ON A ROLL
Two years after an unwelcome phone call, Meurig Bowen celebrates the orchestra's achievements since then, typified by activity over the last few days.
It’s exactly two years this week since I got the shock call from someone high up at Arts Council England. It was the day 1000s of applicants were to find out whether they’d be staying in – or joining – ACE’s National Portfolio. And if so, at what level of investment every year. The call I had was tipping me off that we were being cut by 100%. With no prior warning flags raised, it was particularly brutal. The worst kind of day at the office.
We’d been regularly funded by ACE for over 20 years: £300K in the first year rising to more than £400K in 2022-23. This money was the bedrock of Britten Sinfonia’s fundraising activity and had allowed us to be what we wanted to be, and more, for all that time. On the morning of 4 November 2022, our future was suddenly looking very different. How much might we have to retrench? Might this be a mortal blow, like 100% cuts have turned out subsequently, and so regrettably, to mean for others?
The last few days have perfectly demonstrated the alternative future we’ve mapped out from those initial, gloomy scenarios.
In London on Saturday, there were premieres of hugely engaging chamber concertos from our third cohort of Magnum Opus composers, Anibal Vidal, Eden Lonsdale and Alex Groves. A large and warmly supportive audience appreciated the quality of this work, the committed performances and the importance of Britten Sinfonia’s ongoing work with composer development.
On Tuesday, Bury St Edmunds’ lovely space The Apex (every mid-sized UK town needs one) hosted two very different but connected projects.
The first was an uplifting inter-generational event that brought together over 100 performers from local schools, the Bury Friendly Orchestra and Britten Sinfonia in a culmination showcase, following a series of “Recomposed” workshops led by Aga Serugo-Lugo.
Many of these students and leisure-time players then swelled a big audience further for our evening performance, a programme featuring Max Richter’s inspired reworking of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons alongside other baroque and minimalist music by Purcell, Bach, Glass and Reich.
Britten Sinfonia’s performance of the Vivaldi/Richter at the 2023 BBC Proms was one of the highlights of my concertgoing life (and I’ve been to quite a few over the years). Lead violinist Thom Gould and the rest of the band play it with riveting energy and conviction. Audiences, like the one in Bury or for our sold-out performances in Norwich and Benenden, are entranced and energised.
“So much energy, vitality, emotion and flawless ensemble. One of the most exciting concerts I’ve ever been to.”
We filmed some of the Bury rehearsal, aiming to capture this brilliance for a wider online audience. Here’s a taster:
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Such a richly rewarding schedule of concerts, composer development and community engagement is typical for us. The 2023-4 season was one of our busiest ever. We gave over 80 performances and 300 Learning & Participation workshops. The season we’ve just begun with our Will Gregory Moog Ensemble and Recomposed tours will be equally busy.
How are we managing it, two years on from that Arts Council cut?
Blood, sweat and tears is one answer; a determined, positive, buccaneering spirit from players, management and board has made a big difference.
But of course our Play On fundraising campaign and careful spending have been crucial too. We’d not be sustaining this schedule of activity, or planning for future seasons, without the generosity of many. Whether a £10 per month Direct Debit or the significant five- and six-figure donations that have come our way, we appreciate and value them enormously.
We are by no means out of the woods – indeed we anticipate the financial terrain over the next two years will be increasingly challenging. We need to secure significant further financial support, whether through re-entering the Arts Council National Portfolio or from other funders, or from both. But we are on a roll, making a difference in communities and earning the deep respect of audiences.
Two years on from that chilling phone call, it’s a good place to be.