Over 700 composers condemn planned closure of BBC Singers in open letter to director general

Freya Parr
Tuesday, March 14, 2023

The news of the planned closure of the BBC Singers has drawn significant criticism from the musical community in the past week, with several major petitions and open letters signed by composers, conductors and associated artists of the BBC

The BBC has faced growing criticism over the last week, following the news that it would be disbanding the BBC Singers. In response, more than 700 composers have written to the BBC director general Tim Davie to condemn the closure of the 99-year-old ensemble.

‘As composers, we recognise the BBC Singers as one of the world’s great advocates for new choral music,’ they write. ‘The loss of this extraordinary group would be devastating for the future of the art form, for the composers it champions and for the audiences it serves.’

The great and the good from the British composing world have signed, including Errollyn Wallen, Thomas Adès, Jonathan Dove, John Rutter, Rachel Portman, Mark-Anthony Turnage, George Benjamin and master of the King’s music Judith Weir. Composers from overseas have also joined in petitioning the BBC, including Finnish composers Kaija Saariaho and Esa-Pekka Salonen and American composers Nico Muhly, Betsy Jolas and Eric Whitacre.

The BBC Singers have been at the forefront of new music for many of these composers, and have premiered works by the great composers of the 20th and 21st centuries, not least Webern, Poulenc, Boulez and Birtwistle.

‘You say you are looking for agility and flexibility in your future choral provision, you already have it,’ the composers continue in their letter. ‘No other UK ensemble can match this amount of breadth of activity across the spectrum of choral styles and genres, nor achieve stunning results so quickly in any situation.’

This letter comes after another similarly distressed response from the conductors, affiliated composers and artists in residence of BBC orchestras, including Dalia Stasevska, Sakari Oramo, Alpesh Chauhan and Jules Buckley. They also wrote to Davie and the other BBC heads involved in the decision, stating that ‘to consign [the BBC Singers] to the dustheap… displays a shocking disregard not only of how artistic excellence takes root but [of] how the BBC’s great legacy across the arts is viewed and envied around the world.’

As part of its announcement to close the BBC Singers, the broadcaster also announced that it would be introducing a 20% reduction in salaried positions in the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic and BBC Concert Orchestra.

A petition on Change.org to stop the planned closure of the BBC Singers has reached over 100,000 signatures.