When an orchestra beheads its founder
OrchestrasTwo British orchestras are following an identical method of crisis resolution.
The Monteverdi orchestras and chorus got rid of their founder, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, after failing to reach agreement on issues of anger management.
Chineke!, the diversity orchestra, has just suspended Chi-chi Nwanoku over issues similarly connected to the realm of human relations.
In both instances, acolytes have been quick to shout: they’ll never survive without the founder.
But they will. Both companies have boards that are stacked with business experience. To them, the loss of a founder is a blip. What matters is efficient management, no tantrums, good medium-term forecasts.
The Monteverdis have recovered their touring schedule and their record label. Chineke!, flush with public funding, will flourish. It’s no big deal to be a founder.
England survived its misunderstanding with King Charles 1.
Charles I did not “found” England.
Also … it’s still too soon to say.
By the way, I recall that Chi-chi Nwanoku’s parting from the OAE was not on entirely friendly terms too.
I was quite shocked by the title of the post, thinking that it were rather unusual for orchestras to have a guillotine in the cupboard.
But I was duly reassured it was not that bad.
That’s why these are cutting-edge orchestras.
Oh come on; he just wanted to get a head!!
And thus was willing to stick his neck out.
Seems like two cases of ‘L’orchestre, c’est moi’.
Chi Chi did well to found Chineke! but used it as a tool to propogate her political agenda – namely to denigrate Britain, which awarded her a CBE, flaunted in the banner of her website. At the very least she’s a hypocrite and at the worst her antics have brought this fine orchestra into disrepute. She has caused problems for some time and I applaud the orchestra’s management for dispensing with her services. I am certain that they will do well without her, and I wish them every success.
For anyone wishing to sample their wares, I would recommend the splendid Decca two-CD set of music by Samuel Coleridge Taylor, which also includes ‘Sussex Landscape’ by his daughter Avril – emphatically not a slab of benign ‘English pastoral’ but, dating from 1939, an austere Sibelian presentiment of World War II. I can only hope that Chineke!’s first achievement under their new regime will be to deliver a similar recorded tribute to her – there’s a piano concerto as well as plenty of other orchestral works.
Much the same could be said of JEG. He too founded a fine orchestra and his antics too have brought it into disrepute. I don’t think even he is arrogant enough to assume that this orchestra would founder without him.
Nobody is indispensible.
Well said.
Although I agree on the whole, is it ‘denigrating Britain’ to call attention to the legacy of its colonialist past, which included a fair degree of racism, unconsciously still not eradicated. The British people are surely strong enough to take criticism, if it can be justified.
Norman, there is a pretty big difference here, which is that at least JEG doesn’t wear phoney grievance on his sleeve in order to cheat guilt-ridden white people out of their money. He’s a big posho and unapologetic about it. Chi-Chi Nwanoku, on the other hand, was a founding member of the extremely poisonous OAE and basically threw her entitled weight around in the London music scene in order to get things out of people by guilting theme, e.g., why is her photo backstage at Wigmore Hall? Because she got herself on the board, in exchange for which she’d call her goons off of the hall’s director’s back. Otherwise, Chi-Chi is doing just fine in life, with a nice house in Richmond to boot! She represents all that charlatanry in a specific social climate can get for someone.
I’m interested to see the OAE described as ‘poisonous’. Helen Wallace’s account of the orchestra’s early years suggests that they were known as ‘The Age of Embezzlement’.
Of course, the orchestra’s recent funding has been more straightforward, with substantial state grants funding a bloated organisation.
I’d argue the true success of an organization depends on the musicians and the music-making not which corporate suits are meeting once a month to discuss cashflows and risk registers…
Nwanoku let the whole Chineke! machine become about her and what was originally seen as passion for the changes she sought to bring appears to have masked some deficiencies in both her management style and ability.
With Gardiner it’s a completely different story. It seems pretty clear the management and board didn’t listen to the musicians in the slightest which is why so many of their principals have jumped ship to his new groups.
“Completely different story” is a bit strong – JEG’s organisation has definitely also always been “all about him” (hence refusal to plan any sort of succession or future beyond him etc etc)
This post ignores facts.
The winter tour was originally announced with Gardiner conducting — the orchestra and choir were booked before Gardiner was sacked.
Their website lists no concerts in 2025.
There was a plan to do an all-Mozart tour in April with Gardiner and Maria Joao Pires and Kristian Bezuidenhout performing the concerto for two pianos. It has been canceled: https://www.palaumusica.cat/en/pires-bezuidenhout-english-baroque-soloists_1280404
Thank goodness for that – Bezuidenhout is the most pointless person on the concert platform today
It’s been postponed actually. And the new pre-concert talk announcement now reads: Let’s talk about… The Constellation Choir & Orchestra & Gardiner
When I looked, Gardiner’s new orchestra got most of the bookings when he was booted out of the ORR. It seems that the places who booked ORR+Gardiner have mostly decided to go with Gardiner and not the ORR when they split (about 80 percent to 20 percent).
I am rather less sanguine than Norman about whether the ORR will survive for long.
“England survived its misunderstanding with King Charles 1.”
So did Scotland.
Norman! You don’t seriously believe the Monteverdi Orchestra will, in the short term, survive without its ‘founding father’, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, do you?
JEG has mostly picked up the gigs when they split.
I wondered how she got her CBE ,considering her past…
Time for the orchestras to move on to newer talent.
Whilst I certainly don’t condone behaviour which is really beyond the Pale, it very often takes belligerence and dogged determination to get new ventures off the ground, a refusal to take ‘no’ for an answer. These qualities do not necessarily go hand in hand with easy-to-work-with day to day management over the long term. In short, the qualities of bravery and vision required to blaze a trail are not the same ones expected of modern ‘professional’ management (in many cases)
Didn’t the Philharmonia Orchestra survive an attempt by its founder to wind it up?
Judging by the rehearsal pics that Gardiner’s new Constellation band and choir posted on FB yesterday, they aren’t even new. Almost all instrumentalists and at least 1/2 of the singers are the very same folks from the MCO. They look pretty happy being conducted by Gardiner again. Nobody looks gotten rid of or beheaded
There is a crucial difference though. A near 100% majority of Monteverdi singers and instrumentalists asked have said they want to work with JEG again with his new groups.
I know for a fact that none of the Chineke musicians would ever want to work with their founder again…
There are many, many, many capable conductors who would be thrilled to step into these positions and who would do a fine job. Good luck. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
“What matters is efficient management, no tantrums, good medium-term forecasts”.
We are talking about orchestras. Doesn’t musicianship come in somewhere?
For once I completely agree with you.
Sometimes it’s wiser to just call time. Age is often a huge deal-breaker. In every way.
Charles 1 was the continuity candidate. Very far from founder. Perhaps you could use Churchill’s distaste for revolutionary change. He preferred to “keep buggering on”. Which is what both orchestras are doing.
Regardless of one’s wishful thinking, it it the orchestras that are getting beheaded, not the conductors.
If only the era of fascist personality worshipping of the conductors were over for good… Artists who are disrespectful towards colleagues must be replaced. Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Handel… those are irreplaceable. Handwavers, fiddleplayers, screamers… they cannot afford being a******s anymore. There are so many younger artists who are ready to take their place.
Wasn’t it Handel who threatened to throw one or both of his leading sopranos out of a window? Wasn’t it Beethoven who not infrequently insulted his orchestral players? There is a story of Mozart getting so enraged by an orchestra for not playing fast enough that he stamped his foot so hard he broke a shoe-buckle. As for Bach, who knows? We don’t have blow-by-blow accounts of rehearsals from his choir, unfortunately.
I’m not sure, but musicians may be prepared to put up with quite a lot from a genuinely inspiring conductor. Toscanini, for instance, or Beecham. Perhaps they were tougher in those days. But I’m not defending abusive bullying.
For those who suffered her terrible behaviour this has been at least 9 years coming and too late. Imagine all the suffering that could have been prevented, including of the junior members of the organisation. The Board were aware of multiple complaints (a dossier!) but kept backing her and were scared of her too. Finally the new board had to act because they’re now publicly funded and maybe they grew some. (2 board members are still there who have overseen this whole thing!) ACE knew about her bullying before they were awarded NPO funding of £1.5 million. It’s those in power who let her get away with it that should also be held accountable – they let many Black and Brown people come to harm!
I’m sorry but this article is utter nonesense. Your ‘facts’ are ridiculous! Just one look at the Monteverdi Choir website will make it evident that there are no concerts coming up next year for the group. Do your research please. You say they have ‘recovered their touring schedule’ – try telling that to the musicians still wanting to work for MCO whose diaries are almost entirely empty, and you’ll find they have something to say to you.
Constellation Choir and Orchestras – John Eliot’s new group – has all the work next year because the promoters want him. Whether you like that or not, that’s just how it is. Slipped disc, please admit that what you have written here is false. MCO have most certainly not ‘recovered their touring schedule’ and I have no idea what you could be basing this on. Almost all of last year’s concerts for MCO were ones arranged in the years before with promoters. They have seemingly not managed to generate any work for the group since JE has gone.
It is my view that the most serious issue for the board and management of MCO is that have lost the musicians’ faith and trust. Look at the pictures of Constellation C&O and you will see it’s all the people who have worked for JE for years. The product has wholesale gone to Constellation and it is already starting to show in the lack of engagements for MCO next year.
I’ll never understand how these “knowledgeable boards” with all their business experience aren’t flourishing in the non-profit sector. It’s almost as if they don’t know how to run non-profits. I’m hopeful, but success is only possible in these types of organizations with competent artistic leaders and figureheads.
If so many want to play with him again how abusive was he? Not very much it seems. Frank Loesser slapped his leading lady across the face when Guys and Dolls was in rehearsal when he did not like the way she was singing one of his songs. Profuse apologies and flowers all around when he realized what a terrible thing he had done. They both continued in the industry.
While I am all for everyone being offered the same opportunities, regardless of background, sex or sexuality, age, ethic origin, religion, I have a very strong objection to excluding those of any of these. Any organisation which excludes or discriminates against any of these categories should not be receiving taxpayer funding.
National Youth Orchestra excludes anybody over 19. Age discrimination. Would you withdraw its funding?