Dear Supporter,
You generously gave to our first ever crowdfunding campaign back in 2018 - an initiative that resulted in the release of Vivaldi X2, an album that entered the UK Specialist Classical Chart at Number 1. We will never forget the joy of discovering that when all else had failed, there was a crowd of enthusiastic people who were prepared to give to our project. Thank you for being part of this movement.
Today, La Serenissima is alive and kicking, fighting to keep going in the face of literally insurmountable obstacle. We don't know when or how our band will next play together and we are bracing ourselves for the inevitable slow recovery to concert promotion when the current social distancing measures are lifted. Recordings seem more important than ever in our house. We hope you are able to keep listening to music to keep your spirits up. Streaming La Serenissima's albums is one way to keep the charity going AND lift your mood!
Community is at the heart of La Serenissima's existence. We love our colleagues and we love our audiences. This crisis is difficult for those reasons. However, it is also a frightening time for many (or all) of our ensemble because as freelancers we are vulnerable. Although we hope the UK government will find a way to support the self-employed, we recognise that any measures are unlikely to address the scale of the problem for our artists. The UK concert scene is unlikely to pick up quickly after the social distancing measures are lifted. Many of our players are reliant on concert fees and teaching to eat. Adrian and I have therefore launched a new crowdfunding campaign to raise £20,000 to support those who need it during this initial phase of lockdown.
This week, GlobalGiving is matchfunding small donations at 50% (up to $50). So I am writing to ask those of you who can help, to please support this campaign this week: it only takes £5 to join our crowd.
We hope that we can help our colleagues by helping financially, but also by setting an example to other organisations to look after their own. If we can boost morale and help our team to survive this crisis, then there will still be a highly-skilled freelance workforce to carry out La Serenissima's mission in the future.
Please help us if you can and please help us spread the word: there is a link to the campaign below.
If you have already donated, thank you again.
Stay well, take care and keep listening to our music!
Camilla
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Dear Supporter,
This is the final report La Serenissima will send you in relation to our project Vivaldi x2 as the campaign is (happily) now fully-funded and this fantastic music has been shared with a global - and very receptive - audience.
We want to thank every person who took part in the campaign. Whether you contributed £5 or £5000, your contribution has enabled a small and vibrant charity to unlock enormous artistic potential and to share it with a worldwide audience.
Vivaldi x2 was launched in July 2018, immediately entering the UK Specialist Classical Chart at No. 1 which was a first for the organisation and signalled a giant leap forward in our ability to reach listeners - old and new. We attribute some of this success to the crowdfunding campaign; through our participation in Global Giving's March Accelerator programme we were able to learn new skills and reach new supporters in a way that has impacted positively on the brand's recognition and audience engagement. The project was featured widely by broadsheet critics, on Classic FM and Radio 3 and has captured the enthusiasm of foreign radio stations and reviewers - including in Denmark and the US.
The project, with its quirky cover image and imaginative title, helped to reinforce the message that La Serenissima is not just an exceptional bunch of musicians; that the group has its own groove and a sense of fun that is unique to the specialist area of music-making that has become known as 'historical performance'. In doing this, Vivaldi x2 enabled us to break new ground and help more people relate to this uplifting genre of music. In the three months following the CD's release, the album was streamed more than half a million times, signalling high engagement from younger listeners.
In helping to support Vivaldi x2, you have contributed to the overall success of La Serenissima, enabling us to reach new promoters and aspire to greater things for the ensemble as a whole. Recording is a fundamental aspect of our mission, meaning we can share our vision with the greatest number of people. This project has provided meaningful employment for talented professionals, and has also helped to generate future demand and opportunities for these artists and those emerging in the field too. The impact of this successful venture is enabling La Serenissima to move forward with our Emerging Artist Chairs programme (supporting young artists) and to develop future outreach initiatives for Key-Stage 2 children as well as develop a myriad of newly researched programmes.
Please keep following our work by signing up to our newsletter via www.laserenissima.co.uk.
We have launched new crowdfunding project in support of The Godfather: music by Bach, Brescianello, Fasch, Pisendel, Telemann and Vivaldi. Please support us if you can: if every donor to Vivaldi x2 gave £25 to The Godfather campaign we would be fully funded! Do visit our project page for more information.
Thank you for your support. We hope you'll keep following our work!
Camilla, Adrian & Emma
La Serenissima
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Dear Supporter,
We are thrilled to share with you some of the critical response to Vivaldi x2, the album by La Serenissima that your generosity has helped to launch to the world. We're excited that a growing critical response to our music has chimed loudly with our own vision:
'They really put the rock into baroque!'
John Suchet, Classic FM, 3 August 2018
‘I realised it was Vivaldi, not Louis Armstrong or Jimi Hendrix, who invented the idea of the riff …. And he caught the Italian dolce vita in sound centuries before Ennio Morricone.’
Ivan Hewitt, The Daily Telegraph, 4 August 2018
'Under Adrian Chandler, the playing, vibrant yet polished to perfection, is superb.'
Stephen Pettit, The Sunday Times, 12 August 2018
‘Flawlessly paced, expertly executed, spaciously recorded ……… La Serenissima’s youthful mojo shines brightly’
Paul Riley, BBC Music Magazine (CD of the month October 2018)
‘these musicians represent one heck of a crack team when it comes to the music of Vivaldi ………. bravissima, La Serenissima. Again.’
Charlotte Gardner, Gramophone, September 2018
Vivaldi x2 entered the UK Specialist Classical Chart at No. 1 in July and remains featured in the Top 30 today! It has been celebrated on Classic FM as John Suchet's 'Album of the Week', praised on BBC Radio 3's 'Record Review' and featured as 'Disc of the Month' in BBC Music Magazine.
The recording has enabled us to reach new listeners and drive home our message that Vivaldi's music can be enjoyed by everyone. Thank you for your part in helping our mission.
We will be launching a new crowdfunding campaign in the coming months for our next recording project The Godfather. If you want to know more about our work, sign up to our newsletter at www.laserenissima.co.uk or write to camilla@laserenissima.co.uk
THANK YOU FROM EVERYONE AT LA SERENISSIMA !
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Our new recording Vivaldi x2 was launched at the venue where it was recorded on 10 July. The concert highlighted the new CD in the month of its official release in the state-of-the-art concert hall.
Released on the Avie label and available for pre-order on Amazon now, supporters are encouraged to buy copies as early as possible to help drive interest in the project and increase its ranking in the Classical Specialist Chart.
We're delighted that BBC Radio 3 have chosen to explore the disc on Essential Classics on 18 July and we look forward to seeing the wider response to Vivaldi x2 and its impact on listeners over time.
Our cover image is attached to this report so supporters know what to look out for in the shops!
The CD is officially released on 20 July. We remain hugely grateful to everyone who has supported the making and release of this CD. Remeber you can continue to follow the work of the ensemble via our website and newsletter sign-up.
Your generosity is enabling La Serenissima to further its mission to share Italian baroque music with the world. THANK YOU!
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We are happy to report that production for Vivaldi x2 is now underway. The Artistic Director is awaiting the first edit from our producer and engineer Simon Fox-Gal and we are busy in our Oxfordshire office preparing aspects of the CD booklet - collating notes on the music, biographies, supporter credits and images.
To pique your interest, we wanted to share some cover ideas which are under discussion at the moment (see the PDF attached). If you have any strong views, burning desires or general comments to share with us on this subject, we'd be delighted to hear from you. You can contact General Manager Camilla Scarlett by emailing camilla@laserenissima.co.uk .
The crowdfunding campaign for Vivaldi x2 has been a landmark achievement for La Serenissima, enabling us to embrace new methods of fundraising and helping us to engage c. 250 unique donors in the process. If you like what you see and wish to hear directly from the orchestra about plans and events, please consider signing up to our mailing list through our website www.laserenissima.co.uk . We tend to email followers once a month with latest news and we will never share your details with third parties.
Our Project Page remains active and supporters are still able to donate through GlobalGiving to help us reach our target, should they wish so do keep sharing news of the project.
Thank you for supporting our work!
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Project Reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
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