Shirley J. Thompson
Wayne Marshall
Duke Ellington (1899-1974)
is featured at AfriClassical.com
which features a comprehensive Works List
and a Bibliography by Dr. Dominique-René de Lerma,
www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com.
We are collaborating with the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation of the U.K., www.SCTF.org.uk]
and a Bibliography by Dr. Dominique-René de Lerma,
www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com.
We are collaborating with the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation of the U.K., www.SCTF.org.uk]
Michael S. Wright writes:
FYI re my letter to Edward Vaizey – Britain’s Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries.
Shirley Thompson is an amazingly talented and successful composer of Jamaican descent who I met some 20 years ago.
The e-mail I sent was copied in to a number of relevant artists and performers
From: Shirley Thompson [mailto:shirljt@yahoo.com]
Sent: 26 August 2014 03:12
To: michael wright
Cc: shirley@shirleythompsonmusic.com
Subject: Re: Black and Ethnic Minority Representation in Music Broadcasting
Dear Michael,
Thanks
for copying me into your insightful email to Hon Ed Vaizey, MP. I
entirely concur with the issue you've raised and the points you make. It
is particularly interesting to be reminded that Samuel Coleridge Taylor
had a prom performance in 1914. 100 years later and the Classical prom
programme excludes music by persons of colour from Britain, or anywhere
else in the world for that matter!
I
have several orchestral works that could easily be included in the
prom. They have been recorded by world-leading musicians such as the
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Philharmonia and the BBC Concert
Orchestra Principals et al. Please see https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/new-nation-rising-21st
century/id882808507. I have also been performed in 38 major opera
houses worldwide including Sydney Opera House, City Center New York, the
Royal Opera House and the Mariinsky Opera House.
I
am not sure of the criteria employed in programming for the prom and
would like to know. I am also curious to find out how classical works
make it onto the Radio 3 and Classic FM playlists.
I
look forward to progressing this enquiry and developing a list of
persons wanting to see appropriate changes to the BBC Radio 3 and
Classic FM playlists.
Best wishes,
Shirley
Dr Shirley J. Thompson FRSA
Composer, Conductor, Creative Director,
Academic, Violinist
Tel: 07976 941421
On Saturday, 23 August 2014, 12:55, michael wright <michaelwright946@btinternet.com> wrote:
The Hon Edward Vaizey
Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
Dear Mr Vaizey,
I
refer to recent campaigns and I follow on from recent concerns over the
disproportionally low representation of Black and Ethnic Minorities
working in the media industry, I have good reason to believe that there
is a massive under-representation of people of non-European origin in
the broadcasting of all forms of music outside the ‘pop’ music
industry. Black Asian and people from ethnic minorities make up 14% of
the UK population yet less than 6% of the people who work in the media
are from ethnic minorities!
A
prime example of the disproportion of broadcast ‘classical’ music by
Black and Ethnic minorities can be seen in this years’ listing of the
‘BBC Proms’. Practically all of the music is by White composers of
European origin. However, I must acknowledge that this years’ Prom 30:
‘Battle of the Bands’ – does contain some music by the great African
American jazz composer-performers Duke Ellington and Count Basie.
However, this was somewhat marginalised by the timing and format. It is
interesting to note that Prom 24 held on Friday 11 Sept 1914, at
8.00pm in the Queen's Hall did include Samuel Coleridge-Taylor - Scenes
from 'The Song of Hiawatha', Op 30. Samuel Coleridge-Taylor 1875-1912
was a major composer of mixed African and English origin who was born in
London and during his lifetime rivalled the much more well known
composer, Sir Edward Elgar.
The
BBC Proms have been long-held to be the flagship classical music
festival in the UK. However, those responsible for programming these
concerts and selecting the artists performing and the composers
represented have clearly missed the mark in the ethnic balance for this
years’ Proms.
Whilst
the BBC have come some way in recent years to make more efforts to
include music by Black and Ethnic Minorities in their programmes on BBC
Radio 3 and BBC 4, there is still much more work required to redress
this imbalance.
I
believe the BBC, Classic FM and other UK channels need to do much more
to make sure more black, Asian and ethnic minorities are employed in all
aspects of the media whether they are artists or presenters..
Kind Regards,
Michael Wright
Way House,
Shebbear,
Nr Beaworthy,
Devon
EX21 5SL
I
have now added the following listing of Wayne Marshall’s impressive
list previous performances at the BBC Proms and highlighted those that
have featured performances of music by composers or arrangers of African
origin or descent including his own works.
(1988) Prom 30 - Tuesday 16 August, 7.30pm - Francis Poulenc - Concerto for Organ, Strings and Timpani in G minor
(1996) Prom 30 - Sunday 11 August, 9.30pm - Igor Stravinsky - Concerto for piano and wind instruments
(1997)
Prom 73 - Last Night of the Proms 1997 - Saturday 13 September, 7.30pm
-George Gershwin - Variations on 'I got Rhythm' Olivier Messiaen - L'
Ascension (organ version)
(1998) Prom 20 - Saturday 1 August, 6.30pm - George Gershwin - Porgy and Bess
(1999) Prom 43 - Duke Ellington: A Centenary Celebration - Thursday 19 August, 10.00pm Billy Strayhorn - Take the 'A' train, Duke Ellington – Solitude, Louis Bellson - The Hawk Talks, Duke
Ellington - It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing, Duke
Ellington – Juniflip, Duke Ellington - Drop me Off in Harlem, Duke
Ellington - Sophisticated Lady, Duke Ellington - Such Sweet Thunder,
Duke Ellington - I Got It Bad, And That Ain't Good, Duke Ellington -
Rockin' in Rhythm, Duke Ellington - Time's A-Wastin' (Things Ain't What
They Used To Be), Duke Ellington - Mood Indigo, Duke Ellington - Satin
Doll (This was extremely well performed with the BBC Big Band but to
my mind, somehow lacked something you could hear in the originals which
I have on CD transfers of the old records – my comment!)
(2001)
Prom 29 - Saturday 11 August, 7.00pm - Olivier Messiaen - La nativité
du Seigneur, Olivier Messiaen - Messe de la Pentecôte, Olivier Messiaen -
L' Ascension (organ version)
(2005) Prom 08 - Thursday 21 July, 7.30pm - James MacMillan - A Scotch Bestiary
(2008)
Prom 01 - First Night of the Proms 2008 - Friday 18 July, 8.00pm -
Olivier Messiaen - La nativité du Seigneur, Richard Strauss - Festliches
Präludium
(2008) Prom 22 - Sunday 3 August, 4.00pm - Olivier Messiaen – Prélude, Wayne Marshall - Organ improvisation on Themes by Messiaen, Olivier
Messiaen - Verset pour la Fête de la Dédicace, Dupré - Organ Symphony
No. 2 in C sharp minor, Op 26, Naji Subhy Paul Irénée Hakim - Pange
lingua, Jeanne Demessieux - Te Deum, Op 11
(2010) Prom 20 - Sunday 1 August, 4.00pm - Richard Wagner - Tannhäuser, WWV 70 (arr. Edwin Lemare), Wayne
Marshall - Organ improvisation on Wagner's 'Ride of the Valkyries',
Wayne Marshall - Organ improvisation on Themes from Wagner's 'Tristan
und Isolde', Richard Wagner - Die Walküre, WWV 86b (arr. Edwin
Lemare), Richard Wagner - Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, WWV 96 (arr.
Edwin Lemare)
(2012)
Prom 70: Desert Island Discs 70th-Anniversary Prom - Monday 3
September, 7.30pm - J. S. Bach - Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565
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