ONM Orchestra Uses Music as Protest Tool in France
The radical Parisian collective L'Orchestre du Nouveau Monde (ONM) fuses classical performance with direct political action, performing at protests and rejecting traditional concert norms.
The L’Orchestre du Nouveau Monde (ONM) is a contemporary, self-consciously radical orchestral collective based in Paris that rejects traditional concert hall norms. Co-founded by Étienne Jarrier and friends as teenagers, the ONM describes itself as 'a tool for struggle' rather than a 'sacred object of beauty'. Its manifesto is anti-racist, anti-capitalist, feminist, environmentalist and committed to de-growth. The orchestra engages in civil disobedience, school outreach, demonstrations, and concerts to present a different kind of classical music, one reconnected to reality. It is involved on the frontline of student protests in France, where during last week’s events, gas canisters landed in double-bass cases while the orchestra was playing.
This commitment to direct political action makes the ONM stand out in today's musical world. It is the most self-consciously radical orchestral assembly currently active, a contemporary cousin of historical groups like the Scratch Orchestra and the Portsmouth Sinfonia.
Music as Political Action
The ONM uses a diverse repertoire to raise consciousness at non-traditional venues. It performs protest songs and music from The Avengers and Dvořák's New World Symphony at protests, schools, and outside corporations and institutions. The collective wants classical music to be reconnected to reality to counter its problematic connections to nationhood and political orthodoxy. For the ONM, its performances and the police reactions they sometimes provoke serve as a wake-up call for the classical world to engage with today's social realities.
Historical Context and Comparisons
The ONM draws inspiration from the activist legacies of earlier experimental ensembles. The Scratch Orchestra, founded in 1969, disbanded in 1974 due to its founder Cornelius Cardew's deepening leftwing activism. The Portsmouth Sinfonia, founded in 1970 and known as the 'world's worst orchestra', played classical music on instruments members did not know how to play, yet reached number 38 in the charts in 1981 with a piece called 'Classical Muddly'.
Other UK groups continue to promote social activism through music, including the Multi-Story Orchestra, National Open Youth Orchestra, RNS Moves, Paraorchestra, and CoMA. The ONM's fusion of performance and protest, however, places it uniquely at the sharp edge of current political movements. Its ongoing role was vividly illustrated during last week’s student protests in France, where the music played on as gas canisters landed among the instruments.
