A new exhibition at the Foundling Museum has been curated by Lizzy Buckle, based on her research for a collaborative PhD at Royal Holloway and the Foundling Museum.

Image © Gerald Coke Handel Foundation

“Friends with Benefits: Musical Networking in Georgian London” invites you into the close-knit world of the Georgian music industry. From opera, oratorios and open-air events, to private parties, balls and benefit concerts, music was an essential element of fashionable entertainment in 18th-century London. The top musicians of the day were expert entrepreneurs, well-practised in the arts of communication, self-promotion and time-management. Perhaps their most important skill was networking. Building and maintaining business connections were vital in raising a musician’s profile, introducing them to new employers and securing future work. So it is unsurprising that many leading musicians operated in familiar circles, with colleagues who were friends, relatives, neighbours, housemates, teachers, pupils or even lovers.

“Friends with Benefits” brings Lizzy’s research on charity concerts and their performers to a public audience. The exhibition runs at the Foundling Museum from 22 October 2021 to 1 May 2022. More information here