Joanna Storrar
Joanna Storrar has been a fundraiser for more than 30 years and is now a partner with More Partnership – a firm of fundraising consultants whose purpose is to Advance Great Ambitions. She has advised a range of clients including Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium), the Scottish Association for Marine Science, Queen’s University Belfast, Stellenbosch University (South Africa), the University of Glasgow, and National Galleries of Scotland.
Before joining More in 2017, Joanna worked mainly for Scottish universities, including the University of Edinburgh, as Director of Development, Deputy Director, and Executive Director of its North American Office in New York; Vice President North America for the University of Glasgow; and Assistant Director of Aberdeen University’s Quincentenary Campaign. She has also served as Director of Development for two US independent schools.
Joanna’s early career was in oil and gas investing in New York and Edinburgh. She is an alumna of Mount Holyoke College, The University of Edinburgh, and the University of Strathclyde. She divides her time between Princeton, New Jersey, and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Joanna's Playlist
Ae Fond Kiss – The Corries
This song, from an album of love songs by the Corries, was one I listened to over and over again in the months I was engaged to Will.
I was still living in New York, he was in Scotland, and we were apart for several months until we could get married and live in the same country. It captures the sadness of being apart, the hope of being together, and the beauty of Scotland – the country I was about to become part of.
Bach’s Coffee Cantata #211 – Heute Noch
I have always been a Bach fan but had never heard this cantata until I was introduced to it by an elder in our church in Carluke, Lanarkshire.
It was part of the soundtrack of my time as the minister’s wife in the wonderful St John’s Church.
If You Could Read My Mind – Gordon Lightfoot
This takes me right back to my adolescence. Gordon Lightfoot had a number of hits, and one of my cousins and I were real fans. I still listen to his music now, but usually when I’m on my own – my husband is not a fan for some reason!
Fanfare For The Common Man – Aaron Copland
I’m an American, and Copland’s music made me so proud (and still does) that we could claim him. This piece celebrates the best of the American ideal – that common people are worthy of celebration. Really stirs the blood. Copland wrote some wonderful ballet music celebrating the American west – also part of my heritage, since my mother is from Texas.
New York, New York – Leonard Bernstein
This one is for my Dad. He’s from New York, and he is very proud of his home town – a sentiment he passed on to me. I was three years old when we moved from Chicago, where I was born, to a suburb of New York, so that’s where I feel I’m from. This song is pure sunshine and optimism and a celebration of this great city. And Leonard Bernstein –
a great New Yorker – is incomparable.
Dvorak’s Slavonic Dance Opus 46, B.83, No 8 – Furiant
When I was a child, my two sisters and I listened to this piece and danced around our living room. We all loved folk music and folk dancing, and this one particularly delighted us. I have lost both my sisters, so this has special resonance for me now.
