b'PERFORMANCEA L L T H E W O R L DS A S T A G EIn 1904, Andrew Carnegie served as vice principal at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotlandtoday a world leader in performing arts education. We reveal what makes this Glasgow institution so special 6 6WORDS Gemma BillingtonI\x1d the European Capital of Culturethe first British and first non-capital magine you were asked to name the worlds best cities for arts and culture. Chances are, Glasgow wouldnt immediately springcity to receive the honour. The ensuing 12-month programme of to mind. Berlin, New York and Paris may have more prominence,events and activities had a major effect on the citys economy and but Scotlands largest city has flourished as a creative hub for decades. cultural offeringswith the council noting a 40 per cent rise in Many of the countrys most important cultural institutions callattendance at theatres, museums and galleriesand also created the city home, including Scottish Ballet, Scottish Opera, the Royala successful blueprint for future recipients to follow.Scottish National Orchestra and BBC Scotland. Glasgows culturalBut there is another Glaswegian institution that has been poster boy is the influential early 20th-century architect Charlesa major force in both attracting and nurturing creativity in the city Rennie Mackintosh, whose pioneering Art Nouveau style can be seensince the mid-19th century: the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.throughout the city. The Glasgow School of Art, where MackintoshScotlands national conservatoire (known as RCS) is today one studied and designed the iconic architecture school building namedof the worlds leading performing arts institutions and has undergone in his honour, has produced six Turner Prize winners. Glasgowmany guises in its 170-year history. The academy started life as the has also generated countless award-winning actors, comediansGlasgow Athenaeum in 1847 and was formally opened by Charles and writers and more chart-topping bands than you could shakeDickens. Andrew Carnegie was vice principal from 1904 until his a tambourine at, among them Franz Ferdinand, Primal Screamdeath in 1919. The philanthropist had started his Trust for the and Mogwai. In 2004, Time magazine named Glasgow EuropesUniversities of Scotland just two years earlier and, some 117 years Secret Capital of Music, and it was the first British city to be namedlater, it provides students and staff at RCS with a helping hand a UNESCO City of Music in 2008. through scholarships and research grants. Skibo Castle even opens RCS KK DundasThe cultural revolution of Glasgow began in the early 1980s,its doors as a unique live venue for budding performers. The spearheaded by the Glasgows Miles Better campaign, which aimedAthenaeums founding ethos was to provide a source of mental to change the citys industrial image and attract tourism. The effortscultivation, moral improvement and delightful recreation to all paid dividends when, in 1990, Glasgow was the surprise recipient ofclasses. The academy initially specialised in music and was given'