The Washington McClain Scholarship Fund honors the memory of Baroque oboist and Amherst Early Music faculty member Washington McClain. It will fund scholarships for students who have historically been underrepresented in the early music field, including African-American, Latinx, and others. Awards will cover tuition, room and board, and travel and may be used for any in-person AEM event, particularly the Amherst Early Music Festival. To apply send a letter of inquiry to Click here to show mail address, with information about your interest in early music or dance.


Make a donation to the Washington McClain Scholarship Fund.

Washington Sebastian McClain (1961-2013) was born in Louisiana and received a BA in musicology and oboe performance from Northeast Louisiana University. He moved to Illinois to continue his studies, receiving a master in oboe performance from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. A specialist in Baroque and Classical oboes, he performed with many groups in the United States and Canada, including Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (Toronto), Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra (San Francisco), Apollo’s Fire (Cleveland), and l’Ensemble Arion (Montréal).

A dedicated teacher and performer, he made strong connections with students, colleagues, and audience members through his extraordinary musicianship and warmth. He was on the faculty of The Early Music Institute at Indiana University in Bloomington, and taught at summer festivals, including the Albuquerque Baroque Double Reeds, the Madison Early Music Festival, the International Baroque Institute at Longy, Festival International de Musique Baroque de Lamèque, and the Staunton Music Festival. He was the first period instrument performer to be featured in an article of Windplayer Magazine.

Washington recorded for the Sony Classical, ATMA, Analekta, Naxos, Centaur, and CBC Records labels. He lived in Windsor, Ontario (Canada).

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Washington McClain

Scholarships & Work-Study

Work-Study

All participants are welcome to apply for tuition assistance through AEM's Work-Study program. Please fill out the work study application form to apply. Notice of awards will be sent in late May. Questions about Work-Study can be sent to Click here to show mail address.

AEM Scholarships

To apply for all AEM scholarships, including the Washington McClain Scholarship, please fill out this form.

The Washington McClain Scholarship Fund honors the memory of Baroque oboist and Amherst Early Music faculty member Washington McClain. It will fund scholarships for students who have historically been underrepresented in the early music field, including African-American, Latinx, and others. Awards will cover tuition, room and board, and travel and may be used for any in-person AEM event, particularly the Amherst Early Music Festival. To apply send a letter of inquiry to Click here to show mail address, with information about your interest in early music or dance.

In addition to scholarships, AEM offers work study tuition to all of our workshops, and the Amherst Early Music Festival. Work study is an option for students of any age.

Other Organizations

American Recorder Society offers scholarships to recorder players for Weekend Workshops as well as Summer Festivals. Any ARS member who needs financial assistance to attend a weekend or week-long workshop may apply for this scholarship. Deadline: May 15.

Lute Society of America scholarships include full tuition, room & board, and some travel. Due Date May 1.

Early Music America offers scholarships to help students attend early music and historical performance workshops in North America. Applications due April 1.

Viola da Gamba Society of America offers Grants-in-Aid to its members to attend Workshops and Masterclasses.

The Historical Keyboard Society of North America has established the Funaro Fund Award to support its members to offset the cost of traveling to an early keyboard event.