East Ayrshire pupils are among the first to benefit from the super new Scottish Music Hall of Fame’s education plans – and first ever to work with world-famous sound systems manufacturers Linn Products.

Music mad youngsters from Kilmarnock’s James Hamilton Academy had the time of their lives learning about careers in the modern, hi-tech industry from the experts – including Hall of Fame managing director Ewan MacLeod.

In a new project for East Ayrshire Council’s school music service, 42 third to sixth year pupils spent three days at Linn’s factory,  just 15 minutes from Kilmarnock, with Ewan – who is also a former talent scout, TV presenter and the man who set up Beat 106 before selling it to Capital Radio (now XFM Scotland) for millions.

Scotland’s £6 million Music Hall of Fame is an amazing new 4D interactive visitor attraction that will be opening next to the Riverside Museum in Glasgow, showcasing Scotland’s rich and diverse modern music culture and heritage and nurturing future rock stars.

Although not yet built, the Hall of Fame’s education department is already running some innovative projects. East Ayrshire is the first local authority outside Glasgow to benefit from their expertise – and the first authority that Linn has ever partnered with in an education project.

The aim of the workshops was to broaden pupils’ understanding of the music industry, which is not just about performing, but also offers careers in accountancy, marketing, backstage trades and many other areas.

When watching a band, many people aren’t aware of the ‘behind the scenes’ staff it takes to run the show, from stage, tour and business management to promotions people and booking agents.

The young people learned about recording labels, copyrighting creative identity, implications to the music industry of illegal music sharing, technical production, use of social media, marketing and setting up bands as businesses.

The youngsters also listened to well-known songs and discussed their impact on pop culture. They saw Linn’s top notch products being designed in the research and development room and built and tested in the factory – and were able to play with some of the world’s best designed audio systems.

Gilad Tiefenbrun, managing director of Linn Products, said: “Linn is proud to support the Scotland’s Music Hall of Fame education programme and we were delighted to provide space in our newly refurbished listening rooms at our factory to host the workshops. It was a pleasure to see these young people so inspired by music”.

Ewan MacLeod said: “At Scotland’s Music Hall of Fame, it’s not enough for us to look merely at the past and the present – we also look to the future of Scottish music. That is what our education programme is all about.

“To be able to spend time with these young musicians and artists has been fantastic. We were able to engage with them in a very practical way, talking about how to protect themselves and their music and the different roles and professions within the music industry… and I hope inspire them towards careers in the business. To be able to do that in such a prestigious setting as Linn’s factory underpinned everything we set out to achieve”.

Paul Wood, East Ayrshire Council Instrumental Music Service Manager, who set up the project, said: “The pupils had a wonderful time at Linn’s state-of-the-art factory, working with Ewan.  Everyone had a chance to explore the various job opportunities and learned that performing is just the tip of a large iceberg called the music industry”.

Councillor Stephanie Primrose, Spokesperson for Lifelong Learning, said:  “This was clearly a fascinating and motivational experience from start to finish. Ewan led the young people on a journey through his own experiences and knowledge of the music industry and the pupils loved every second”.

Pupil Alison Harcourt said: “I loved being in a working factory and in the listening rooms, where there were amazing sound systems. Ewan gave me enthusiasm to know that I could make it in the music industry if I worked hard”.

Classmate Finn Gibson added: “Ewan helped me with my CV. I gained knowledge and a lot of confidence, which has increased my drive to try and get into the music industry”.