Philip Pickett sentenced to 11 years imprisonment

[Conchis]

THIS
is where the problem lies




I wasn't in court
BUT given the message it sends and the considerable damage he has done then it would seem that maybe this is a mistake ?

Like many people in the world of music I have worked with people who later have been prosecuted for these kinds of things. There is NO excuse EVER and RKs treatment sends the wrong message completely.

Was getting married and having a child a strategic move on his part?

If so, it seems to have worked.

[Mal]

"the music industry has welcomed the conductor back since his release from jail. Singers and instrumentalists with MBEs and honorary positions at the Royal Academy of Music go on appearing with him in the world’s most famous concert venues – the Wigmore Hall in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the KKL in Lucerne, and so on – and fans go on funding his performances and recordings.

They have restored to him the power and status with which they had entrusted him before, in putting their talent, labour, property and good names at his disposal. And they have done so despite the fact he abused all this – abused them – to gain the confidence of families and attack their children, and even though he called his victims “liars” and “loonies” during the trial, and has not expressed remorse."

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/feb/01/i-couldnt-deal-with-it-it-tore-me-apart-surviving-child-sexual-abuse

[Lat-Literal]

Gary Glitter's music was considered (both at the time of his popularity and now) pretty terrible. Its disappearance from the airwaves is no great loss to anyone, apart from Mr. Gadd himself. Ditto, Jonathan King (though I'll confess to a fondness for Everyone's Gone To The Moon).

What makes the likes of Townshend ('child sex offender'), Page ('under-age groupie shagger') and John Martyn ('appalling drunk, junkie and wife-beater') problematic is that a lot, if not most, of their music is very good indeed.

Unfortunately, he hasn't completely disappeared from the airwaves.

Shortly after I assessed the merits or otherwise of United DJs Radio - I had received thanks from the station for a fairly positive e-mail I sent them - I noticed a trailer on the station for its Canadian DJs who it calls "United DJs of Canada" which was to the backing of "Rock n Roll Part 2". That is not hugely appropriate, not least because of the era from which most of the presenters emanate and the station's rather daft anti establishment stance which the use of it could appear to underpin. It turned out that it had been mentioned on Digital Spy as long ago as last summer. Consequently, they have had plenty of time to reconsider. I find it surprising given that the Canadian, David "Kid" Jensen who is not mentioned in the trailer or even necessarily associated with it is at the sensible end of their presenting spectrum. I have also read - not sure that it is true - that he is quite an establishment figure who does good work and with possible links to the Masons. There has also been a shift on the BBC margins. That is to say there was a time when, rightly or wrongly, the records would not even be mentioned. But in the before breakfast Saturday morning programme on BBC Surrey, Shaun Tilley does two chart rundowns and I have heard him mention at least one record in those.

As for music standards, there have been more allegations about Michael Jackson, a man who clearly became extremely ill mentally. I'm rather pleased that I'm indifferent to anything he recorded after "Off The Wall" because I can tell myself that all of the excellent records he made up to and including that point were made by someone who was a very different person. One sort of sensed it at the time. Notwithstanding "Thriller" was supposed to be creepy, I found him creepy in it and it put me off whereas Rod Temperton's '79 vehicle was pure joy.

[doversoul1]

Was getting married and having a child a strategic move on his part?

If so, it seems to have worked.

May be the real punishment will come when his child finds out the truth/fact about his father although this will be no relief to his victims.

[oddoneout]

One of the aspects of RKs conviction was that , although the sentence seemed broadly in line with others who had committed similar offences ( as far as one could tell) the judge made the extraordinary decision to allow him to work with children on release.

Given levels of safeguarding elsewhere, its very, very hard to figure out. Although as I have previously been told on this forum, the judge knows more about it than I do...........


( To put into context, a teacher can be asked to disclose details of a range of convictions for people living in the same house as them, including things such as cautions for ABH, and could potentially be stopped from working simply because a person with such a conviction is living in the same house.)

And on the same theme of disproportion and anomaly

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/feb/04/job-minor-convictions-government-supreme-court

[doversoul1]

I'm not sure what you mean by this question...?

Mal's post #122 may explain it.

[Richard Barrett]

Mal's post #122 may explain it.

Oh I see. I guess a "mere" music teacher could also have considerable support from his local community, which might welcome him back into the fold. On the other hand, I think it could be said that the professional classical music community is in any case rife with sexual abuse of various kinds, from casual harassment to crimes like King's, so that such behaviour might be more readily swept under the carpet in such circles than in other circumstances. I have the feeling this is beginning to change, in that profession as it is elsewhere. I was having an online conversation on this kind of subject elsewhere not long ago, in which I wrote "The power to make or break careers is a highly corrupting influence on very many men involved in teaching music, and this affects not only the women they abuse but also those who turn a blind eye." It's in a lot of people's interests for the community to close ranks.

[Barbirollians]

"the music industry has welcomed the conductor back since his release from jail. Singers and instrumentalists with MBEs and honorary positions at the Royal Academy of Music go on appearing with him in the world’s most famous concert venues – the Wigmore Hall in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the KKL in Lucerne, and so on – and fans go on funding his performances and recordings.

They have restored to him the power and status with which they had entrusted him before, in putting their talent, labour, property and good names at his disposal. And they have done so despite the fact he abused all this – abused them – to gain the confidence of families and attack their children, and even though he called his victims “liars” and “loonies” during the trial, and has not expressed remorse."

https://www.theguardian.com/society/...d-sexual-abuse

Well said -

Ferney there are sentencing guidelines judges must take into account . My gut feeling was that this was a lenient sentence when I first heard about it . I hope anyone inclined to appear with him reads Mr Yarwood’s article . The judge’s sentencing remarks are antediluvian as if marrying a woman was a cure !

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Ferney there are sentencing guidelines judges must take into account .

I thought that there might be - and in general terms "guidelines" are preferable to "rules" in matters of sentencing (to enable Judges to take specific details into account in each individual case). But ... well, yes; the specific detail of someone getting married and therefore being judged to have turned over a new leaf!

[Dave2002]

May be the real punishment will come when his child finds out the truth/fact about his father although this will be no relief to his victims.

Unfortunately your scenario will punish his own child who is in this regard completely innocent.

I really don't know how these matters should be resolved - if indeed they can be.

I don't see that lengthier sentences are really going to do any good, apart from keeping such people out of the way. The observation that some of these people really are talented - well - yes - being very able is not necessarily associated with being a good person, nor is being a good person strongly related to talent.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I've added a sentence referring to the King's Consort article, where all details are given.

Well Done, frenchie - and thanks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_King%27s_Consort

[MrGongGong]

Well Done, frenchie - and thanks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_King%27s_Consort

I bet he won't stick that on the KC website though

[doversoul1]

Unfortunately your scenario will punish his own child who is in this regard completely innocent.

Seeing your child suffer because of what you did must be the worst punishment for any parent. If the parent has any humanity at all in him, that is. Yes. Poor, poor child. What a fate to be born in.

I really don't know how these matters should be resolved - if indeed they can be.

You / we only need to ask your/ourself (and decide) if you value the pleasure that Art gives you more than a life of a child. As Mr GG pointed out somewhere in this thread, there are many ways of using his talent other than being a public performer. In this way, his victims can at least be spared from having to constantly see him being admired while their sufferings are ignored.

[Richard Barrett]

You / we only need to ask your/ourself (and decide) if you value the pleasure that Art gives you more than a life of a child. As Mr GG pointed out somewhere in this thread, there are many ways of using his talent other than being a public performer. In this way, his victims can at least be spared from having to constantly see him being admired while their sufferings are ignored.

That is exactly right. If I were involved in that area of music making I would not under any circumstances appear on the same stage as such a person. And indeed there are people involved in the same area as me that I would no longer agree to work with for the same reason. (I won't mention their names since they haven't been found guilty of anything in a court.)

[antongould]

That is exactly right. If I were involved in that area of music making I would not under any circumstances appear on the same stage as such a person. And indeed there are people involved in the same area as me that I would no longer agree to work with for the same reason. (I won't mention their names since they haven't been found guilty of anything in a court.)

Very well said young sir ........