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April 2021

Dear Audience,

We have been missing you! For the last 12 months the global pandemic has silenced concert halls, theatres and live music venues. Our industry, and the arts in general, have been hit hard but today we come together in recognition of the fact that we all face a far greater and more serious threat.

Every breath we take and every bite we eat relies on a healthy planet. Climate breakdown, pollution and ecosystem loss are threatening the stability of our societies and will continue to do so for generations to come. The science is clear. We are in a climate and ecological emergency.

Great art has always been inspired by nature and our awe for the beautiful planet we share; from the pastoral works of Edward Elgar, Florence Price and Ralph Vaughan Williams to the contemporary compositions of Rachel Portman, Nitin Sawhney and Liza Lim. Music is a translator of complex emotions and ideas, an expression of community and a soundtrack to change.

So, today we add our names to the 4000+ organisations and artists who are ‘Music Declares Emergency’. Across the music industry we will work to ‘Turn Up the Volume’, to call for urgent, international government action on the climate and ecological emergency.

As artists, venues, agents and all the members of our industry we will actively share best practice in order to divest from fossil fuels, reduce waste, pollution and carbon emissions. We want to instigate an open conversation about the challenges of creating a sustainable music profession and we commit to using our platforms to inspire, educate and demonstrate change.

Music has the power to bring us together and reveals our collective creativity. Now is the time to take action, to envision a thriving and regenerative future and protect all that we love for future generations.

We hope that you, our audiences, will join us on this journey,

SIGNED:

CLASSICAL DECLARES - OPEN LETTER SIGNEES

Rachel Portman, OBE

Composer

Nicholas Daniel OBE

Oboe, Professor, Festival Director

Tasmin Little OBE

Violin Soloist

Julian Lloyd Webber OBE

Conductor and Music Educator

Susanna Eastburn, MBE

Chief Executive, Sound and Music

Errollyn Wallen, CBE

Composer

Alexis Paterson

Chief Executive, Three Choirs Festival Association/ Chair, British Arts Festival Association

Sarah Gee

Chief Executive, Spitalfields Music

HarrisonParrott

International arts management agency

Rhoda Lane

Chineke! Foundation

Gabriel Prokofiev

Composer / Artistic Director of Nonclassical

Claudia Clarkson

Chief Operating Officers , Shadwell Opera

Orchester des Wandels Deutschland

Orchestras of Change network, Germany

Charisse Beaumont

BLACK LIVES IN MUSIC

Green Music Australia

Cultural, environmental charity

Sorcha Coller

Askonas Holt (Agency)

Deborah Roberts

Artistic Director Brighton Early Music Festival

Laonikos Psimikakis Chalkokondylis

Shakuhachi / Composer

Camilla King

Cheltenham Music Festival Head of Programming

Nicola Candlish

British Youth Opera

Ellie Wyatt

Freelance TV composer

Sarah Nicolls

Pianist, Composer, Director of Future Piano Ltd

Patrick Harrex

Composer and Coductor/ Musical Director Brighton & Hove Arts Orchestra

John Warner

Conductor; Founder, Orchestra for the Earth

Emily Doolittle

Research Fellow and Lecturer, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Sarah Lianne Lewis

Composer Affiliate, BBC National Orchestra of Wales

Jack Furness

Artistic Director, Shadwell Opera

Kim Ashton

Composer / Lecturer / Cambridge University

Rylie Harrod

Cello, Director of Texas Strings Festival Young Artist Division, Owner of Harrod-Corral String Studio

Larry Goves

Composer / Ensemble Director (The House of Bedlam) / Senior Lecturer in Composition (Royal Northern College of Music)

Steve Berman

The Composerworks (Film &TV Composers Agency)

David Gaydon

Cheltenham Jazz Festival Head of Programming

Joss Peach

Freelance TV composer

Freddie Hodkin

Martin Read Foundation / Composer

Ailie Robertson

Harp

Xia Leon Sloane

Composer/writer

Catriona Hawksworth

Musician/ Pianist

Ben See

Singer / Composer /Choir Leader

Grainne Brady

Musician/Composer

Phillip W. Serna

Performer & Teacher of Double Bass & Violas da Gamba

Sally Simpson

Violin player and teacher

Harriet

Music journalist

Lea Brückner

Violinist/Culturmanagement

Emily Ashton

Viol player

Emilia Benjamin

Viola da Gamba/violin/viola/lirone

Jasmin Kent Rodgman

Composer

Clare Hammond

Concert pianist

Orlando Jopling

Conductor and cellist

Stef Conner

Composer; Lecturer in Music, University of York

Annabel kidd

Resol String quartet

Daniela R De Armas

Choir Director London Lucumi Choir

Carlos Patino

Composer, producer.

Arlene Rolph

Voice teacher/singer/change maker for voice professionals

Elaine Threlfall

Viola player

Dr Des Oliver

Composer

Nicky Davis

Choral singer

Peter Davison

Educator, Conductor, Composer, West Pier Music Ltd

Mick Cooke

Composer

Anne Harper

Clarinettist & Educator

Joanna Gardner

Violinist

Jote Osahn

Violinist

Tom Spurgin

Philharmonia Orchestra, Audience Development Manager

Gabriel Scarlat

Vocalist/ Gabi Scandal

Darcy Copeland

Composer

Morgan Pedersen

Composer / Artist

Gianluca Cangemi

Music composer, Record producer, A&R / Almendra Music

Hal Kennard

Piano

Kathy Hinde

Audiovisual artist

Paul Honey

Composer

Cameron Audras

Violist, American Youth Symphony

Liv Cazzola

The Lifers | Tragedy Ann

Jimi Ashmore

Composer

Helene Mönkemeyer & Tina Kraft

Diversity Classical Music

Rachael Liddell

Freelance Mezzo Soprano / Singing Teacher

Eliza

Mezzo soprano

Nina Ashton

Bassoon (section leader RLPO)

Leo Duarte

Freelancer

Christopher Bochmann

Retired Professor, University of Évora

Heather Fenoughty

Composer

Chi-chi Nwanoku

Double Bass

Dominic Grier

Conductor

Nico Willems

Composer/Producer

Sarah Davison

Cello & Viola da Gamba

Nina Vinther

Singer

Isaac Boothman

Trumpet player and Composer

Alex Ball

Composer / Producer / Alex Ball Music

Aoife McHugh

Violin

Tessa Deterding

Publicist, Premier

Zoë Shevlin

Bassoonist

Dalen Wuest

Composer

Robert Reid Allan

Composer

Daryl Jamieson

Composer

Alexandra Jemison

Singing Teacher, Bromley Youth Music Trust

Mimi Harmer

Cellist, Composer, Advocate

Lenny Sayers

Clarinet and Bass Clarinet (orchestral player)

Sharon Eckman

Singer

Sofia Livotov

Opera Singer

Anna Appleby

Composer

Charlie Harmer

Pianist & Composer

Catherine Kontz

Composer

Caroline Clipsham B.Mus(Hons) LGSM MISM

Pianist and Founder of Polka Dot Concerts

Juliet Fraser

Soprano

Lore Lixenberg

Vocals

Matthew Schellhorn

Concert pianist

Matthew Lee Knowles

Composer

Lisa Fitzgibbon

Singer songwriter/ Creative Director Pro7ect

Maja Bugge

Cello, Composer and teacher

Rebecca Bennett

Singer, Teacher

Ben Comeau

Pianist, organist, composer

Liza Lim

Sculthorpe Chair of Australian Music, Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Rebekah Whiteley

Singer, Teacher

Tim Hollo

Viola, FourPlay String Quartet; Founder, Green Music Australia

Carla Caminotto

Piano

Natalia Franklin Pierce

Nonclassical (Promoter, record label and events producer presenting the best new classical)

Joanna Watts

Violinist

Samantha Dixon

Soprano (Freelance)

Anna Giddey

Violinist

Héloïse Werner

Soprano & Composer

Miriam M. M. Hlavaty

Pianist, lecturer, music curator, composer. The Listening Experience

Violetta Suvini

Violinist, Student, University of Oxford

Emily Saville

Trombonist and music teacher

Alex Grinyer

French Horn - Student at GSMD

Lynn Henderson

Horn/RAM/Teacher/EMS

Aoife Burke

Cello

Cristiana Achim

Piano/student

Joe Giddey

Cellist

George Andrews

French Horn

Francisco Reis

Piano and Voice

Francesca Lombardelli

Percussion

Lucía Salazar Gómez

Independent pianist - BA &Tech. in Music

Alex Street

Senior research fellow, Cambridge institute for music therapy research

James Batty

Composer, Royal Academy of Music

Jolina

Singer

Thomas Plater

Saxophonist, Political Activist, Former VP GSMDSU 2019-2020

Trees of Music

Trees of Music

Daniel Trodden

Tuba/Orchestral Musician

Dr Richard Peat

Composer

Erin Benim Mayland

Violinist at Hamilton on Broadway, NYC

Martin Ash

Violist and fiddler

Brunel Quartet

Professional String Quartet, Bristol

Sharon Haslam

Violinist - Orchestra of Scottish Opera

Alban Gerhardt

Cello / Soloist /HarrisonParrott

Raymond Kohn

Composer, violinist, Delphi Trust secretary

Clive Whitburn

Composer

Kelly Lovelady

Artistic Director, Ruthless Jabiru

Colin Alexander

Cello and composer

Tim Kliphuis

Violinist and composer

Simone Vierstra

Violin, fit2play

Chris Hutchings

Composer

Karin van Kooten

Jazz violinist / freelancer

Janneke van Prooijen

Violinist

Nell Shaw Cohen

Director, Landscape Music

Sam Watts

Composer

Yoram Ish-Hurwitz

Oranjewoud Festival / SPOT Groningen

Edward Westerdale

Violin, folk musician

Magdalena Ernst

Solo Horn Duisburger Philharmoniker

Jamie Munn

Chief Executive, Nevis Ensemble

Fenella Humphreys

Violinist

Lewis Coenen-Rowe

Composer

Rebecca Burden

Cello student at Trinity Laban Conservatoire

Donagh Collins

Chief Executive, Askonas Holt

Ella Roberts

Head of Red House, Britten Pears Arts

Lucia D'Avanzo-Lewis

Freelance Violinist

Jonny Venvell

Encore Musicians (Head of Artist Relations )

Andrew Burke

Chief Executive & Artistic Director, The London Sinfonietta

Georgina MacDonell Finlayson

Musician, composer

Anne Yumino Weber

Principal Cello, Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal

Anneka Sutcliffe

Violinist, orchestra manager, Insight Ensemble

Simone Ibbett-Brown

Freelance opera singer, director and writer

The Self-Isolation Choir

Online choir

Sophie Gledhill

Cello - freelance

Leonie Anderson

Musician

Paul Carey Jones

Singer

Iain Melville

Singer

Charlie Davey

Project Manager, Full Time hobby

Olivia Vjekoslava Tomasovic

Oboist, Ensemble member - Nevis Ensemble

Chidi Oti-obihara

Cop26 Climate Action Plan

Anneka Sutcliffe

Leader of Bristol Metropolitan Orchestra

David Maguire

Singer & Co-founder @ Fieri Consort. Sustainability Consultant @Foster + Partners

Elena Riu

Professor of Piano Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance

Maisie Lewis

Student Soprano

Andrea Brown

Conductor/Head of Choral Conducting RWCMD

Agata Kruszewska

Cirque du Soleil Inc./ drums/ percussion

Matthew Kaner

Composer

Purushottam Kiri

Music Director

David G Hindley

Former Head of Music Homerton College, Cambridge

Anton Richter

French Horn

Bristol Classical Players

Conductor/ Violinist/ Committee

Hannah Taylor

TallWall Media

Nina Danon

Composer

Jan Bauer

Cello /Staatsorchester Braunschweig and Esperia Quartet

David Gaines, D.M.A.

Composer

Adam Snider

Tuba

Sarah Latto

Echo Vocal Ensemble

Sarah Latto

Conductor, Echo Vocal Ensemble

Anna Krimm

Co Principal Viola/ Beethoven Orchester Bonn

Marco Betta

Composer