Lady Marion Anne Fraser (née Forbes; 17 October 1932 – 25 December 2016) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

music educator.

Personal life

Fraser was the daughter of Elizabeth Taylor Watt and Robert Forbes. She attended school in Glasgow at Hutchesons' Girls' Grammar School, going on to the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

in 1950, to study for an MA. While a student at the university, she was elected president of the Queen Margaret Union. She then attended the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama () is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Founde ...

where she studied piano. In 1956, she married William Kerr Fraser, a former president of the

Glasgow University Students' Representative Council The Glasgow University Students' Representative Council, also known simply as the Students' Representative Council or by the acronyms GUSRC and SRC is a student union at the University of Glasgow. Unlike at other universities in the United Kin ...

and at the time a junior civil servant at the

Scottish Office The Scottish Office was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Following the es ...

. He went on to become

permanent secretary A permanent secretary is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are ...

there, and later

principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

and then

Chancellor of the University of Glasgow The chancellor is the titular head of the University of Glasgow and president of the general council, by whom they are elected. The office is intended to be held for life. Their principal duty is to confer degrees upon those presented to them b ...

. The couple had three sons and one daughter.

Career

Fraser worked as a music teacher and became director of

St Mary's Music School St Mary's Music School is a music school in Scotland in the West End of Edinburgh, for children aged 9 to 19 and is also the Choir School of St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral. The school, which is non-denominational, provides education for child ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

from 1989 to 1995, as well as being founding chair of the Friends of the

Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country's national academy of art. It promotes contemporary art, contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy ...

from 1986 to 1989, a governor of the former

Laurel Bank School Laurel may refer to: Plants * Lauraceae, the laurel family * Laurel (plant), including a list of trees and plants known as laurel People * Laurel (given name), people with the given name * Laurel (surname), people with the surname * Laurel (mu ...

for Girls from 1988 to 1995 and a Director of

Scottish Opera Scottish Opera is the national opera company of Scotland, and one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Founded in 1962 and based in Glasgow, it is the largest performing arts organisation in Scotland. History Scottish Op ...

from 1990 to 1994. In 1996, shortly after stepping down as Director of St. Mary's, she was created a Lady of the

Order of the Thistle The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland, who asserted that he was reviving an earlier order. The ...

. Her husband had been created a Knight Commander of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in 1979 (and subsequently elevated within the order to Knight Grand Cross), entitling her to be addressed as Lady Fraser; however, she now became Lady Marion Fraser in her own right. Fraser had been a trustee of the Scottish Churches Architectural Heritage Trust since 1989, and President of

Scotland's Churches Scheme Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

since 1997. She was trustee of the

Lamp of Lothian Collegiate Trust Lamp, Lamps or LAMP may refer to: Lighting * Oil lamp, using an oil-based fuel source * Kerosene lamp, using kerosene as a fuel * Electric lamp, or light bulb, a replaceable component that produces light from electricity * Light fixture, or li ...

from 1996 to 2005, and chairman of the Board of

Christian Aid Christian Aid is a relief and development charity of 41 Christian (Protestant and Orthodox) churches in Great Britain and Ireland, and works to support sustainable development, eradicate poverty, support civil society and provide disaster rel ...

from 1990 to 1997, and of both the

Scottish International Piano Competition The Scottish International Piano Competition is a classical piano competition established in 1986 and taking place every three years in Glasgow, UK. The competition is open to pianists of any nationality aged between 18 and 30. Winners are award ...

and the

Scottish Association for Mental Health Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

from 1995 to 1999. She served as

Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the monarch's personal representative to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland (the Kirk), reflecting the Church's role as the national church of Scotla ...

from 1994 to 1995. Fraser was made an Honorary Member of the Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh in 1998 and an Honorary Fellow of the

Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow is a global community of over 15,000 Members working together to develop skills, knowledge and leadership to drive the highest standards in healthcare. For 425 years, the Royal College of ...

in 2002, and was awarded an honorary

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

degree by the

in 1995 and an honorary D.Univ. degree by the

University of Stirling The University of Stirling (abbreviated as Stir or Shruiglea, in post-nominals; ) is a public university in Stirling, Scotland, founded by a royal charter in 1967. It is located in the Central Belt of Scotland, built within the walled Airth ...

in 1998. She died at St Columba's Hospice, Edinburgh, on 25 December 2016.

Arms

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Marion 1932 births 2016 deaths Alumni of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Alumni of the University of Glasgow Ladies of the Thistle Lords High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland People educated at Hutchesons' Grammar School Place of birth missing Scottish music educators Scottish women music educators Scottish schoolteachers 20th-century Scottish educators 21st-century Scottish educators 20th-century Scottish women educators 21st-century Scottish women educators