The award recognises Dr Donatus, Prince of Hohenzollern support for the English Chamber Orchestra and his belief that cultural patronage begins with service.
LONDON, GREATER LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, October 29, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — HSH Dr Donatus, Prince of Hohenzollern, received the Award for Philanthropy & Patronage of the Arts at the English Chamber Orchestra Royal Gala Fundraiser on 17 October 2026, recognising his support for the orchestra and wider charitable causes.
The award was presented at Banqueting House, Whitehall, by HRH Princess Katarina, Lady de Silva, the evening’s Guest of Honour, alongside ECO Chief Executive James Rutherford and Gala Event Director Elvijs Plugis. The presentation was subsequently featured in the Parliamentary Society’s coverage of his award.
For Donatus, a trustee of the English Chamber Orchestra, the recognition brought together two closely connected commitments: his belief in the importance of classical music and his practical determination to help sustain the institutions that bring it to audiences.
Turning conviction into practical support
His involvement with the orchestra extends from trusteeship to financial support. The ECO acknowledges him as an Inner Circle member, Chair of the Friends and supporter of its Principal Flute chair.
In an earlier interview with Rebeca Riofrio for the Parliamentary Society for Arts, Fashion & Sports, he described funding three fundraising specialists to help develop the orchestra’s sources of support.
That funding helped establish the ECO’s development capacity and laid important groundwork for the Royal Gala. Elvijs Plugis, who took the initiative to create, organise and deliver the event through Sigulp, credits Donatus’s support as instrumental in enabling that work to begin.
The connection between the two contributions was practical: Donatus provided resources to support development, while Plugis undertook the partnership-building, organisation and delivery needed to bring the gala to life.
That investment reflects Donatus’s view that artistic achievement needs an organisation capable of sustaining it. Performances depend on musicians, but their continuity also requires funding, relationships and a clear sense of purpose.
As he told Rebeca Riofrio: “I believe more in deeds than in words.”
For Donatus, philanthropy therefore involves more than appreciation of an institution’s history. It means contributing to the conditions that allow its work to continue.
Why the music matters
His remarks and conversations during the gala explored the conviction behind that contribution: classical music communicates something essential about human experience.
“Classical music matters to us because, as a message from the composer to the audience, it is more than sound aesthetics, even without words; it is loaded with passion, drama, joy, mourning, hope, and love, messages we can understand immediately.”
This understanding places the listener at the centre of his cultural outlook. Musical knowledge can deepen appreciation, but the emotional encounter is open to people who have never studied a score.
Donatus describes music as the “Formation of the Invisible”—an expression of his belief that sound can make otherwise intangible experiences perceptible. In discussing the English Chamber Orchestra, he emphasises the relationship between the composer’s intentions and the musicians’ interpretation: the discipline and human responsiveness through which a composition becomes a living experience.
“Classical music is a moment to stand still, remember, and, frankly speaking, celebrate what we’ve achieved in our lives. When do we do that otherwise?”
Preserving opportunities for those encounters gives his support its purpose. It connects the immediate experience of a performance with the longer task of sustaining musical life for future generations.
Heritage, service and cultural responsibility
In his conversation with Rebeca Riofrio, Donatus expressed the principle behind his approach to patronage: “I advocate nobility as an obligation to serve the community.”
Donatus has spoken of his adoption into the Hohenzollern family, linking his understanding of that heritage to a responsibility to support cultural and charitable life.
His work with the ECO gives that principle a practical setting, supporting an organisation whose activities extend from concert performances and recordings to education, community participation and opportunities for emerging musicians.
The Royal Gala brought 250 international guests together around that wider purpose. Beneath the Rubens ceiling, performances by the English Chamber Orchestra accompanied a candlelit dinner, awards and fundraising, allowing guests to experience the musicianship they had gathered to support.
The evening connected the orchestra’s musical heritage with businesses whose identities encompass travel, craftsmanship, finance and the stewardship of historic places. TrinityBridge supported the gala as Principal Gold Partner, alongside Orient Express as Gold Partner and a wider group of sponsors and partners.
The involvement of Orient Express, with its celebrated travel heritage, gave particular resonance to an occasion connecting cultural legacy with contemporary patronage. These relationships marked a further step in developing corporate and philanthropic support for the orchestra’s future.
Elvijs Plugis as event director led the gala’s organisation and partnership development through Sigulp, working with the English Chamber Orchestra team. Rebeca Riofrio co-hosted through the Parliamentary Society for Arts, Fashion & Sports, the evening’s Alliance Partner.
For Donatus, the award acknowledged a contribution expressed through both ideas and action: explaining why music matters and helping create the conditions in which it can continue to flourish.
About the English Chamber Orchestra
The English Chamber Orchestra brings classical music to audiences through concerts in the UK and internationally, recordings, and work in schools and communities. For more than six decades, it has combined orchestral performance with opportunities for people to discover and participate in music.
Through its Close Encounters education and community programme, the ECO gives children and young people opportunities to hear professional musicians, compose and make music themselves. Its forthcoming New Horizons programme will support emerging musicians and composers through mentoring, performance opportunities and professional development.
The Orchestra’s Patron is His Majesty King Charles III.
Further information: https://englishchamberorchestra.com/support-us/
Elvijs Plugis
Sigulp Ltd
elvijs@sigulp.co.uk
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