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| Conway Hall Ethical Award: recipient Vivien Connacher and members of Songhaven with Conway Hall’s Carmen D’Cruz |
Last week (6 March 2025) Conway Hall presented its 2025 Ethical Gala, the annual celebration of their mission to Make Ethics Matter. The evening mixed speeches, conversation and performances, showcasing the range of their programme and partnerships, along with the presentation of their 2025 Ethical Award.
We began we a talk from Conway Hall’s CEO, Dr Jim Walsh, which drew in Magritte, Velasquez, Manet, Francis Bacon, Jackson Pollock and more in a wide-ranging discussion about what Ethics actually is. This was followed by performances from artists from the London Performing Academy of Music, an independent London-based music conservatoire, whose work supporting the education and development of young musicians is supported by Conway Hall. We heard two Ukrainian musicians, part of a programme where the Academy brings young Ukrainian performers to the UK for study. Pianist Anastasiia Rud, a third year undergraduate, played a Chopin impromptu, Then tenor Grigore Riciu (who took part in the Academy’s Opera Studio performance of Puccini’s Turandot at Conway Hall) performed ‘Nessun Dorma’ from Turandot with the Academy’s founder, Stefania Passamonte on piano.
The first half ended with a discussion between Holly Elson, Conway Hall’s Head of Programmes and Rosemary Richards, Director of the Bloomsbury Festival, which returns in October 2025. Rosemary explained that the festival encompasses 40 to 50 venues in the area and celebrates Bloomsbury’s creativity along with supporting young artists. It aims to celebrate the diversity of such a small area, being a place-based festival that involves the community, but business support is also important. The core of the festival’s support is its relationships with business and universities, and with Londoners themselves.
After the interval, Carmen D’Cruz, Chair of the Trustees of Conway Hall presented the 2025 Ethical Award to Vivien Conacher, founder and director of Songhaven which provides a space where people living with dementia (including carers and companions) can come together and enjoy professional afternoon concerts in a joyous and welcoming atmosphere, as well as giving classically-trained artists paid performance opportunities that are relaxed, fun, and will expand their skills and repertoire.
The organisation was founded by Vivien in 2017 when, as a performer (she is a mezzo-soprano) she discovered the power of music for people living with dementia. She was a music student at the time and roped her friends in to give dementia friendly concerts. Since COVID, they have developed Songhaven at Home, a FREE online collection of 30 minute concert films (with accompanying printable programmes) recorded at Songhaven’s live concert events. But there are also live concerts too, see their website.
We ended with a solo performance by flautist Daniel Shao who presented a Daniel Shao and friends concert at Conway Hall last month. He began with Debussy’s Syrinx, then the ‘Sarabande’ from Bach’s Flute Partita and finally Alison Loggins-Hull‘s Homeland.
