Melbourne Symphony Orchestra admits ‘error’ in cancelling pianist’s show over Gaza remarks

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra cancelled a show by Jayson Gillham after he dedicated a piece to the journalists of Gaza

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) has admitted that it made an “error” in cancelling a performance by acclaimed pianist Jayson Gillham after his remarks about Israel’s war in Gaza and added that it will conduct an independent review of its policies.

Mr Gillham was scheduled to perform works by Beethoven, Chopin and others, including a piece by composer Connor D’Netto titled “Witness”, dedicated to the journalists of Gaza.

The performance was set to be held at the Melbourne Town Hall with the MSO on 15 August, but was cancelled after Mr Gillham’s performance on 11 August, where he spoke about Israel’s actions against Palestinian journalists, labelling them “war crimes”.

The MSO removed the British-Australian pianist from the concert, stating that he put the orchestra in a “difficult situation”. Soon after, the entire concert was cancelled due to safety concerns, with the MSO saying they are now trying to reschedule with Mr Gillham.

“The MSO acknowledges that an error was made in asking Jayson to step back from his performance on Thursday 15 August,” a statement on the event page said.

“We have been engaging constructively with Jayson and his management and are seeking to reschedule the concert.

“While the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra maintains that a concert platform is not an appropriate stage for political comment, we acknowledge Jayson’s concerns for those in the Middle East and elsewhere.

“We recognise the strength of feelings of all parties on this matter and particularly acknowledge the dedication and commitment demonstrated by all our musicians and staff this week.”

On Friday, the orchestra’s musicians passed a vote of no confidence in senior management after the cancellation, writing in a letter that this incident was a “culmination of years of unresolved concerns, ongoing mismanagement, and a consistent decline in workplace culture that has undermined the wellbeing of employees and the long-term success of the company,” reported The Guardian.

“We no longer have faith in the abilities of our senior management to make decisions that are in the best interests of the company at large,” the letter added.

The MSO board said that they would “conduct an independent external review into our policies, procedures and processes”, and “canvas decisions” that led to Mr Gillham’s event being cancelled.

“The review will help ensure our policies and processes reflect best practice in the contemporary environment.

“The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is determined to ensure we have the protocols in place that are fit for purpose for our organisation and the role we play within the community.”

Mr Gillham responded to the MSO’s statement, seemingly accepting the apology.

“I hold my relationship with the MSO, its players and audience with the highest regard and look forward to our continued working relationship in years to come,” he said in a statement.

Last October, Israel launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza following a Hamas attack that killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel. Israel has killed more than 39,000 Palestinians in Gaza so far, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

According to the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 113 Palestinian journalists and media workers have been killed while covering the war in Gaza.

In a concert at Melbourne’s Iwaki Auditorium hosted by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) on 11 August, the 37-year-old Queensland pianist said, before he performed “Witness”, “Over the last 10 months, Israel has killed more than 100 Palestinian journalists”.

“A number of these have been targeted assassinations of prominent journalists as they were travelling in marked press vehicles or wearing their press jackets,” he added.

“The killing of journalists is a war crime in international law, and it is done in an effort to prevent the documentation and broadcasting of war crimes to the world.”

In a statement to The Guardian, Mr D’Netto said he had written “Witness”“a few months back” for Mr Gillham.

“I dedicated it to the journalists in Gaza, their bravery and sacrifice had been on my mind a lot.

“The piece isn’t necessarily ‘about’ anything, it is a quite simple, perhaps slightly melancholy, meditative piece.”

Israel launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza following a Hamas attack last October that killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel. Hamas militants also took more than 250 hostages. Israel has killed more than 39,000 Palestinians in Gaza so far, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry. The fighting has displaced nearly 90 per cent of its 2.2 million population, according to the UN, and left around half a million facing starvation.