Sir Simon Rattle: 'The Cuts Will All Be Back as Soon as The Proms Are Over'

Sir Simon Rattle has expressed his despair about the future of classical music in Britain in an interview with The Times.

The 68-year-old conductor said "The BBC and Arts Council England [ACE], the two largest funders of musicians in the country, seem to be operating a pincer movement against our art form."

On April 23, Rattle conducted a concert designed to send a signal of solidarity to the music profession. As the music director of the London Symphony Orchestra, he invited the BBC Singers - recently threatened with closure - to participate with their own rendition of Poulenc's cantata Figure humaine. "The BBC Singers are, in certain areas, clearly the best in the world." he said. "I want this to be seen as an act of solidarity with all the musicians up and down the country who are facing a struggle for survival."

The BBC has also proposed a 20 per cent cut to its three English orchestras. "So many decisions seem to have been made by people who don't have a clue how the classical music business works," Rattle asserts. "So of course many of those decisions are starting to unravel - which may almost be a mercy."

"We need to remind people that an entire art form is threatened. This is a desperate moment, and it's not the time to be diplomatic... But what really puzzles people in the music sector is why we aren't being consulted and asked for input."

The BBC has put the BBC Singers decision on hold and paused its cuts to the orchestras, but Rattle says "it's obvious that the cuts will all be back on the table as soon as the Proms are over. They were just worried about protests and demonstrations [at the Royal Albert Hall]."

Sir Simon Rattle conducted the LSO and the BBC Singers on April 23 at the Barbican, London

Photo Credit: Mark Allen

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