Composer and Conductor Matthew Elderton-Lewis shares details of his exciting new project, EcoMelodies, centering environmental issues through climate...
Chris Hutchings, music creator and founder of Choirs for Climate, talks to us about all the different paths music groups can take towards being more 'green' with their activities.
There are many things that we as performers can do to be eco-friendly and environmentally sustainable. Your group might already be carpooling to get to rehearsals, bringing reusable cups or water bottles, or organising a litter pick in your area. And these are good things to do: there are plenty of guides already on how to reduce your carbon footprint: check out Julie’s Bicycle and the Scottish Classical Music Green Guide; don’t tour by plane; switching your bank account to an ethical provider will often be the best thing you can do.
But here I want to encourage you to look further upstream and work to change the system that creates climate and environmental crises, closer to the source. Ambitious? Yes. But read on, and you’ll hopefully see how musicians are placed to change things.
By going further upstream, I mean addressing the causes of issues, not just ameliorating the effects. For example, carpooling or switching to electric cars is good - but further upstream, how about changing your rehearsal and performance venues to somewhere that more of your members can get to without needing a car? You could offer a discount for anyone who comes to a concert by public transport. How about campaigning for better Saturday night public transport - or doing an afternoon concert instead, so your audience can get to and from your concert by bus or train more easily?
The ways musicians can make a difference further upstream include showing that we care about the world through what we perform. The repertoire we choose sends a message about what our members care about and choose to spend their time on, and that speaks to our entire audience, which often includes high level decision makers.
Composers have always engaged with the world and its causes. They have written music against war (Britten’s War Requiem, Penderecki’s Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima), or campaigned against discrimination (Smyth’s March of the Women, Joel Thompson’s Seven Last Words of the Unarmed), and today many of us write about the climate crisis.
This is why I started Choirs for Climate, which promotes choral works on climate by composers from all around the world, with more being added all the time: many of the pieces on the site are free under Creative Commons licenses. I’m also working with Classical Declares Emergency, and we have a list of repertoire which includes a lot of orchestral music and chamber music. (If you’ve performed or commissioned a relevant piece that isn’t listed on there yet, please send us details!)
And if nothing there seems right for you - why not join forces with a composer and create a new piece, maybe one that includes local environmental issues, tailored for your ensemble?
The ultimate aim is to make large-scale upstream change, which will not happen without people at the highest level who see the need for change and work for it. Many influential decision makers come to classical music concerts, and we have a unique place in their consciousnesses; the right message sent through our music could change the world.
Some possibilities to consider:
- Invite your local MP to hear a nature-themed programme and tell them why you’re doing it.
- How about staging a children’s musical about climate change in your council headquarters?
- Can you fundraise to stop pollution in local rivers with a concert of pieces about water?
After all, what’s the point of music, if we’re not trying to make the world a better place with it?
Find out more about Choirs for Climate on their website
Check out Classical Declares Emergency's repertoire list
Find out more about Making Music's Climate Change Network
