Discussion of classical music tends to skirt away from political issues. The issues are there, certainly, and sometimes rear their heads only to disappear again, but we seem to have no consistent discussion about music, culture and wider issues, whether they be politics, race, gender, sexuality or more.
Now the Music Plus has been launched, in which different musicians talk about themselves and the issues they are involved in, with Christopher Gunness. Current podcasts include Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero talking about the ongoing political crisis in her own country, something that Montero continues to address in her own music making, conductor Mark Wigglesworth talking not only about conducting but Brexit and the challenges of a career in the musc industry, and double bass player Chi-Chi Nwanoku on the government's current disastrous policies on musical education in schools and the lack of diversity in the classical music industry.
Whilst the podcasts are issue-led, they are about people as well. Musicians are often involved in issues because of who they are or because of things that have happened to them, and Gunness is an engaging interviewer so that we enjoy and are engage in the narrative of the interviewees journey.
Other interviewees include Julian Lloyd-Webber on universal music education, Nicholas McCarthy (the concert pianist born without a right hand) on disability and stigma, and James Rose (the world's first professional conductor with cerebral palsy) whilst planned is Cayenna Ponchione Bailey, who recently brought the Afghan Women's Orchestra to the UK.
Gunness, himself, has an interesting background. Originally a music journalist at the BBC, he has worked in the Middle-East for UN doing rights-based public advocacy. He created the Music Plus podcast because for years he saw the world of pop music campaigning for all sorts of issues (right back to Live Aid), yet there was nothing comparable in classical music.
Music Plus is available on Spotify and on iTunes.
You can also see the complete list of podcasts on the Classical Music magazine website.
Friday 7 June 2019
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Popular Posts this month
-
Septura I first became aware of the brass septet, Septura , when noting their 2017/18 concert series Kleptomania at St John's Smith...
-
Handel: Acis and Galatea - chorus - Opera Holland Park (Photo: Ali Wright) Handel: Acis and Galatea ; Elizabeth Karani, Anthony Gregory, Ch...
-
2019 seemed a year for scholarship and rarity in recordings. Retrospect Opera gave us the first recording of Ethel Smyth's Fete Galan...
-
Wolf-Ferrari: Il segreto di Susanna - John Savournin - Opera Holland Park (Photo: Ali Wright) Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari: Il segreto di Susanna ;...
-
Donizetti: The Elixir of Love - James Atkinson - Wild Arts 2023 (Photo: Lucy J Toms) We humans, alone on earth, are powerful enough to crea...
-
Handel: Giulio Cesare - Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, Louise Alder - Glyndebourne, 2024 (Photo: © Richard Hubert Smith) Handel: Giulio Cesare in Eg...
-
Gimnazija Kranj Symphony Orchestra I get all sorts of mail, people sending my information on concerts and recordings. Everything gets gl...
-
Andrew Norman: A Trip to the Moon - Youth Company rehearsal, Garsington Opera 2024 (Photo: Julian Guidera) American composer Andrew Norman ...
-
Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro - David Ireland, Claire Lees - Garsington Opera, 2024 (Photo: Julian Guidera) Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro ; David...
-
Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin - James Baillieu, Julien Van Mellaerts, Christopher Purves - Opera in Song at Opera Holland Park, 2022 Opera ...
Many thanks for this review Robert. And if anyone has any questions about any of the issues raised in Music Plus, please send them on to me. My email address is cgunness@outlook.com. Best, Chris
ReplyDelete