The Branch had 39 members, the same as the previous season (7 new members and 7 non-renewals).  We welcomed two new conductors, Michael Graham and Annemarie Klein, both third year music students at Edinburgh University.  We met on 35 Monday evenings from September to June for combined playing. One-to-a-part groups met in each other’s houses.

Our Christmas Evening was on Monday 12 December, when we played to an audience of family and friends. The conductors from the Branch were Michael Graham, Allan Jones, Annemarie Klein, Andrew Short and Peter Wraith, and we were joined by members of the Edinburgh Adult Education Evening Class conducted by Margaret Hall. The collection raised £98.50 for the British Heart Foundation and £98.50 for the Rock Trust.

On 23 January we hosted a joint meeting of the Edinburgh Branch and the Edinburgh Adult Education Evening Class conducted by Margaret Hall. Sadly, at the beginning of February, Allan Jones resigned as conductor due to ill health.  On Saturday 17 March we hosted a playing afternoon conducted by Pamela Flanagan, Musical Director of the Glasgow and Dublin Branches. We were joined by visitors from other Scottish branches and by members of the Edinburgh Adult Education Evening Class.  Pamela Flanagan tutored one-to-a-part groups during the morning of her visit.

The National Recorder Festival took place 22 April at St Teresa’s School at Effingham Hill near Dorking, Surrey.  Eileen Finlayson was the Edinburgh Branch delegate.  Andrew Short was also present in his capacity as Chairman of the National Youth Recorder Orchestra (NYRO). The full minutes, reports and accounts of the Conference can be found at  /documents/agm/conference_minutes_2012.pdf. A summary of the minutes follows.

NYRO. Andrew Short, Chairman of NYRO, reported that Chris Orton would be replacing Colin Touchin as Musical Director of NYRO. Elections.  Tessa Rolph (Nottingham) succeeded Dick Pyper as Chairman of the Society and Moira Usher (Suffolk) succeeded Andrew Collis as Chairman of the Walter Bergmann Fund.  Andrew Collis also resigned from the post of Competition Administrator which remained vacant. Evelyn Nallen succeeded Andrew Collis as Musical Adviser to the Committee. Ross Winters was elected to the Pool of Musical Advisers. Caroline Jones, Sheila Richards and Pamela Flanagan were elected to the committee.  Marion Panzetta was elected as an Honorary Life Member of the Society of Recorder Players in recognition of her long-time contributions to the Society and to early dance in particular.

Subscriptions.  Due to an increase of £1.00 for posting The Recorder Magazine to members and increases in other expenses, the central portion of the subscription for 2012-13 was increased by £2.00 to £22.00 (full member), by £3 to £33.00 (household membership) and by £1.00 to £16.00 (student member).

Future Festivals:The following arrangements were noted: 
2013 Ireland Branch 11-12 May 2013 in All Hallows College, Dublin.
2014 Cornwall Branch, dates and venue to be announced.
2015 South Staffordshire Branch, dates and venue to be announced.

Members attended Special Playing Days in Glasgow on 24 March and Durham on 5 May, in celebration of Durham Branch’s 25th anniversary. On Saturday 26 May, several members of the Edinburgh Branch attended the Scottish Recorder Festival, hosted by the Aberdeen Branch at Queen’s Cross Church in Aberdeen.

Our Summer Evening was on Monday 11 June when we played to an audience of family and friends in Augustine United Church. The conductors from the Branch were Michael Graham, Annemarie Klein, Andrew Short and Peter Wraith, and we were joined by members of the Edinburgh Adult Education Evening Class conducted by Margaret Hall. The collection raised £99.50 for ‘Arts for Well-Being: Children of the Balkans’.

We are grateful to Michael, Annemarie, Peter, Andrew and Allan for all their hard work in conducting the branch during the 2011-2012 season.

Eileen Finlayson
September 2012

Last updated 12 November 2012