Saturday
A week from today, I will have finished one of the most ambitious projects of my life: the campaign “Let HER MUSIC Play” – a 24-hour acoustic music live-streaming concert featuring only music by women and non-binary composers. We are going for a Guinness World Record. It is one of my crazy ideas to raise awareness about inequality in music, and in this case, set a record to influence change, create a movement, and hopefully successfully fundraise for the Donne, Women in Music – a charitable foundation dedicated to achieving gender equality in the music industry. It started as my passion project and today it’s an inspirational organisation trying to create faster change in the music industry.
We don’t have enough funding to cover one tenth of the expenses, so the past few months have been incredibly busy, and now I’m starting to panic slightly. My very supportive husband reminds me, ‘“Well, you knew this was a very ambitious move, but I have no doubt you will pull it off.” He is right. In my passion for creating change, I normally go for big things, but this time I have outdone myself.
Today is the only day I have time to rehearse with my pianists, Richard Leach and Olga Balakleets, as I am also performing at the event. I will be performing amazing songs by Florence Price, Madeleine Dring, Elizabeth Maconchy, Pauline Viardot and Francisca Gonzaga. Somehow, I forget about the million other things that are going through my head and enjoy being an artist.
Sunday
I woke up in the middle of the night with my heart racing. What if the people who signed up to perform don’t show up? There are over a hundred musicians involved, with a different performance slot every 30 minutes.
To achieve the record, we can’t stop for more than 60 seconds between acts. There are a thousand pieces that are still not completely in place and somehow, it seems, I am the only person who knows all the details. At the end of the day, the Donne Foundation has no funding and therefore no staff, so I will have to rely on our wonderful volunteers to get us through this beautiful insanity. Is it too late for me to disappear? I feel like I need to cry, but there is no time today.
I have another rehearsal, this time with a guitarist and dear friend from Bolivia, Victor Alarcon. I need to prepare three different sets of performances plus some a capella songs in case something unexpected happens with one of the performers. Once again, as I rehearse some beautiful South American repertoire, the music’s power washes over me, helping me to forget for a moment all the responsibility and pressure I have created for myself in advocating for change.
Monday
There has been an exciting turn of events: a sponsorship from the Brazilian airline LATAM has come through at the very last minute, enabling three incredible artists to fly over from Brazil to perform for this event.
The airline is only covering their flights, so after numerous phone calls I manage to arrange accommodation for the wonderful two-time Latin Grammy winner Adriana Calcanhotto (thank you, credit card), host singer-songwriter Vanessa Moreno in my home (thank you, husband) and find another place for the young and talented Analu Sampaio, who is only 15 years old and has travelled from Brazil with her mother (thank you, Ana Flavia).
At 3:30pm, I head to the BBC Broadcasting House for a lovely chat with Sara Mohr-Pietsch for BBC Radio 3’s Music Matters programme. We had such a wonderful conversation and, as usual, I talked too much. I always wonder if radio producers either love me or hate me when they have to edit my interviews. I hope it’s the former. I had planned to practice today, but there was simply no time as I just found out we will need to rent lights and get eight music stands before Thursday. The wonderful Olivia Brown from WildKat comes to my rescue, and this gives me hope. Maybe things will fall into place after all?
Tuesday
I have 545 unread emails in my inbox and despite my efforts to read articles about “How to survive staying awake for 24 hours”, I haven’t managed to find the time.
Three artists are requesting changes to their performance slots. At this point, we have what appears to be a “kind of” perfect line-up, resembling a very long Excel spreadsheet that I’m very hesitant to alter. However, it’s necessary, so I begin by calling my closest friends first: “Do you mind performing at 1:30am instead of 11pm? Or at 5am instead of 2am?” Not a typical call that a musician might expect… Thankfully, everyone is so helpful, and our “Excel Swiss Clock Line-up” seems to be okay once again.
I’m still seeking a sponsorship for coffee and snacks – a super famous coffee brand doesn’t seem interested in supporting us. It’s a Guinness World Record for more quality and diversity in music, for Christ’s sake! I really thought I had this sponsorship in the bag, and it seems I was too optimistic once again… Red Bull steps up at the last minute and so does the wonderful Brazilian Top Chef Luciana Berry! Still, I don’t think I will sleep well tonight.
Wednesday
The day before our 24 hour-performance marathon was supposed to be a day of focus and preparation. I planned to slow down, practice, go to bed early, and take care of my voice. As ever, things have taken an unexpected turn. We received an invitation to Number 10 Downing Street to meet with special adviser Myles Stacey OBE. Our mission: discuss the impact of the Donne Foundation and our campaign and explore ways to secure more government support.
I am joined by the wonderful composers Dominique le Gendre and Julie Cooper, along with our super-dedicated Trustee Louise Garder, Minister Roberto Doring and Ana Flavia Jacintho Bonzanini from the Brazilian Embassy. The Embassy is hosting the 24-hour event in their magnificent Sala Brasil room, in the heart of London.
My brain is exhausted, but I recognise the importance of utilising this opportunity to effectively convey our message concisely. I tend to talk too much, fuelled by my passion for the cause. Despite this, our initial conversation shows great promise, and I feel immensely supported by the talented composers who shared their experiences and highlighted the impactful work of the Donne Foundation in the industry, accomplished with zero funding. Despite the pouring rain and soaked feet, we all smile as we snap pictures in front of Number 10. We will be back!
Thursday
It’s today! Let HER MUSIC Play will go live at 12pm. My alarm goes off at 6:30am. I have too much to prepare. We didn’t secure sponsorship for coffee or snacks, so my kitchen looks like a bomb site filled with bananas, apples, bottles of water, napkins, crisps, tea, paper cups and 10 bottles of coconut water (the latter are for me).
Things don’t really fit in proper suitcases, so we end up putting the fruit in bin bags. My sister, who was a superstar throughout, keeps saying, “It’s okay, this is what a production looks like.”
I arrive at the venue at 10:30am. Brazilian singer-songwriter Adriana Calcanhotto is testing the sound. “Can I plug in my guitar?” she asks. My heart sinks – I’m afraid not. We are going for a Live Acoustic Music Record, so we can’t plug in any instruments. She looks at me and says, “Okay, if we can’t plug, we won’t.” I am speechless with gratitude.
The next hour flies by, and it’s 12pm. I give my opening speech and get way too emotional. As the first act starts playing, I am sobbing quietly in the arms of Adriana. I’ve needed that cry for almost three months now. My sister looks at me: “Go and fix your makeup now!” she says. She is right.
After that, things never stop, but somehow, they get into a rhythm. It’s mad but wonderful. I sing at 3pm and have a mini panic at 8:50pm as we can’t find Roderick Williams. He is next in 10 minutes! Eventually, I find him sitting in the audience enjoying the wonderful performance by Irish singer-songwriter BLÁNID. “Roddy, you’re next,” I say. He is smiling, “Ah, sure, sure, of course.” I feel like I can breathe again before my next performance at 10:30pm.
Friday
The middle of the night was magical. As the moon appeared through the windows of the Brazilian Embassy, we could see buses passing by as quiet music resonated within the walls.
Every musician who arrived had a massive smile on their face. It was like an old family getting together to celebrate something special. Most of us had never met before, yet somehow, we all knew each other and were willing to do whatever was necessary to stick to the rules and keep the music going.
I sang again at 3:30am when James Ainscough, CEO of the Royal Albert Hall, popped in to support with his performance. Together with the wonderful Lizzy Hardman, we blasted the March of Women by Ethel Smyth with big smiles on our faces. After that, I sang my South American set with Victor and once again around 6:30am to cover a gap as someone didn’t get their slot time right.
On Friday, 23rd February, at 2:23 pm, after the wonderful performance by Vulva Voce, we reached 26 hours and 20 minutes of non-stop live streaming, performing only music by women and non-binary composers. I cried again as we closed the event. I hugged so many people during those 26 hours, and I felt I carried each one of them with me afterwards.
I was expecting a Guinness World Record and a very successful fundraising campaign for the Donne Foundation (£1 for Equality Campaign). What I wasn’t expecting was that I was going to have one of the most powerful and meaningful experiences of my life. My dear friend Lucas Jordan – who was the sound engineer in charge, texted me a few days later: “If an incredible 26-hour concert, without a moment of boredom or lack of quality, is not definitive proof that things need to change and diversify, I don’t know what is!’ It was a mad idea. And I would do it all over again! Who knows… maybe I will?
My special thanks to: Embassy of Brazil in London, Olivia Brown and the wonderful WildKat PR, Musicians Union, Independent Society of Musicians, Abbey Road Institute, Slide Records, Group Visual Ltd, New Stage Creations, LATAM Airlines, Carolina Jobb, Lucas Jordan, Louise Gardner, Andy Harrison, Lizzy Hardman, Grace Kenyon, Jasmine Redfern, Giulia Nakata and most of all, to all the 102 artists involved in this incredible campaign. We made history!
Gabriella Di Laccio
Gabriella Di Laccio is an award-winning soprano, recording artist, public speaker, curator and activist, who has become one of the leading voices on the fight for gender equality in music. Listed as one of the BBC’s 100 most inspirational and influential women in the world, Di Laccio is also the founder and curator of Donne, Women in Music, a charitable foundation dedicated to achieving gender equality in the music industry.