UK: Opera Drops Half Its Orchestra to Increase Diversity

Their latest video

Diversity doesn’t just mean hiring nonwhites – it also means firing whites.

Classic FM:

The opera company has said it’s prioritising “increased diversity in the orchestra” in line with “firm guidance of the Arts Council.”

English Touring Opera (ETO) has dropped half of its orchestral players in a push for diversity.

At least 14 musicians have been told they will not be booked for the 2022 ETO tour, many of them long-running members of the orchestra.

The ETO has attributed the changes to prioritising “increased diversity in the orchestra,” something that’s in line with “firm guidance of the Arts Council.”

“There has been an understandable outcry from Musicians Union members in response to this news today,” the Musicians Union (MU) wrote in a statement on Friday (10 September). “It comes at an especially devastating time for the freelance community, and musicians in general, with so many struggling with little work and income during the COVID-19 crisis.”

In their response, the MU describes being “appalled” by the ETO’s decision and outlines that, “while the MU lauds efforts to increase diversity in the workplace, the Union is adamant this should be achieved fairly and legitimately, not by ‘sacking’ half an orchestra.”

Musicians are hired by the ETO as freelancers, so can be dropped from the opera season-on-season, but many have played with the company for many years so consider it a permanent fixture.

The Arts Council, which provides funding to the ETO, has responded by saying that they did not advise the opera company to fire musicians as part of their work to increase diversity in classical music.

It follows logically that increasing diversity in a country does not just involve immigration – it also involves killing white people who live in the country.

Maybe we could give them fentanyl?