Boston beckons for young Fife drummer thanks to trust set up by Sean Connery & Jackie Stewart
A young drummer from Fife is heading to one of the world's leading music colleges.
Anna Fettes has been awarded a prestigious Fellowship by the Scottish International Education Trust (SIET) - founded by Sir Sean Connery and Sir Jackie Stewart - to help her take up a place at Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Anna, from Ceres, has been playing her drum kit since she was three, and decided at the age of 11 that she wanted to become a professional musician. Her first encounter with Berklee was in 2024, when she travelled alone to Boston at the age of 15 to attend a three-day drums and percussion workshop.
She said: “Even though it was short, I was completely hooked. For someone from a tiny Scottish village, being surrounded by people who are just as obsessed with music as I am was an indescribable feeling.
“It’s incredible to have the trust’s support to help fulfil my dream of becoming the first female Scottish drummer ever to study at Berklee College of Music.”
Anna's tutors will include past SIET Fellow and Berklee Associate Professor Gail McArthur-Browne, the saxophonist, composer and arranger from Glasgow.
Her Fellowship is one of nine awarded by SIET in its Autumn 2026 awards round, supporting Scots to pursue international study, research and professional opportunities.
Nick Bibby, chair said: “Anna’s story captures exactly why international educational experiences can be so powerful. She has shown extraordinary commitment to her music from a very young age, and we are delighted to help her take this next step.”
“What unites our new Fellows is not a particular subject or destination, but their belief in what an international experience can enable them to achieve. For some, this means studying with world-leading musicians; for others, undertaking research or gaining first-hand experience of international organisations.
Ken Thomson, SIET director added: “Our Fellows demonstrate the many different ways in which international education and experience can change the course of a life.
“These awards are about recognising ability and potential, but also about helping to remove financial barriers that can prevent talented people from taking up exceptional opportunities.”
The trust, which was established in 1971, supports Scots to access transformative international educational experiences, particularly where financial circumstances might otherwise prevent them from doing so.
It typically supports postgraduate education overseas, but also funds musicians, artists, craftspeople and other professionals where education involves developing specialist skills outside a conventional academic setting.