London orchestra gets extra Covid cash from UK Government
NewsThe Philharmonia Orchestra has been awarded a grant of £412,690 by Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
Its chairman Lord King of Lothbury, former Governor of the Bank of England said: ‘We are very grateful for further funding from the Culture Recovery Fund. It will allow us to support our long-term ambitions: bringing world-class concerts to our residencies around the UK and becoming champions for sustainability and diversity in the orchestral sector.’
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: ‘Culture is for everyone and should therefore be accessible to everyone, no matter who they are and where they’re from. Through unprecedented government financial support, the Culture Recovery Fund is supporting arts and cultural organisations so they can continue to bring culture to communities the length and breadth of the country, supporting jobs, boosting local economies and inspiring people.’
Does Lord King of Lothbury number Garsington Opera among these ‘residencies’?
Garsington Opera is ‘proudly independent’ from Arts Council funding. But I wonder whether Garsington will, even if indirectly, benefit from this generous government bail out?
Should an orchestra, registered as a charity and so clearly reliant on state funding, be playing in a privately funded country house opera, frequented (at considerable expense) by the great and the good?
Why should the tax payer contribute anything towards this?
Do they play for nothing? If not, how is this different from their freelance members doing session work?
Looks like an excuse for a nasty, chippy dig at Garsington Opera, to me.
What is it about some British people and “t’opera”?
It’s quite simple, Allen. Should state subsidised orchestras be playing in country house opera houses? Would Garsington’s audience meet Arts Council funding criteria?
I don’t see the relevance of your comparison between sessions and playing at Garsington – they’re totally different, aimed at different audiences.
You’ve dodged the question and simply repeated yourself.
Are the musicians paid? If so, this is a commercial arrangement – one of many that the players get involved in.
If you insist on going down this route, there is probably a long list of things that subsidised orchestras should not be doing. Should they be recording music for highly profitable film and pop work, for instance?
You seem to be obsessed, in true British fashion, with the composition of the Garsington audience. To be consistent, you would need to ensure that the wrong people are not sneeking in to the orchestra’s subsidised concerts at the RFH.
“sneaking”
How far do you want to go?
Perhaps singers who have trained in publicly funded institutions should be banned from performing with Garsington Opera.
I find your argument mean-minded and ridiculous. Any organisation which contributes to the health of the art should be welcomed.
Will all professional orchestras be treated the same?
Why is the Philharmonia Nadine’s favourite orchestra? Did everyone else get nothing?
There is a slight whiff of “somebody knows somebody.”
Do places like Garsington offer a range of prices? Other modes of access to their work for a wider audience (e.g. streaming)? If not, then they are effectively private parties with paying guests.