Melbourne Symphony Orchestra cancels pianist over pro-Palestine stance

Internationally acclaimed pianist Jayson Gillham has been cancelled by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) for speaking about his support for Palestine at his concert on the weekend.

The Australian-British pianist is currently on tour in Australia and was in a recital at the Iwaki Auditorium Sunday morning (11 August), where his solo piano program included Beethoven, Ligeti, Chopin and the “world premiere” of 'Witness', by Connor D’Netto.

The MSO management should hang its collective head in shame.

As reported on Twitter/X by playwright Samah Sabawi, Gillham told his audience that two of the pieces, the Ligeti and the D’Netto, were “a cry against injustice and oppression.”

BREAKING: spread the word. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra #MSO just canceled a musician because he played a piece dedicated to Palestinian journalists killed in #Gaza in his previous performance. This is the email they sent to those who wished to attend his upcoming concert…
— Samah Sabawi (@gazaheart) August 12, 2024

D’Netto’s 'Witness', he 'dedicated to the journalists of Gaza', calling the targeted assassinations of journalists a 'war crime'.

Gillham was due to perform with the MSO again this week, but the company cancelled his appearance in an email sent out to concert-goers about the 'introductory remarks' made on Sunday:

Witness was accepted for performance at the request of Mr Gillham on the basis that it was a short meditative piece. Mr Gillham made his personal remarks without seeking the MSO’s approval or sanction. They were an intrusion of personal political views on what should have been a morning focused on a program of works for solo piano.

The MSO does not condone the use of our stage as a platform for expressing personal views...

The MSO understands that his remarks have caused offence and distress and offers a sincere apology.

Gillham’s performance ought not to have come as a surprise to MSO. In June, he performed at a benefit concert in Manchester Cathedral to raise funds for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.

On his website, Gillham said:

'It was an honour to perform at one of the most moving and meaningful performances of my life.'

Gillham performed alongside a group of 'arts workers organising classical musical events to elevate Palestinian voices, draw attention to the crisis in Gaza, and raise urgently needed funds for respected charities working in Gaza and across Palestine'.

He said he had spent a long time choosing the repertoire for his performance (which included 'Somewhere' from West Side Story), in order to reflect:

'...the magnitude of the moral and spiritual task before us.'

The concert in which he was to have performed on Thursday evening in Melbourne is a program of Mozart and Brahms. In September, Gillham is due to perform at the Goulburn Performing Arts Centre, and then with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra at Llewellyn Hall, ANU.

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The State Library Victoria’s CEO asked staff to scrutinise pro-Palestinian content on the social media of writers contracted to deliver a workshop for teenagers.

The MSO’s claim that they stand for “humanity and peace” and “seek for every one of our performances to be a welcome and safe place for all” echoes the position taken by other big Australian cultural institutions, such as the Sydney Theatre Company and the State Library of Victoria, who censured artists for supporting Palestine.

In response to this latest claim about the “offence” the artists have caused, cultural heavyweight and former festival director Leo Schofield, took to social media on Tuesday morning:

'The MSO management should hang its collective head in shame. Jayson Gillham has both courage and a world of admirers for his public stance. Courage and humanity are qualities not evident in blackmailing Zionists.'

Rosemary Sorensen is an IA columnist, journalist and founder of the Bendigo Writers Festival. You can follow Rosemary on Twitter/X @sorensen_rose.