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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics

If you’re working class, you’ve got little chance of a career in classical music

Musician's hands with cello on a dark background
‘Many UK recital venues insist on conservatoire-trained performers, but refuse to pay them.’ Photograph: Vadim Ponomarenko/Alamy

Symeon Brown’s argument that class is the elephant in the room in conversations about race (Interview, 9 August) is nowhere more visible than in classical music.

Celebrated black classical musicians held up as evidence of progress are very often solidly middle class: children of professionals who could afford the instruments, tuition, exam fees and travel that serious musical training demands. Their success is real, but is mainly evidence that class opens doors.

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