Local insurance firm Sagicor has procured and handed over a professional performance piano to the Saint Lucia School of Music.
According to a release, Sagicor Life Inc. and Sagicor Finance Inc. decided to take on the initiative as a means of helping to enable the school to offer courses with higher levels of certification.
In that regard, an A228 Bechstein 7.5-foot performance grand piano was purchased and handed over to the school during a ceremony on July 15 at the Golden Palms Event Center in Rodney Bay.
The professional instrument is hoped to “attract international performers for musical showcases through which the school can foster a greater appreciation of music among St. Lucians”.
Sagicor Life Inc is donating EC$25,000 over three years and Sagicor Finance Inc. EC$18,000 in the period of about 18 months.
The St. Lucia School of Music currently has 500 students in eight locations. It was established in 1988 and offers programmes which include education in a variety of music disciplines as well as social inclusion projects for at-risk children.
Speakers at the ceremony included Rae Atkinson, general manager and principal representative of Sagicor Life Inc; Curtis Haynes, operations manager, Sagicor Finance Inc. and Richard Payne, executive director, St. Lucia School of Music.