We have received the following communication posted by Simon Tait at www.artsindustry.co.uk:
Musicians arrested at Gatwick
The opening concert of this year’s Spitalfields Festival almost had to be cancelled last night because of the over-zealous Border Agency officials at
Gatwick, and possibly lax ones in Holland.
The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra were due to play at Christchurch Spitalfields, the festival’s principal venue, but when they arrived at Gatwick on Friday afternoon three of the orchestra’s members were arrested, held in detention for five hours, and then packed off back to Amsterdam.
The reason, the multi-national orchestra’s founder and conductor Ton Koopman told me last night, was that the three were Japanese musicians, two violinists and a viola player, who had come from Spain via Amsterdam where their passports apparently hadn’t been stamped properly.
“They kept them in detention like criminals and they weren’t even allowed to give us their music – because they were criminals, of course. It was a
disgraceful way to behave, and I had to leave them there in order to be here in time for the concert.”
More at www.artsindustry.co.uk
UPDATE: The Guardian reviewed the altered concert without suspecting the reason for the changes.
SECOND UPDATE: What should the conductor have done?
THIRD UPDATE: A report from the orchestral manager.
Welcome to the USA,er, UK!
Hey, once we have government drones following each of us this won’t be a problem anymore, right? Problem solved. Thanks, Camerobama!
A bit like the treatment of Petroc Trelawny in Zimbabwe! Sounds absolutely awful!!
What a farce! Bach would have approve of the solution.
The orchestra should have cancelled.
Words fail me. What on earth is going on? Too many stories to tell you about how dreadfully musicians in this country are treated. D.
Be realistic about this.
If their documents are NOT in order they CANNOT expect to enter Britain, USA or most other counties around the world.
Documents not being stamped properly in Spain/Amsterdam is NOT the fault of British immigration officials.
Put the blame where it lies not where YOU want it to lie.
Should we let everyone in just because they play in an orchestra with an immenent booking to attend regardless of the law?
Bendo,
Law enforcement officers and border officers in particular have wide latitude in enforcing the code at the border. You don’t want automatons making these decisions as the result is stupidity like this. If you want rigid adherence you could put a computer at the gate instead, but we don’t want that as unreasonable decisions come when pure logic is applied to a given set of facts. If the law was followed to the letter many many performers would never enter the United States. For example use of marijuana makes a person ineligible for admission as a visitor under 212(a) of the INA. A violation of (or a conspiracy or attempt to violate) any law or regulation relating to a controlled substance, when the amount involved would have been a crime in the United States. No visits by Rolling Stones or 98% of the rock bands would happen again.
Quite right too – glad that the Border Agency is doing its job at last.
I’m sick and tired of being mugged by Japanese violinists in Deptford every Saturday night.
It’s quite simple really. Obviously the personnel at the Border Agency are not baroque lovers.
@bendo2
I’m from Australia and share the same queen, but still I get treated like a criminal every time I have to visit the UK. My own mother was held in detention in the UK until I came and told them my address because they wouldn’t let her access her suitcase to get the piece of paper it was written on. And I think more UK people are defecting to Australia than the other way around.
So indeed, put the blame where it lies – an immigration official who is more interested in creating a problem than finding the solution.
Peace.
Too right mate. Why are members of the commonwealth shunned away from Britain when members of the EU are welcomed with open arms? Surely the commonwealth countries should have priority over EU when the commonwealth still recognise our own queen as their monarch. They should be allowed to return to the mother country and work here if they want without having to go through the quite frankly ridiculous ‘British Citizen Test’ which the majority of the UK would probably fail anyway.
As much as I would like to join the chorus of fellow music-lovers in complaining about the Gatwick border control, i would like to share the following information, which I obtained after having spoken to an orchestra member who was at the airport with the ABO. The story I was told is slightly different:
It was not a case of three japanese musicians who did not have their passport stamped properly, but of one japanese and two US american musicians living (and working legally) in the Netherlands, who did not have the proper work permit for the concert in the UK. Since their Dutch work permit only allows them to work in the NL, they would have needed a work permit for the concert in the UK. Many european orchestras performing in the UK are faced with the same problem when it comes to bringing along their non-EEU members. The are two options: a) obtain the proper permit beforehand or b) risk being detected by the border agency. Obviously the management of ABO has opted for the latter, which meant there was indeed a problem once the border control did check the work permit status of the three musicians in question.
As for treating the musicians in a bad or inappropriate way: I have been told that all three were treated very nicely. In fact the agents at the border control tried everything in their hands to let the musicians travel through. They do however not have the proper authority to decide on someone’s work permit status, let alone grant it without a proper application.
In my opinion this incident is not to be blamed on the Gatwick border control officers, but rather on the orchestra/tour management who had decided to cut corners and tried “smuggling” those musicians past the border control, a foolish attempt especially in times of hightened security before the olympics.
Thanks, Nico. That’s very helpful.
You are right. I know a member of the band, so i have some more detailed background infos. Its not to blame the board but mr Koopman and his management. Thouse visas (work permit) is normally no problem, but you have to pay for them. In this case the management would have had to pay them. And it seems, they didn’t want to spend that money and do the paperwork, but didn’t tell the musicians. When asked why they want to enter the UK, of course they were proud to say, that they perform a concert that evening.
Most shocking for me – Mr. Koopman never apologized, never said a word of sorry. And in interviews he tries to blame the UK Border Control.
NO Mr. Koopman – it was your responsibility! And you failed! And you don’t have the guts to be truthfull..
Of course, the idea of each member of a band or orchestra has to have its own personal work permit is ludicrous on the face of it. It denies the basic nature of a band or orchestra which is as a working unit, not 4, 20 or whatever individual workers.
I just signed a work permit form for two concerts the Pittsburgh Symphony will be playing in Montreal in July- every individual member has to do this when we play in many countries, not just the UK. The ABO management has to answer for the lack of proper documentation, not the border control officers.
What Koopman forgot to say is, that HE was responsible for the visas and the musicians trusted him. He did not even tell them, that he didn’t prepared the visas in advance and when arrested, there was no word of regret from Mr. Koopman. No apologizing. He didn’t even show up and try to help the musicians. By the way – there were four musicians arrested. Two of them had to take the next flight to Berlin, the other two were held in prison over night (without a bed). One of them is not allowed to enter the UK for the next 10 years – because of Mr. Koopmans failure. And not even a sorry from him.
The shedule of the show was changed without telling the sopronist Dorothee Mields – she was informed when entering the stage – not even asked if she was willing to – and of cause no thank you after the event.
Well done dimwit.