The Mannheim Philharmonic’s application for institutional funding from 2022 onwards was rejected by the City of Mannheim with immediate effect. This means that the € 50.000 which the orchestra received in 2020 and 2021 are no longer available. This has existential consequences for the Philharmonic.
A petition, which started at the weekend, is now the last hope to change the minds of the city councilors.
The Mannheim Philharmonic Orchestra undoubtedly makes a valuable contribution to the cultural offerings of the city of Mannheim and the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region. The orchestra regularly offers valuable concert experiences for their patrons and, in addition, it reaches a worldwide audience through the live broadcasting on the internet, « now around 3 million people per concert, and thus contributes significantly to the positive image of the city of Mannheim as a city of music and culture, » the organization says.
With its free educational concerts, the Mannheim Philharmonic Orchestra also « strives intensively for the musical-cultural education of children and young people from all social and cultural segments of the population in the metropolitan region and provides an introduction to classical music for all in a low-threshold manner. »
The lack of support from the city would make it impossible for the Mannheim Philharmonic to maintain its extensive program.
The orchestra was founded in 2009 by Bulgarian conductor Boian Videnoff.
