Orchestra caves in to piano activist
NewsThe press release below reports the rare capitulation of a professional symphony orchestra to the political bias of a solo pianist.
It would be helpful if the MSO were to amplify the ‘safety concerns’ that prompted the concert cancellation and its grovelling apology to the propagandist Jayson Gillham.
Melbourne, 15 August, 2024
Today, the Melbourne Symphony released the following statement:
BEGINS
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will not perform at Melbourne Town Hall tonight (Thursday August 15) due to safety concerns. The MSO yesterday sought independent security advice considering events that have occurred since last Sunday’s concert with Jayson Gillham. In light of this advice, the MSO Board and management had no option but to cancel the concert. We apologise to those who were planning to attend.
The MSO acknowledges that an error was made in asking Jayson Gillham to step back from his performance on Thursday 15 August. We have been engaging constructively with Jayson and his management and are seeking to reschedule the concert. While the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra maintains that a concert platform is not an appropriate stage for political comment, we acknowledge Jayson’s concerns for those in the Middle East and elsewhere.
We recognise the strength of feelings of all parties on this matter and particularly acknowledge the dedication and commitment demonstrated by all our musicians and staff this week.
ENDS
In response, Jayson Gillham said: “I accept the MSO’s apology. I hold my relationship with the MSO, its players and audience with the highest regard. And look forward to our continued working relationship in years to come.”
Wow. The orchestra is caving in so this propagandist is guy is really a force to be reckoned with. Or maybe they realised criticism of a country-or rather its PM is not the same as anti semitism.
But he was using the concert stage to knowingly attack a country – moreover one under active existential threat from seven fronts – with enemy propaganda that relies on figures from a brutal terrorist organisation and ignores both the facts put out by Israel (ie. the number of those so-called journalists who worked for Hamas, some of them actually taking part in the horrors of October 7th) and the suffering of Israelis, including hostages who are babies. I would hope the MSO do not think this appropriate for a concert stage. I certainly do not.
As an aside, I also don’t recall this guy making any public complaints over the last few years about Hamas torturing and killing any journalists who dared to say anything that didn’t toe their line, or for that matter the ‘misbehaving’ journalists who have literally had the skin flayed off their bodies by the Palestinian Authority (and they’re the relative moderates).
what a shallow little man
He’s a concert pianist who performs and voices his concerns openly. What have you done in your life other than to call people who actually live their lives fully “shallow” and “little” from behind your screen in your dark solitary room?
Agreat deal, as it happens, as a professional musician who is not afraid to use his real name (unlike other chickens).
Norman: I am most grateful to you for providing anonymity to those “Slipped Disc” contributors and commenters who request it. I myself make use of this facility nearly always: as readers may have already guessed, my real name is not “Ebenezer”!
As you are the proprietor and guiding force of the”Slipped Disc” website, it is not a credible option for you yourself to shelter behind a pseudonym; although I appreciate that doing so would save you from unpleasant personal attacks.
I must say, I feel a bit uncomfortable regarding your characterisation of those professional musicians who don’t use their real names in “Slipped Disc” as “chickens”. Many professional musicians, including myself, would be at great risk of losing their jobs (full-time, part-time, or even freelance) if they publicised their real names. And, in these days of widespread trolling, it is perfectly honourable and sensible to seek anonymity, in a world where trolls will often make threats, not only to oneself; but also to one’s family members.
As you must surely know, this is a grotesque mis-characterization of what Norman said.
I just learned or was reminded of an importabt issue. Ms. Martin needs to become Poosy Boucher or Mlle. DuMarcy .
Mr. Gillam is to be condoned or admired? What good does speaking out do. People either know or simply dont care. The fact the felon politicianrump is still being listened to tells ya noone knows wtf is going on even in their own nations!
A not very well known pianist: he will learn not to openly voice his opinions if he wants to be accepted for concert engagements.
Which just goes to show that threats and hate mail work
I am expecting (again!) comments like “Culture is culture and politics is politics”, as under the previous article about Jayson Gillham.
Before they start let me say this – come on, let’s not be naive! Many politicians would like us to think that art has nothing to do with politics. But it does. A LOT! Those who make these claims are simply afraid of the power it has. And the petty dictators of this world know it too well. Where would the French revolution be without “La Marseillaise”? Why would Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, and even Putin or Chavez care so much about music? Why all these compositions by Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Beethoven? What about these poets, composers, writers who prepared the way for the fall of the Berlin Wall?
Artists have extra sensitivity. They also travel a lot, meet many people, try to understand their emotions, appreciate the variety of cultural experience. Those who break human rights and try to control their subjects – they are simply afraid of the power that artists have. VERY afraid of their message. Because it is artists who can often express and turn into a shared experience what many people feel or think individually but are afraid to say openly.
From the trumpets of Jericho, through mediaeval battlefields, Palestrina’s Counter-Reformation masses, Beethoven’s “Eroica”, Wagner’s operas, to Giergev’s concerts in Palmyra or South Osethia, music has always been a particularly strong medium for launching political and propaganda messages to the masses.
If we refuse this truth we are simply naive and prone to manipulations from those who understand this all too well.
Confusing ‘La Mayonnaise’ – with its text full of bloodthirst – with classical concert music seems to undermine the intention of this comment.
While it is true that classical music has been instrumentalized for extramusical purposes, that does not mean that the genre in itself is by its nature political. Regimes can use it or fear it, according to every single case, and the non-conceptual nature of concert music makes it possible to avoid rational labelling while conveying all kinds of messages on the emotional level. So, it depends upon what kind of message is intended. There is quite some difference between Beethoven’s or Bach’s subliminal messaging and Gergiev’s Palmyra concerts or the appropriation by the nazis. In general it can be concluded that the nature of the genre is humanistic, in whatever way, and that its use by criminals is a lie and to be resisted.
This wasn’t about breaking human rights (not a word about the kidnapping of Israeli babies, the mass rapes, the massacres, nor Hamas’s systematic killing nad torturing of its own people including journalists), it was a clear attack on Israel and only on Israel – using a libellous charge emanating from Hamas – to try to damage a country that was horrifically attacked and has been under genocidally-motivated attack (as is quite clear in the Hamas charter, and daily utterances from Iran which has the words “Death To Israel” written on its missiles) from seven countries every day since.
You seem to be conflating two strands: music itself and the artist’s platform to promote a message. Some of the instances you cite may be valid. But the dispute between the MSO and Mr. Gillham were not over what he was playing, it was over what he said before he played it.
I continue to say that he did not “rant,” nor was there anything anti-Semitic in his remarks on the stage. It sounded as if MSO got some backlash and just accepted it and cancelled his next scheduled performance with them. Given the statement from the stage, that was over-reaction, for which he has received and accepted an apology.
But now it sounds as if the backlash was more than verbal and might have posed some risk to concert-goers. That sort of thing has been going on since the conflict in Gaza began.
None of this is helped by an organ like Slippedisc decreeing a simple statement a “rant” and trying to fuel the rage.
MSO is within its rights to instruct guest artists not to use the platform they offer for any statements of any kind, but I rather doubt they do that. So if they are going to intervene when an artists speaks, they had better be damned sure precisely what he said, not just react to what some internet trolls make of it.
Mr. Gillham’s ‘art’ has absolutely zero to do with the ‘politics’ which he spews from the edge of the stage prior to (or following) his delivery of said art.
MAKING art that is political and BEING an artist who is also political are two entirely different things. Do not attempt to conflate them.
Lol. What happened is that Gillham published his remarks, and it became apparent that he had said nothing (at the concert) beyond the most boilerplate contextualising statement. They really had no leg to stand on.
He didn’t even call it a “genocide” at the concert. Besides, in the MSO’s initial concert, they didn’t even pinpoint what he had said that was offensive.
As others pointed out, he contextualised several pieces of the concert, among others a Ligeti work, which he noted was written in response to the horrors of the Holocaust. So from the point the Orchestra accepted that statement, and that his statement to introduce the D’Netto piece was very minimal in scope, the Orchestra had no valid reason to object.
Jayson has been sanitising and promoting Hamas. Do you support that?
https://x.com/jaysongillham/status/1816558122363961468?s=46&t=FO4cxfWHKTA3oTJpVxYcuA
It good to see freedom of speech and common sense prevail. A number of comments in yesterday’s report expressed concern at using the concert platform for raising awareness of human rights abuses. It’s clear the MSO had to eat humble pie. Criticism of human rights against Palestinians is not automatically anti-semitic MSO’s recanting is entirely appropriate.
Bravo to Melbourne for being will to own up to its mistakes and take a second look at its policies. I wish more organizations were this open to self-examination. Jayson deserved none of these attacks and I’m glad you appear to have his back now.
Ah, another bigot speaks up in support of Jay-son!
The MSO used its platform for political purposes in the past. Its own website still declares its support for The Voice. Now it’s telling us “The concert platform is not an appropriate stage for political comment.” The hypocrisy!
As for Jayson, what is the source of his information? Does he realise he just put his entire career on the line for statements he made about a matter that is outside his area of expertise?
He was going to play Brahms and Beethoven – the works were apolitical. It would have been so much better if he kept it that way. Now everyone will want to know if he supports Hamas and wonder if his name should be on a no fly list.
Given the influence of the Jewish community in the music business, will he ever get a gig again?
Clarification: It is the Orchestra’s management which ‘caved in’; the musicians were not consulted on the decision to cancel his concert (statement by their union reported by the ABC).
In his article on Crikey, Max Kaiser offers a different Jewish perspective.
Wow.
One word: lawyers.
I suggest this jumped up pianist, who I never heard of, butts out of the affairs of the only democracy in the Middle East.
Jayson is a wonderful pianist, that is without question, which is why I purchased a ticket to his recital and enjoyed it very much until the point of this encore.
It’s absolutely fine to mourn the dead (and a beautiful gesture), but to stand in front of a ticket-paying audience which is not your own and tell them unsubstantiated claims that demonise Israel is simply abuse of privilege and was dealt with accordingly. I’m shocked that MSO have revoked their initial correct decision.
Please check out his SM accounts where he calls an end to Israel, to find new friends if you have any friends that are friends of Israel (who could be Palestinians actually), and that Hamas are justified in what they did because they brought pizza to one of their hostages – how lovely they are!
As a GAY man living in the luxurious freedoms that London offers, virtue signalling and being a propaganda machine for a terrorist organisation is quite absurd. I wonder how those he supports would treat him if he came with his rainbow flag to Gaza.
Please note, I’m pro-Palestinian, Pro-Israel, pro-peace and anti-current Israeli government, but spurting a barrage of one-sided information Like Jayson, is being a mouthpiece for Hamas, there can be no dialogue when you’ve taken an extreme stance and side with the likes of Clementine Ford.
Mr Gillham completely ignores the possibility of any other narrative, a narrative of peaceful co-existence of potential peace, nor the legitimacy of Israel at all which means there’s no grounds for debate – down with Israel and all will be hunky dory in the Middle East!
Might I add, why don’t all these virtue signalling heroes boycott China or get on the streets against Iran’s regime, or virtue signal about the catastrophic situation in Sudan right now which is severely worse than Israel-Gaza?
One can certainly be anti-Netanyahu government without being anti-semitic, but when you’re against Israel existing (which is 20% Arab) and justify kidnappings that is by definition racist and needs to be called out for what it is.
what a shallow human (and good pianist) given so much applause for his virtue signalling.
MSO, you had done the right thing, but I’m not sure I’ll buy a ticket again as a peace loving person who doesn’t want to have a concert hijacked by unsubstantiated political claims that are very polarising in the least.
Sincerely,
Alex.
I was there too and agree with you.
Historically music has always been used for propaganda and promoting nationalism (those annoying national anthems).
Israel is at war. Hamas does not pretend to seek peace. It calls for the extermination of all Jews. Sadly it has nothing to do with the personality or policies of any particular Israeli.
The people who called “Gas the Jews” near the Sydney Opera in October knew what they were doing.
The pianist was not really intersted in protecting journalist, otherwise he would have found something to say about the Arab journalist tortured and killed by Hamas. What he really did was taking the side of Hamas in the conflict. Now the orchestra did the same. It is not the first or the best orchestra ever to side with Nazis.
I as with you until the last sentence.
Please reconsider:
The Hamas education system routinely uses Nazi teaching materials. In the eyes of Hamas, Jews are essentially inferior, and are “descendants of monkeys and pigs.” All Jews are destined for extermination. On the eve of the October 7th pogrom, the Hamas leadership divided the entire State of Israel into designated occupation zones and appointed “governors” for them: their job was to locate in the population those who should be killed immediately and to identify people who could be exploited as slaves – workers in necessary positions and women suitable for sexual exploitation. The rest of the population was to be exterminated, or exiled having been ransomed.
On October 7th they really tried to execute this Nazi plan.
Who programmed this pianist and is managing this artistic and PR situation from Melb Symphony? The staff list is very unhelpful https://www.mso.com.au/behind-the-music/about-us/management-team
It seems that Jayson supports Hamas! He shows us that one hostage was grateful to Hamas because they were given food and were not raped. Does he even believe that Hamas killed 1200 people on Oct 7? How could anyone possibly defend, sanitise, and sing the praises of Hamas? Why would MSO hire a person who makes tweets like this?
https://x.com/jaysongillham/status/1816558122363961468?s=46&t=FO4cxfWHKTA3oTJpVxYcuA
Gillham is beneath contempt
Craven and disgraceful
Still don’t know what he said.
A great conductor once said to me “When you are in someone else’s house, you don’t trample on the host!” So, however entitled Mr. Gillham may feel to his opinions, this wasn’t the arena in which to express them. He should hire his own concert hall, produce his own concert, and then spew his opinions to his fans.
Jason Gillham is doing exactly what Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels did during World War II. This is not freedom of speech (he can speak as much as he wants on his social media); this is hijacking the public stage to promote the devil Hamas.