The Musically Gifted Campaign

Back in 2011-12 Britten Sinfonia ran a slightly more unusual campaign: A Tenner for a Tenor. The campaign was the first time Britten Sinfonia had tested the ‘crowdfunding’ concept – basically, getting lots of people together giving small amounts, in order to make a project happen. With the Tenner for a Tenor campaign, we were commissioning the acclaimed composer Jonathan Dove for our ‘At Lunch’ concert series, and we needed additional funds to make it happen. By the time of the world premiere, over 300 people had come together, giving £10 or more each. Everyone was a winner: Britten Sinfonia achieved its target for the campaign, and those giving £10 had their name in the front of the full score, which will remain there forever.

We were thrilled with the response, but at the time the Tenner for a Tenor campaign was very much a ‘one off’ thing, and was based solely on the fact that Jonathan Dove’s work featured the world-renowned tenor Mark Padmore, and to participate you just had to give £10. You quite literally got a tenor, for a tenner. It got us thinking though: how can we replicate this success in future? As importantly, how can we enable more people to have a real stake in the new music that they hear Britten Sinfonia perform on stage?

Well, we’re excited to announce that the successor campaign has launched: Musically Gifted. When looking at the charity marketplace, we saw there were various shining examples of excellence out there, especially away from the arts sector, including Oxfam’s famous ‘Unwrapped’ campaign. The beauty of Oxfam’s campaign is that you can buy a unique gift, and that depending on how much you have to spend, you can buy anything from a goat, to safe water for 50 people, to teacher training plus much more. All of the gifts bought enable Oxfam to deliver real change in the communities in which they operate.

With Musically Gifted we’ve taken a similar approach. Instead of goats we have composers, and we’ll have up to eight composers for you to choose from at any one time. You can buy a gift at one of seven different levels, and the more you spend, the more your rewards increase. The basic gift remains at just £10, and for that we’ll give you a hearty shout-out on Twitter and Facebook, plus you’ll get your name in the full score of your chosen work and email updates as the work evolves from commission to premiere. If you have a bit more to spend, then you can have anything from complimentary tickets to the world première of your chosen work, to an invitation for you and a guest to attend our rehearsals. You can even have afternoon tea with your chosen composer and our players.

Visit the website, www.musicallygifted.org.uk, and browse the selection of composers available. Buy a gift for yourself, or for the special someone in your life. Whoever you choose and at whatever level, you’ll be helping Britten Sinfonia create new music.

Finally, there’s one more important bit of information to tell you. As we were planning the campaign, Arts Council England put out a call for proposals, that would enable more people to give to the arts. We’re really pleased to say that the Musically Gifted campaign was one of the chosen proposals, and as a result for the next two years all gifts bought through Musically Gifted will be match-funded by the Arts Council, up to a maximum of £50,000 each year. We can also claim gift aid on your gift too. Your £10 gift could therefore become £22.50; or a £500 gift could become worth £1,125 – at absolutely no cost to you. So, if you’re in the market for a unique musical gift then please do visit the website and help us create new music.

Meet Will Harriss

In another post in our occassional series of Q and A's with soloists, musicians and staff our Development Director, Will Harriss answers a few questions. Will is responsible for all our fundraising initatives from individual donors to our friends scheme, corporate sponsorship deals to raising funds towards commissioning new works. Will is also the brainchild behind our Tenner for a Tenor campaign.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Raising enough money to fund two different orchestral academies. The second is a work in progress, but seeing it develop as we head towards its launch is totally brilliant.

Any low points?
Any project which can’t happen because of a lack of funds isn’t great. I hope there won’t be too many in my career, as part of fundraising is always to try and have a plan B should the unexpected occur. But there will always be some uncomfortable moments.

When are you happiest?
Up a mountain somewhere. Or discovering a new country. Ideally up a mountain in a new country, and preferably with my wife.

What is your greatest fear?
Being trapped inside a small box where no-one can hear me.

What is your earliest musical memory?
Not being able to play a piano piece aged 6 or 7, and having a complete tantrum as a result.

Which living person do you most admire, and why?
Jointly, it’s Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. They’ve really put philanthropy on the map, and I just wish that more people with extreme wealth would follow their lead. Doing something for humanity, such as helping to save lives, enabling great art, or doing something positive for the environment has to be better than acquiring a second yacht.

What is your most treasured possession?
My wedding ring. It’s a relatively new possession, and I’m looking forward to it being an old and treasured possession.

What would your super power be?
It would have to be invisibility coupled with the ability to fly like superman. I’d use the invisibility to avoid airport queues, although thinking about it I’d probably not need to land at airports.

If you were an animal what would you be?
A polar bear.

What is your favourite book?
An Equal Music, by Vikram Seth.

What is your guiltiest pleasure?
That extra glass of wine. I wouldn’t say no to combining that with a James Bond film. Oh dear.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Ok, I might start with the Archbishop of York and Barack Obama – as I consistently admire their leadership. Paul Merton and Sandi Toksvig would be fun. I’d like a philanthropist like Bill Gates or Warren Buffett round the table. I might have someone like John Adams to provide a musical perspective on things, and I’d quite happily have Bill Evans on the piano in the corner. Gordon Ramsey can do the food. With that lot, I think I’ll need to take advice on the wine.

If you could go back in time, where would you go?
Probably to the time of the Romans. They were pretty much on top of their game with villa building, city building, and empire building. It certainly puts my house DIY into perspective.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you and in a nutshell what is your philosophy?
Try not to prevaricate – come to a decision and live with it (although for me this is still a work in progress!). Eat well. Laugh lots, especially in the face of adversity. Listen to those around you, whether it’s your family, friends or colleagues – although there’s a definite art to unlocking the right advice at the right time. Be positive rather than negative. Obstacles can nearly always be overcome with a positive approach – or at least approached from a different direction. Don’t ever be afraid to dance – I guarantee you won’t look as bad as me.

Tenner for a Tenor Campaign

On Tuesday we launched our exciting new crowd-funding campaign Tenner for a Tenor. The aim of the campaign is to fund a new commission by Jonathan Dove for tenor Mark Padmore and Britten Sinfonia. We hope this model of funding new commissions will inspire people who have never thought of donating to contribute as we are only asking for donations of £10!

Working with Carly Murphy-Merrydew (design concept) and the guys from Wash Media (film) the promotion of the campaign compares items which cost £10 (which doesn’t get you much these days) and includes sausages, train tickets, wine and flowers! Take a look at the short film which captures the fun and quirky nature we’ve taken with promoting Tenner for a Tenor.

Launch events took place at our At Lunch concerts in Cambridge on Tuesday and London on Wednesday and tomorrow (Friday) we’ll be launching the scheme in Norwich. We’ve also created a giant postbox where people can post their donations at concerts but you can also donate online and via SMS text message.

So far we have had over 50 donations and the scheme is generating press and viral interest for its innovative way of encouraging philanthropy in the arts. Donors will have their name acknowledged in the score of the new work and will also get behind-the-scenes access with special email and video updates as the new work is written.

You can keep up to date with the campaign by following #10fortenor on Twitter or the Tenner for a Tenor page on Facebook. What are you waiting for? To donate text BRITTEN to 70700, or visit http://www.tennerforatenor.com/. 4lb of sauasages or a piece of music that will last a lifetime – which will you choose?