Music Matters: The Land Without Music?

[Pulcinella]

This article by Richard Morrison on

Music Matters: The Land Without Music? starts on BBC Radio 3 at 1pm on April 6 and on BBC Sounds

deserves to be shared, as The Times allows it to be.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/490fbae1-14c0-45b1-aa15-486832dc3684?shareToken=cab8f436629020c46eda25c3d976c13f

[oliver sudden]

Alas the link only took me to the Times home page!

[Pulcinella]

Alas the link only took me to the Times home page!

Trying again!

I thought you would be interested in this story from The Times:
This is what’s wrong with music in the UK — and how to fix it.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/490fbae1-14c0-45b1-aa15-486832dc3684?shareToken=cab8f436629020c46eda25c3d976c13f

[french frank]

I wonder if in his series he'll name the BBC among those public institutions letting the arts down? Or will he praise Radio 3 to the skies - for giving him a chance to air his views? We shall see.

"And, perhaps most demoralising of all, the widespread feeling that many people at the top of government, local government and public institutions are not only indifferent to classical music (that has long been the case) but actively hostile."

[Pulcinella]

I wonder if in his series he'll name the BBC among those public institutions letting the arts down? Or will he praise Radio 3 to the skies - for giving him a chance to air his views? We shall see.

"And, perhaps most demoralising of all, the widespread feeling that many people at the top of government, local government and public institutions are not only indifferent to classical music (that has long been the case) but actively hostile."

That crossed my mind too!

[french frank]

That crossed my mind too!

His latest piece is interesting, not least because I've tended to feel that, although his knowledge of and love for classical music - and the arts - are plain, he was always temperamentally on the 'wrong' side of the argument, on the philistine establishment side. My memory of having slight contact with him during the heyday of FoR3 was that we were written off in just the same terms as he's now describing: we were the elitists, 'purists' (in the wrong sense!), a vocal middleclass miniscule minority that it didn't take much to dismiss or squash.

So for me he's on trial. People who work for the BBC tend to know which side their bread's buttered on.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Excellent article by Richard and I don’t disagree with a single word. But I also think he perhaps underplays the impact of Covid and inflation. Audiences are well down on 2019 . My last concert at the RFH Mahler and the Philharmonia had the top tier closed - only the stalls were on sale. Recent performances at Covent Garden has seen the reverse - plenty of seats in the stalls - sold out in the cheaper seats (by cheaper I mean the £130 ticket amphitheatre ).
I go to the BSO in Exeter a lot - that used to nearly sell out - now there are plenty of empty seats. The WNO at our local theatre close the top circle for sales - that doesn’t happen for musicals.
Classical music audiences need to support the live business more - orchestras now earn very little from CD sales . The problem is of course that for many 2 x £30 tickets is a lot of money. Add to that parking which has now become a form of quasi legal extortion. Pre lockdown I was going to Covent Garden 10 times a year - with what’s happened - like sky rocketing hotel prices - I reckon that habit would now cost me £7,000 a year.

To be provocative : in pure economic terms the difficulties Brexit poses for touring orchestras are actually a subtle form of protectionism and might benefit UK orchestras by reducing competition from foreign orchestras - unless British orchestras make more money from touring than playing in the UK. I very much doubt that they do. But long term it will be damaging to them because the difficulties it will put in the way of recruiting European musicians. It might also have the more subtle effect of lowering orchestral quality because a UK audience will have no foreign excellence comparators.
I’ve never understood why UK orchestras used to do so many foreign tours - unless they are making a profit on them.
But then I used to pretty much ban foreign filming when I was an editor as I thought it was the licence fee payer subsidising a nice jolly,,,,

[Pulcinella]

Excellent article by Richard and I don’t disagree with a single word. But I also think he perhaps underplays the impact of Covid and inflation. Audiences are well down on 2019 . My last concert at the RFH Mahler and the Philharmonia had the top tier closed - only the stalls were on sale. Recent performances at Covent Garden has seen the reverse - plenty of seats in the stalls - sold out in the cheaper seats (by cheaper I mean the £130 ticket amphitheatre ).
I go to the BSO in Exeter a lot - that used to nearly sell out - now there are plenty of empty seats. The WNO at our local theatre close the top circle for sales - that doesn’t happen for musicals.
...

That seems now to be standard practice: even at the (small) Theatre Royal here in York, tickets were being released in phases (for the forthcoming ETO production of The Rake's Progress) if/when sections sold out.
The box office claimed that seats at all prices were still available in each tranche, but I wasn't too persuaded.
I'd rather be central further back (not an option) than at the sides lower down.

[Ein Heldenleben]

That seems now to be standard practice: even at the (small) Theatre Royal here in York, tickets were being released in phases (for the forthcoming ETO production of The Rake's Progress) if/when sections sold out.
The box office claimed that seats at all prices were still available in each tranche, but I wasn't too persuaded.
I'd rather be central further back (not an option) than at the sides lower down.

I think these smaller theatres sell in tranches by section because if the top tier doesn’t sell at all they can employ three or four fewer ushers. Things really are that tight ..
I also think charging the same price for the central seats in the stalls , dress circle AND upper tier - which our local theatre does - is taking the mickey.

Did I mention the £11 a friend was charged for 12.5 cl of white wine in a plastic glass in the West End recently?

At the RFH I’m pretty sure I was charged that for about 17.5 cl of pretty undrinkable wine in a plastic glass. No real ones were available. Presumably because of all the glassing fights that happen …

is it any wonder no one goes out any more ?

[Roslynmuse]

Similar article by RM in this (next) week's Radio Times, along with a letter bemoaning the loss of the lunchtime concert on R3 whilst at the same time welcoming Friday Night is Music Night to the station and wondering if there is now a place there for The Organist Entertains and Listen to the Band - why not simply rename the station if that happens?!!

[french frank]

Similar article by RM in this (next) week's Radio Times, along with a letter bemoaning the loss of the lunchtime concert on R3 whilst at the same time welcoming Friday Night is Music Night to the station and wondering if there is now a place there for The Organist Entertains and Listen to the Band - why not simply rename the station if that happens?!!

I think this is in line with my thoughts about RM. If he embraces the idea of Radio 3 being the musical dumping ground for programmes that other stations don't want he'll have a good future at the BBC. Instead of throwing out jibes at R3 for not wanting R2's cast-offs, why not ask why R2 is casting them off if they're such good programmes? That might merit a good article in The Times but I doubt it will get one. The new All R3 programme Friday Night Is Music Night is put in the BBC's pigeonhole of "Easy Listening".

Similar programmes
By genre: Music > Easy Listening, Soundtracks & Musicals

[smittims]

I wonder if there's a danger that the pro-music lobby will be weakened by internal divisions and a lack of solidarity, as happened to the anti-fascist side of the Spanish war, and the canal restoration movement. Some see the arrival of Friday Night is Music Night on Radio3 as a way of keeping professional music-making alive, others as a retreat into dumbing-down.

When I hear almost weekly moans about how poorly-paid women athletes and footballers are , I long to stick my neck out and say , 'Isn't the problem that anyone should expect to be paid for playing games?' Of course, I'd be shouted down. But looking ahead into the bleak future that faces humanity this century, I can't help wondering if music-making will eventually have to survive unpaid, as groups of friends getting together to play quartets ,etc. as they used to do before public concerts .

[Ein Heldenleben]

I think this is in line with my thoughts about RM. If he embraces the idea of Radio 3 being the musical dumping ground for programmes that other stations don't want he'll have a good future at the BBC. Instead of throwing out jibes at R3 for not wanting R2's cast-offs, why R2 is casting them off if they're such good programmes? That might merit a good article in The Times but I doubt it will get one. The new All R3 programme Friday Night Is Music Night is put in the BBC's pigeonhole of "Easy Listening".

Similar programmes
By genre: Music > Easy Listening, Soundtracks & Musicals

If I wanted to define what Radio Three isn’t - it would be “easy listening .”
99 per cent of music Radio comes into that category .
I want the 1 per cent that’s difficult and demanding like the thoroughly excellent Mahler Resurrection Symphony series on Sky Arts at the moment .
That is what the BBC Radio 3 should be doing not faffing around with Leroy Anderson.

[Pulcinella]

If I wanted to define what Radio Three isn’t - it would be “easy listening .”
99 per cent of music Radio comes into that category .
I want the 1 per cent that’s difficult and demanding like the thoroughly excellent Mahler Resurrection Symphony series on Sky Arts at the moment .
That is what the BBC Radio 3 should be doing not faffing around with Leroy Anderson.

Did you mean to type that?

[Ein Heldenleben]

I wonder if there's a danger that the pro-music lobby will be weakened by internal divisions and a lack of solidarity, as happened to the anti-fascist side of the Spanish war, and the canal restoration movement. Some see the arrival of Friday Night is Music Night on Radio3 as a way of keeping professional music-making alive, others as a retreat into dumbing-down.

When I hear almost weekly moans about how poorly-paid women athletes and footballers are , I long to stick my neck out and say , 'Isn't the problem that anyone should expect to be paid for playing games?' Of course, I'd be shouted down. But looking ahead into the bleak future that faces humanity this century, I can't help wondering if music-making will eventually have to survive unpaid, as groups of friends getting together to play quartets ,etc. as they used to do before public concerts .

Good points especially re the ridiculous money paid to sports stars.
Never thought I’d see the Republicans in Civil War Spain linked to the canal restoration movement.
I suppose they also shared trench digging expertise as well as a tendency to factionalism.