A missed opportunity?

Today arts organisations across England waited nervously for that important email to pop into their inboxes, deciding their fate.

As far as classical music goes however the day wasn’t as dramatic as might have been expected. There were percentage cuts to most organisations, with no big names losing out, at least among performing bodies. The seismic shift didn’t happen, and the salami slicing did – the one thing we were told wouldn’t happen.

There were some winners though – the Britten Sinfonia got a boost and the Academy of Ancient Music, English Concert and Aurora Orchestra all got funded for the first time, and it was good to see that the innovative Manchester Camerata clung onto most of its funding. These good news stories perhaps make up for the fact that the City of London Sinfonia and London Mozart Players lost all their funding a while back.