The flute world in the UK is rallying around to support flautist Carla Rees, the main organiser of next year's BFS festival, whose flat was burnt to the ground on Monday. She has lost all her instruments and music library as well as all her other possessions. JustFlutes in Croydon are acting as a central point for a collection for Carla, and there will be a way to donate through their website from tomorrow.

Please pass the message on to anyone you know who may know Carla, or who supports the BFS, or indeed any musician who may wish to help another in these dreadful circumstances.

I shall see what I can do.

I will too. Thank you for telling us. How awful.

All of you living so close to this madness must be feeling very vulnerable and worried just now: stories like this bring it into really sharp relief. Thanks for letting us know, andante-in-c, and I so hope that you and yours, and the rest living nearby, also are coping, and not suffering too much...

How simply dreadful..I can only hope she is well insured..not that that will ease the loss much..I know only too well the horrors of a house fire so my heart goes out to her..Can you let us know if there is anyway we can donate.

Thanks

Andrew

What horrible news

Edit - just noticed that you can now donate via Paypal from Just Flutes site http://www.justflutes.com/fund-for-carla-rees-page66.html

I had forgotten Carla lives (well, lived) in West Croydon. How utterly devastating. I will make a donation via the Just Flutes website too. She also lost her two beloved pussy cats

Thanks for letting us know, andante_in_c...

I went back into town today - both Currys and Argos are still closed and the atmosphere felt very subdued.

Croydon-Bag x

I am afraid the fact that Carla has not only lost her home and her possessions but also her cats whom she obvioulsy loved very much makes me very very angry at those responsible. I cannot possibly say on this thread what I would like to do with them. I do hope Carla's family and friends will be able to support her through this dreadful ordeal.

I know only too well how devastating it is to lose everything in a house fire, but to lose ones cats/dogs in such a terrible way is indescribable..I am incandescent with fury..I am so so sorry..how simply dreadfulThings can be replaced..but pets are like children to their owners..its to awful to contemplate.

Thanks for posting the link, allegretto. I was going to do it when it came up but have been out all day.

And thanks to everyone who has taken time to read this thread so far. It brings it very close to home when a fellow-musician has been so badly affected.

This is just awful, awful news. Poor Carla. I was rather hoping to see her in a flute composition masterclass later in the year. I was angry about the riots before but now I'm apoplectic. Grr! It really brings things home on a very real level.

My thoughts are with Carla, her family and friends. It is nice to see however that there are so many people who care enough to help her through this ordeal.

Best wishes,

N.

I can't believe all this. And concerning to how difficult it is to find the right instrument it is not only the loss of material things. Hope she will have many people staying at her side to go through this.
I know, that some of the well known flutist have originals of compositions at their home, loosing them is as worse as loosing a flute.

But loosing the cats is something different, as Andrew said pets are like children if you live with them for a while and loosing your children is the worst thing that can happen.

The material things, provided she had insurance will be replaced under legislation, but this collection represents much more.

Carla has given much to the fluting world and has lost two pets, let alone the trauma of loosing her home. The collection will demonstrate how people care, and enable her to purchase some niceties that may compensate for all of that.

It was a terrible night on Monday for all those involved. She will be able to rebuild her library and replace her instruments more quickly. So that when the compensation money comes through, she will be able to purchase things on her wish list unless this is not the best financial solution to her.

Most of all it is the thought that counts. Just knowing there is a musical community that appreciates all she has done will help ease the pain.

Of course those two cats will be irreplaceable. However, when she feels ready to introduce feline company into her life again she will know that people were saddened by the loss she felt at the the loss of her pets.

That is why it is important to give. Not because she will be out of pocket, but to show you care.

More details about the terrible losses suffered by Carla are in today's Guardian.

Thank you for this link andante_in_c.

Thank you for the Link Andante-in -C
I have shared it on my facebook page.
There have been some who have criticised me for being too harsh on those being sentenced and judged by those in authority. However the story of Carla reminds me why what happened and why even the related offences are being cracked down on so hard.

Thanks for this information Andante-in-c

It's awful news. And from my experience of the insurance industry she will be lucky to get all her music replaced - Can you name every piece you have? and what about stuff that is now out of print?

The loss of her pets, home, instrument, music and probably her faith in humanity is awful, not to mention the prospect of living in fear for a long time to come and there are many others in similar situations, and yet I'm afraid the winners in the end will be the rioters.

I don't know what the answer is but my biggest fear is that in a few years time many of those riotiors will be parents and how will their children turn out if their parents have no moral values?

My thoughts are with Carla and all the other victims.

What has been making my blood boil (sorry if this is off topic) is the number of people bleating about the toughness of the sentences passed on those caught up with this or the Family in Wandsworth who may be evicted. Carla has been made homeless and she did not even have a child on the streets.

I know two wrongs do not make a right, however one has to start somewhere sorting out the justice side of this mess. I don't envy those who are. However the real people are the people like Carla.

(had to get that off my chest! sorry if anyone finds that offensive- been hopping mad!)

No problem, I quite agree with you, and I'm sure plenty do, but won't say. General theories aside, to think the situation through properly, one must consider those on all branches of eventual happenings. Consequences are there for all, for those who chose to involve themselves and for those who did not; who it's thrust upon.

Seeing the general response of the public, let alone the friends and family of those affected is enough to restore most of my confidence in society.

We are all together jod in our thoughts.

N

Thank you Neumer. I watched a very interesting Panorama programme yesterday. What a pity discipline has grown to only mean chastisement. Discipline also includes praise for getting things right. It is about order and recognising right from wrong. This includes acknowledging the right as well as drawing attention to what is wrong and trying to correct it.

The thing that moved me the most was a family with a small boy who like Carla who had been made homeless. The mother was in tears as she stood before the rubble that was her families home. They were completely innocent of anything to do with the riots, and yet they had lost everything.

That Panorama programme summed up what many experienced, and not just in London either. Carla Rees deserves our every support, as she is one of many devastated by the recent events - her story would be tragic enough, if it had been an isolated event. Sadly, it is a scene repeated many times over, with homes and businesses destroyed, stock looted, and premises gutted in many areas. These innocent victims are still feeling the after-effects and will continue to suffer so for a long time to come, so the sentences handed down are in no way overly harsh, in my view.

I have held back for a while on commenting because I was so angry that I was afraid I would say something I might later regret. However, after several days, after watching French TV reports, listening to what French friends have to say and reading as much as I could about the riots I am still just as angry and I no longer think I will regret expressing my anger ? and as someone living abroad - my shame at what the world has seen of Britain.

There is no excuse what so ever for wanton violence, for destroying people?s homes and personal possessions, ruining their livelihoods and burning their pets alive. Sorry but I think all those who had a hand in this outrageous behaviour should be very severely punished.

I am aware that there are social injustices. I am aware that many people have very hard and difficult lives. But I do not believe that those who rioted are the victims of extreme poverty. They may be victims of a society which has given people much higher material expectations than any of us can achieve, has denigrated hard work and has glorified the instant acquisition of all we covet. A friend of mine said she thought they were out to have fun because they were bored. I think it was little more than blackberry organised hooliganism.

In Britain, as far as I know, education is still free. Unemployment and other benefits exist. The rioters did not seem to be unshod or starving. It is, of course, the duty of us all ? politicians, social workers, teachers, parents and everyone else, to work towards a fairer society where everyone is decently housed and has work. But there are people who like to destroy and will find any excuse to do so. It is, after all, fun to torch someone?s house ? isn?t it? It is fun to ruin someone?s business ? isn?t it? It is fun to terrify people ? isn?t it?

And it is even more fun to be filmed coming out from a tribunal, covering one?s face in a cowardly manner and raising one?s fist in triumph. That is an attitude which shows utter contempt for society and its institutions and I for one do not believe that British society, for all its faults, deserves that.

Well, I daresay there will be many people who will want to ?understand? the rioters but I am no longer one of them.

Edit. sorry about the plethora of question marks - the system doesn't seem to want to accept punctuation marks correctly. Maybe because I have a French keyboard.

They are probably incredulous. As indeed are we when we read of French riots such as

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2009_French_riots

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/eu...nt-2110305.html

Still at least they have offered us help in the form of their own "riot experts"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/cri...to-justice.html

Not that I am in any way seeking to condone what went on here. They weren't actually riots (that usually implies a cause), just robbery and violent disorder. The perpetrators should be dealt with accordingly.

I was at home (ie a mile or so away) when these events took place. And yet, it it was a whole week later and I was several hundred miles away when I read of Carla's terrible loss. I was initially so angry and upset that I did not trust myself to post a response. But I would like to thank Andante in C for starting the thread.

I do not have words to say any more at the moment. Perhaps Aquarelle comes close to expressing what I feel.

Carla is the lead feature in the current Time Out issue article. Her quote is inspiring: ' I've seen the worst and the best of what people are capable of, and the best is truly incredible'. Many other thought-provoking articles in this issue too.

A happier update to this story can be found here.

Thank you for posting andante_in_c. It's good to hear, that things become better for Carla.

Good to hear this news

Glad she's on her way to putting her life back together

Absolutely. Heard her play her new flute last weekend. Perfect. Very talented lady getting back to the music. She made a blog post back in September about her experiences that made me realise just how resilient and reflective people can be in the face of adversity: http://www.weareoca.com/music/where-is-the-music/



N

Great to see this

Thanks for the link, Neumer - that's a very interesting article.

There is a benefit concert for Carla in south London this week - pls send me a message if you would like details.

If it's the concert I think it is, details are on the JustFlutes website

Ah, quite likely Barry. I have not looked at the site recently, but I will check.

*Waves* come on guys - anyone else interested in supporting Carla please look on the Just Flutes site.

(edit) Barry - I've looked on the site, and someone is mentioning Croydon Parish Church - which I think is in fact WRONG. I have posted, but am concerned that it may have been wrongly advertised in other places too. Any suggestions?

Eek!!! I'd email JustFlutes, MM...

Well, I did leave a comment on the page about Carla - and I also checked on the Croydon Parish Church website which doesn't seem to think they have anything on next Friday.

Is there a better place to e-mail JFs?

Here's an update on Carla, courtesy of today's Evening Standard. It sadly doesn't make for great reading

click

Oh Baz that's grim reading indeed.

B x

I was thinking about Carla just the other day and then this update is posted..It's simply dreadful. Poor woman, though her insurers should be paying her rent and she should only be paying her mortgage. That was my experience when I lost my house in a fire. I paid my mortgage and the insurer paid my rental.

I hope somehow she finally gets her life back on track though I can assure you, watching your home go up in smoke is something that haunts you forever. I shall never forget it, or the smell.

That is awful

And don't forget that there will also be many ordinary people, shopkeepers etc in the same predicament, whose stories don't get media attention. We tend to assume that in the UK there will be a safety net for every occasion, and to some extent there is, but often help is not there when people feel they need it.

Everything hangs on economics, and in times of recession it's the humane things which suffer. In our local area cuts have been made in social activities for the mentally impaired and the elderly; I suspect it's similar all over Britain. Probably victim support is one of the things downgraded because of the cuts.

It's left to ordinary people to fill the gaps left by cuts so it was heartening to read that Carla has received good support from the musical community.

Very very sorry. It is so sad when people trying to get their lives back are not helped by the powers that be.
Just a little bit of support goes a long way because it is such a long haul back to normality.