MSO CHANGE OF PROGRAMME
The Mid-Somerset Orchestra
Spring Concert Saturday 7th May 2022 change of programme statement
The Mid-Somerset Orchestra announces a change to the programme advertised for its Spring Concert on Saturday 7th May 2022.
The programme, as advertised in the Strode Theatre brochure, includes Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony Little Russian. Little Russia is a non-native name for the area that is now Ukraine. Although the name is no longer in common use, it is nonetheless offensive to many Ukrainians in its association with Russian imperialist intentions. Although Tchaikovsky was innocent of any such sentiment, the symphony’s name remains unchanged.
For this reason, within the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a very clear majority of the members of the Mid-Somerset Orchestra feels uncomfortable with continuing to include this work in this programme. The orchestra has therefore decided to change it, replacing Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony with two popular works by Jean Sibelius, Finlandia and Karelia Suite.
The orchestra advises that the decision to change the programme is specific to this composition. It is not indicative of a change of policy with respect to the programming the works of Tchaikovsky, or any other composer born in Russia, in response to the invasion.
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