A Melbourne court ruled against pianist Jayson Gillham on Friday, who had claimed he was unlawfully fired after making pro-Palestinian statements from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) stage during a concert in August 2024.
Gillham sued the MSO when it canceled one of his scheduled performances after comments he made before a piece he performed, titled Witness.
Gillham had not informed the MSO that he would play the piece because he worried the orchestra “would not allow the performance,” according to testimony he gave to the court, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported.
Witness, by Australian composer Connor D’Netto, was written in dedication to Palestinian journalists.
“Over the last 10 months, Israel has killed more than 100 Palestinian journalists,” Gillham said while introducing D’Netto’s composition.
“A number of these have been targeted assassinations of prominent journalists as they were traveling in marked press vehicles or wearing their press jackets. The killing of journalists is a war crime in international law, and it is done in an effort to prevent the documentation and broadcasting of war crimes to the world,” he said.
Although Justice Graeme Hill of the Federal Court of Australia in Melbourne did not address the validity of Gillham’s claim, saying it was immaterial to the case, the accusation that Israel has deliberately targeted journalists has been debunked, with many of the purported journalists later identified as terrorists.
Following Gillham’s remarks, the MSO canceled his next performance and apologized for any offense and distress they may have caused. The MSO said it didn’t permit “expressing personal views” on its stages.
After a backlash favoring Gillham, the MSO said the cancellation had been an “error” and attempted to reschedule it, but negotiations broke down and Gillham decided to sue. He told ABC Arts in May that “everyone has the right to freedom of expression.”
Gillham also claimed he had a right under Victoria’s Equal Opportunity Act not to be ill-treated because of his political beliefs.
However, Justice Hill found that the MSO didn’t cancel Gillham’s concert due to his political views.
“The political content of Mr. Gillham’s remarks was not a substantial and operative reason for any of the MSO’s actions,” he said.
The MSO took action to “address the anticipated adverse impacts” of Gillham’s remarks on the orchestra’s business and reputation, according to Hill.
“I find that the MSO did have a policy for not expressing support for either side of the Israel-Gaza conflict,” he said.
“I find that there is a custom or practice that classical musicians do not make statements on sensitive political or social issues from the stage without approval of the host,” he added.
Hill also rejected Gillham’s claims that he was discriminated against under the Equal Opportunity Act, as workplace protections don’t extend to an independent contractor.
The MSO praised Hill’s ruling.
“The fundamental issue in dispute in the proceeding was who controls MSO’s stage,” the orchestra said. “The MSO maintained that Mr. Gillham should have sought the authorization of the MSO before making the statements he made from the MSO’s stage.”
“We hope that we can now put this matter behind us and focus on our music,” said MSO chairman Edgar Myer, praising the orchestra’s musicians and staff for their professionalism “despite the disruption and distraction that came with defending these legal proceedings.”
At the case’s start in May, Justin Bourke, attorney for the MSO, said the orchestra felt it had been misled by Gillham. “He knew he was overstepping the line. He knew he was going to make political statements about Gaza,” he said.
“We are entitled to have control over our own stage, especially when statements are going to be made that are highly controversial,” said Bourke.
Michael Bradley, who represented Gillham in court, told ABC his client is “very disappointed with the outcome.”
Justice Hill had unsuccessfully urged a settlement between the sides when the case adjourned on June 5.
“I’m going to have to get into some very difficult areas for both parties, and once I make my findings… they’re in public and there forever,” Hill said. “There would be benefit to both sides if it was at all possible for this matter to be resolved, without me having to say the things that I need to say in a judgment.”
Gillham will return to Australia from the United Kingdom in July for a national tour with Jordanian-Palestinian pianist Iyad Sughayer, ABC reported.
