Speech by Alan Davey, Controller of Radio 3, at the ABO Conference, Sage Gateshead

Controller of BBC Radio 3 Alan Davey's speech to the Association of British Orchestras Conference, at Sage Gateshead on 29 January 2015.

Published: 29 January 2015
Radio 3, the Proms, the work of the Performing Groups – they are a key part of the musical and cultural life of the nation and something very precious.
— Alan Davey

Well, it’s a little over two weeks in as controller and I’m still in a phase of listening to people who are involved in what we do. But one thing is clear – in being responsible for Radio 3, the Proms and the Performing Groups, as well as championing classical music across the BBC – I am responsible for what is effectively one of the most important set of cultural resources in the country and indeed the world. And that is a huge responsibility.

Classical music – or indeed maybe we should describe it as serious, interesting, life-changing and complex music – as well as culture and ideas, are what the Radio 3 family is about. Doing in spades what we set out to do at my previous organisation, the Arts Council: 

  • Creating great art and culture and putting it within the reach of everyone
  • Doing so with a quality and care that does not discriminate and treat anyone as second class or entitled to less
  • Through high-quality crafted broadcast sound, say to people that these great treasures are for you and here’s a way in for you
  • Never dumbing down but providing everyone with the means to understand great music and culture for what it is
  • Not just giving the audience what we think they want, but earning the right to be a trusted guide to new things and to do so in a spirit of generous authority
  • Having an informal, but informed tone that wears its knowledge lightly
  • That always has in mind the thrill of discovery and remembers the joy of hearing a great piece for the first time
  • Ensuring as Helen [Boaden] mentioned yesterday that we continue to take creative risks and our talented Performing Groups are a major part of that, not least through their some 60 premieres a year – a major part of the BBC’s Music commitment

That’s our mission and we need to use all our resources in whatever way we can to realise this in live performances, broadcast and online. That’s a powerful set of things to have at our disposal.

I think everyone in this room wants to make sure more people encounter and understand serious music and the part it can play in their lives. I’m not satisfied with reaching out only to those who already know – there are many curious and musically literate people out there who are waiting for their lives to be reached by all kinds of musical genres, including classical music. I take this championing of serious, complex music as an important part of Radio 3’s actual and potential mission. No matter what financial challenges are thrown at us – and we all have them – we have to stay true to the mission and to stay true to quality.

We’re passionate about the orchestral sector. We broadcast from 150 venues around the country every year and many of you in the room we’ll have formal partnerships with, which goes beyond that broadcast, and this is also something I’m keen to develop further.

Orchestral partnerships are the backbone of Radio 3, from Mark Elder conducting the Hallé in Shostakovich Cello Concerto 2 featuring Elisa Weilerstein, which we’re broadcasting in March, through to the LSO’s Britten Violin Concerto in April, conducted by Osmo Vänskä, with Gil Shaham on violin, through to Ed Gardner conducting Tippett’s second symphony for the CBSO. And speaking of CBSO, I can’t not mention our extensive Simon Rattle residency coverage which includes Berlin Phil concerts from the Barbican and Southbank next week (10, 11, 12 February – Barbican and 14 February Royal Festival Hall, Southbank).

I’m keen to see what more we can do together. How else can we push the boundaries and limits to bring audiences innovation and the very best broadcasts that reflect the thriving sector all of us here are so passionate about?

As it’s early days, I am afraid those eager tweeters amongst you won’t find me outlining all my plans for the station just yet (and there are many things I’m keen to share with you once my feet are under the table), but that’s because in these early days I’m keen to listen and hear your thoughts and feedback on how we work together and how we can continue to do that better.

We have announced that there will be a BBC Prom for Ten Pieces. The project, which is broader than Radio 3 and touches the whole of the BBC, will be working with some of the 233 music, dance and arts organisations that have signed up as Champions for Ten Pieces in their communities, and who are running lessons, workshops and teacher training on the theme. Working in partnership in classical music is something that is vital to our existence – we’re a community, and need to work together to help develop the next generation of audiences and maintain our existing ones.

As Helen mentioned, we’re soon to focus on female composers in a season of programming in March, and I’m keen to ensure that there is a greater range of composers across the network on a regular basis.

Another area I am passionate about is our live daily concerts. We don’t just record the concerts or provide context for our listeners online and on-air and through live events, but we take care to craft what the audience hears at home through a team of extraordinary people who work behind the scenes. The fact that online we can give you HD sound so that what you and your orchestras play is relayed to our listeners exactly how someone in that concert hall might hear it is an example of the quality of what we do. In looking at what we do, we must never lose sight of that quality and craftsmanship – it’s a key part of what we offer. I also hope we can continue to develop surround sound, which we tried last year at the Proms, so that you really do feel you are in the hall.

So Radio 3, the Proms, the work of the Performing Groups – they are a key part of the musical and cultural life of the nation and something very precious. I want to work with you – all of you – to make sure this remains the case and that we can continue to attract and hold onto new audiences for the amazing things that we do – things that some of them may know they want and some of them may not.

And I just want to say at the outset that this mission is a shared one – we need to work with all of you in this room – and I want to acknowledge the role that other broadcasters have in offering a distinctive but no less important way for audiences to engage. And while we’re on a related subject I would like to wish Darren Henley all best wishes as he takes over the Arts Council.

In the meantime, here’s to all the work we can do together for great music and the profound effect it can have on the lives of everyone.

Please check against delivery.

AH

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