The plan is a new approach to driving change in UK orchestras, a common policy for the recruitment of orchestral musicians. Image credit: Shutterstock.
Following a year-long process of discussions with musicians and management, an agreement for a lasting legacy of fair recruitment has been announced.
The new 10 Point Orchestral Plan, created by the MU, BLiM and ABO, provides a road for recruitment to create a more equitable and inclusive orchestral sector.
Less than 2% of orchestra musicians in the UK are from an ethnic minority
The ‘Equality and Diversity in the Classical Music Profession’ (2015) report found that less than 2% of orchestral musicians in the UK were from an ethnic minority background.
The new 10 Point Orchestral Plan aims to tackle this issue in a new, collaborative way, involving both musicians and management in the same conversation.
33 organisations have signed up in total, including the five BBC Orchestras and BBC Singers, London Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Philharmonia Orchestra.
Plan includes revised audition processes, maximised trial periods and inclusivity training
As recruitment is fairly deregulated within the sector, the process varies from orchestra to orchestra.
The new plan aims to level the playing field through a range of actions, including revising audition processes, maximising trial periods and providing inclusivity training for audition panellists.
The full plan includes:
- Regular open calls for Extras and Deputies
- Inclusion of impartial external member(s) on audition panels (without voting rights)
- All candidates required to audition before being offered a trial (candidates will not be invited to trial without prior involvement in full recruitment process)
- Screened early round auditions
- First round, (proper) auditions with both in person and online options
- First main round auditions to include an unaccompanied/accompanied work and reasonable number of excerpts
- Audition panellists to receive inclusivity training within the 3 month period prior to recruitment duties
- Streamlined trial process: maximum trial period of 2 years for tutti and principal positions (appointments to be confirmed within 3 months of completion of all trials)
- All audition panels to keep a thorough and robust record of auditions and decisions during the trial process; candidates should be assessed using a clearly defined scoring framework alongside a documented and robust anecdotal narrative
- Anonymised application process.
A tremendously important step for UK orchestras
MU General Secretary Naomi Pohl comments: “Over the course of this project, the orchestral sector has shown an appetite for change in their engagement with us.
“We see the desire from the sector to be more diverse, more inclusive, and more representative of the communities we work in.
The MU, BLiM and ABO are united on this mission and will continue to support players, management, and the wider sector in their journeys to becoming the most diverse orchestras in the world.
“The MU, BLiM and ABO are united on this mission and will continue to support players, management, and the wider sector in their journeys to becoming the most diverse orchestras in the world.
"The recommendations towards inclusive practice that have been co-created by the sector show that when we enter into a dialogue with open minds we can find solutions that work for everyone.
"By embarking on this change work together, we can all support each other to grow and embed the positive change we know our sector needs in order to be future-proofed.”