ST JAMES, Jamaica — The Cornwall College school band recently received a donation of a drum set from a past student of the Montego Bay institution, and while music teacher Robert Green welcomes the addition, he says they are still some way from having all the pieces they need.

On March 2nd, Albert Spence, a 1989 graduate, handed over the equipment in a brief ceremony at the school’s chapel, saying they were hoping to spearhead “a comprehensive revamping of the school’s performing arts programme aimed at developing a sustainable cultural environment where creatively inclined students can fully realise their potential”.

Spence said, “This initiative will provide structured training, mentorship and performance opportunities across disciplines such as music, drama, dance, and technical production. Our goal is to cultivate excellence, discipline, cultural awareness, and career pathways within the creative industries.”

While welcoming the gift, Green, himself a past student, said the lack of enough musical instruments for members of the band was holding them back.

“We have students who are very talented, but we are lacking resources…Now that we have a drum set, this will really push students who can get the chance to practice and better their skills,” he said.

Green told Observer Online that the list of what they did not have was exhaustive.

“So we are currently out of speaker boxes, we have keyboards, but they’re like practice keyboards, they are not professional keyboards that the students can be trained, sound wise; we don’t have a bass guitar and we would love if we could get a bass amp as well,” he said, “We have a guitar, and we have a few wind instruments which we would need some technical assistance with.”

Green, who has been at the school in some capacity since February 2025, says not having the proper instruments has held them back in terms of doing public performances.

“For me, I think it would be very much unfair to send out unprepared students to embarrass themselves. So once we get equipment and they’re trained and skilled enough, then I’ll try to get them into events and also to host events as well.”

Spence noted that the vision of making the school’s band better was not the job of a few.

“As such, we will actively seek the support of our old boys association and broader alumni network to provide mentorship, funding and industry linkages,” Spence said.

“We also intend to pursue strategic partnerships with leading cultural institutions, notably the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts and the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, as well as collaborate with other institutions to support their cultural endeavours while strengthening our own programme,” he added.