A noted British cellist, who performed at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding, had to cancel a sold-out performance with his pianist sister in Toronto after an Air Canada gate agent refused to allow his cello on the plane.
Sheku Kanneh-Mason and his sister, Isata Kanneh-Mason, who are on tour in North America, were scheduled to play in Toronto Wednesday evening.
"We were deeply saddened not to be able to perform for you at Koerner Hall last night," the two said on Instagram.
"We had severe misfortune with the flights and tried our very best to reach you. First we had delays, then a cancellation, and the day concluded by being denied boarding with the cello - despite having a confirmed seat for it - on a new, final flight into Toronto. After nine anxious hours at the airport, we realized our journey wasn't going to be possible," they said.
The musicians had arrived at Cincinnati airport Wednesday morning and were informed that their American Airlines flight to Toronto was canceled because of weather, the Globe and Mail reported.
They then hurriedly booked three seats on an Air Canada flight for that afternoon - one for each of them and one for the cello.
But when they went to board, the gate agent said no to the cello, an instrument made in 1700 and worth millions of dollars.
Facing a long drive to Toronto, the two canceled the concert.
"It's very frustrating," Sheku Kanneh-Mason told the Globe and Mail from Philadelphia, where they will perform Friday. "The process of flying with a cello can be complicated, but when the process works, it's great. When it doesn't, it can be devastating."
The airline said fliers can book a seat for a musical instrument at a 50% discount, but should confirm the booking 48 hours before departure, a timeline that would have been impossible for the musical siblings.
Sheku Kanneh-Mason said he was on the phone for hours trying to resolve the standoff.
"They gave us many reasons why the cello couldn't fly with us, but none of them made any sense," he told the Globe and Mail.
Air Canada said no record existed for the extra seat during check-in and there wasn't enough time to get a ticket and secure the cello in the cabin before takeoff.
"We are investigating why the booking for the cello seat was not successfully made," the airline said.
Sheku Kanneh-Mason said the cello fits "perfectly" in the seat but is too long for an overhead bin.
"We can only dream of a time when all airlines have a standardized, global and carefully considered approach to the carriage of precious instruments that are booked to travel in the cabin," the two said on Instagram.
