on teaching: as Head of Chamber Music at St Mary’s Music School and as a Lecturer in Strings and Chamber Music at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where he has taken a Viola Studio since 2011.