Jamming in the slammer

It may be considered an unusual choice for Warwick Chamber Orchestra concerts. Would classical music have the Johnny Cash ‘Folsom Prison’ appeal? Last Autumn, 21 members of the orchestra took their instruments and concert dress to HMP Onley to perform a medley of pieces, including Beethoven and Bohemian Rhapsody. For performers and prisoners alike this was an entirely new experience; never before had the prison opened its doors to an orchestra while many of us had never set foot in a prison. Yet after positive responses from prisoners and performers, the orchestra are now practicing for another concert this term and hope to build a lasting connection with the prison.

HMP Onley, near Rugby, is a Category C prison, meaning that it is a closed prison for those on shorter sentences or serving the end of a long-term sentence. Consisting only of men over 21, roughly 700 prisoners are inside. The orchestra performed two one hour long sets to audiences of 50-80 prisoners in each. After the concerts, orchestra and prisoners engaged in a question and answer session, during which it was fascinating to share different perspectives on classical music and comments on different pieces and instruments. We reflected on how we interpret the conducting, and discussed with the audience questions such as how the ‘rhythm’ of the orchestra can be compared to the ‘rhythm’ of drums, and how easy it is to play with singers. We hope that when we return to Onley those who were unable to attend the first concert will be able to come and hear us, as well as those who would like to hear us again.

Needless to say, the concert was a very different experience for the orchestra, especially compared to our usual concerts in Warwick Arts Centre. I can say on behalf of everyone that it was a memorable and thought-provoking day, which challenged both pre-conceptions of prison and pre-conceptions of classical music. One student stated “I admit, I was apprehensive before going to the prison, that they wouldn’t appreciate or enjoy the music, but seeing their reactions and hearing their questions was really affirming and positive. Most of them at least were obviously very appreciative of the break with routine that our concert provided.”

Feedback from the prison has also been really positive. One prisoner stated after the concert, “you all made the evening in prison, which let me tell you can sometimes be a challenge, [it] became a positive and memorable experience”. It was particularly wonderful to see that some prisoners came back to watch the second concert after having enjoyed the first so much.

The concert demonstrated how sharing music can bring together completely detached groups of people and break down those barriers. As our conductor said, the incredible thing about music is its ‘otherness that connects people’. Another student also reflected on how rewarding it was to play to an audience out of the usual context of concert etiquette, making it actually far more ‘real’. Some of the men talked throughout the concert, yet afterwards said they really enjoyed it, showing how you don’t need to be in a formal setting to appreciate classical music. After the concert prisoners and performers engaged in a fantastic question and answer session about music, and, in a cheesy-film-esque moment, the audience sang along to a second rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody.

We’re extremely grateful to those who make the concerts possible at the prison. It is very difficult to get permission for something of that nature to take place, and required huge consideration and planning at their end. Taking 21 instruments into prison is no small feat; everything taken in has to be declared and regularly checked. Everything went smoothly, and we were struck by the simple fact on leaving the prison of how lucky we were to be returning to our lives at university.

Charities such as Music in Prisons (The Irene Taylor Trust) run fantastic arts projects in prisons which help give those released from prison something to deter them from returning to crime. I was lucky enough to catch a gig by the band Platform 7, formed on a music course in prison, performing at the Royal Festival Hall last September. The Koestler Trust, who run arts projects and courses in prisons, also regularly put on exhibitions over the country displaying art by inmates. For more information on current issues of prison reform, check out the ‘Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile’, found on the Prison Reform Trust website and the website of the Howard League.

We are returning to HMP Onley at the end of this term, and are planning to perform pieces by Mozart and Beethoven, after the Beethoven symphony we played in autumn received the most appreciative response. Excitingly, it was requested that a prisoner who was particularly inspired could sing with us, so we are planning a Beatles Medley which the audience can sign along too. We hope that this musical connection between Warwick Chamber Orchestra and HMP Onley will continue into the future.