Minutes of the Wye Valley Music Annual General Meeting

Sunday 20 October 2024, 2:00pm; St Mary the Virgin Church, St Briavels, GL15 6RG

 Committee Members Present: Corinna Arnold (Chair), Michael Bradley, Martin Fenn-Smith, Mike Haines (Programme Manager), Alice Hogge (Secretary), David Rees (Treasurer).

 Society Members Present: Andy Baker, Douglas Battersby, Geoffrey Capps, Judy Capps, Jennifer Clifford, Carole Hall, Ian Hall, Annette Hecht, John Hurley, Richard Jones, Jean Sheraton, Ian Lewis, Katie Lewis, Keith Norman, Sue Norman, Jean Prandy, Kenneth Prandy, Jack Tennison, Ursula Williams, Gillian Wright.

 Welcome: Corinna Arnold thanked members for their attendance and notified them that all reports from the meeting would be made available via the Society’s website in due course.  Details of the AGM had been circulated via the website since 16 September 2024, thereby giving the 21-day notice required under the Constitution.  There being 26 members present, a number greater than ten or 10% of the present membership of the Society, CA declared the meeting to be quorate under the provisions of the Constitution.

Agenda:

1.     Apologies: Maggie Biss, Lesley Green, Tony Green, Jennifer Harland, Jenny Jones, David Lipsey, Stephen Walsh.

2.     Minutes of the 2023 AGM, held on 15 October 2023 had been made available to members via the website since October 2023. There were no matters arising. CA asked for a vote to adopt the minutes as a true record. Proposed: Richard Jones. Seconded: Ian Hall. Approved.

3.     Chair’s Report:

Corinna Arnold stated that the past year was another good one for Wye Valley Music and for its three areas of focus:  its monthly concerts and its two community engagement programmes. Financially it is are in a very strong position with solid concert income and grants and donations supporting its engagement activities as forecast. Audience numbers were strong for almost all concerts, though with a slight decline compared to last year, possibly because of greater competition as life has fully gone back to normal post Covid. Both engagement programmes performed as forecast. WVM has an exciting programme of concerts ahead booked up to almost the end of next year; Mind is continuing full tilt as is Schools, which is also conducting a status review before going into its seventh year

CA announced that she is stepping down as chair and named three new candidates to the committee including a new nominee for the Chair, whilst stressing the continuous need for new committee members, especially for the role of an assistant treasurer. She thanked the committee and all vital supporters for their ongoing work: St Briavels Church, Philip Kennedy, Jane Harvey, Caroline Jones and Wyastone Printers.

She then thanked WVM’s members for their support during her chairmanship and invited Ian Lewis to introduce himself as her proposed successor: IL gave a brief account of his continuous engagement in the arts and music as an award-winning film director, producer and author. He joined WVM in 2024 and lives in both Vienna and a village close to Ross-on-Wye where he works with CreateRoss and has produced Ross’ Museum Without Walls.  He has worked with composers and musicians throughout his career and (a long time ago) played principal trumpet in a youth orchestra. He has been coming to WVM concerts for years and looks forward to helping to shape its future.

4.     Secretary’s Report:

Alice Hogge summarised current WVM’s membership status as 145 members (2 Honorary, 38 Silver, 105 Ordinary), generating a total income of £4,080 in membership fees. She thanked members, past and present, for thus enabling WVM to stage wide-ranging and attractive concerts. AH announced she is stepping down as Secretary and echoed the plea for new committee members.

5.     Treasurer’s Report and Accounts for the year to 31 July 2024:

David Rees gave an oral account of the Society’s finances for 2023/24, copies of which had been distributed by email in advance of the meeting and had further been made available at the start of the meeting. Total income for 2023/24 across all three areas of activity was £29,290, while the total expenditure was £29,955, leaving a deficit of £665. The annual fiscal deficit was due to WVMiS’ using unspent grant monies from previous years as opposed to raising new funds; none of the activity streams are in cash deficit . Total cash held on 31 July 2024 was £32,068, while physical assets stood at £16,433. DR explained technical difficulties prevented WVM from claiming GiftAid but efforts are underway to re-establish these donations. DR thanked David Shoubridge, Independent Examiner, for endorsing the accounts. CA asked members to approve the 2023/24 accounts. Proposed: Michael Bradley. Seconded: Ian Hall. Approved.

6.     Election of Officers and Members of the Committee:

CA asked for member’s approval of the following changes to the Committee

-       Ian Lewis to be elected as Chair. Proposed: Martin Fenn-Smith. Seconded: Andy Baker. Approved unanimously.

-       Annette Hecht to be elected as Secretary; Proposed: Jean Sheraton. Seconded: David Rees. Approved unanimously.

-       Andy Baker to be elected as a new member of the committee. Proposed: Annette Hecht. Seconded: Martin Fenn-Smith. Approved unanimously.

-       David Rees to be re-elected as Treasurer and Mike Haines be re-elected as Concert Manager en bloc. Proposed: Gillian Wright. Seconded: Jennifer Clifford. Approved unanimously.

-       Corinna Arnold, Alice Hogge, Martin Fenn-Smith and Michael Bradley to be re-elected en bloc as members of the committee. Proposed: John Hurley. Seconded: Ian Hall. Approved unanimously.

7.     Appointment of Independent Examiner: Members were asked to agree that David Shoubridge be re-appointed as Independent Examiner.  Proposed: John Hurley.  Seconded: Keith Norman.  Approved unanimously.

Concert Manager’s Report:

Mike Haines outlined the highlights of the previous year’s concert programme, featuring 11 concerts and 35 musicians including a variety of top-quality ensembles and soloists performing music ranging from the Baroque to the 20^th century. This included 6 female composers as well as contemporary composers from Colombia, America and France. He gave a preview of next season’s concerts where the coverage of venues will be extended to include Ross-on-Wye. It also included a summer ‘party’ for WVM members followed by a seven piece baroque chamber ensemble performing the entirety of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

MH took the opportunity to thank CA for her work and commitment as chair and for introducing exciting and decisive new activities to WVM.

8.     Community Engagement Updates:

               i.         Wye Valley Music in Mind: Alice Hogge summarised the ongoing activities of WVMiM in 2023/24, including its monthly Music Memory Café in St Briavels Assembly Rooms and its care home performances. She also highlighted its focus on community health and counteracting the stigma surrounding dementia. She reported on the tangible impact of music as experienced at WVMiM’s work at its two venues and on its community training work, most recently in First Aid and Basic Life Support and in community dementia awareness. WVMiM is fully funded up to spring 2025 and is exploring individual music therapy sessions next year.

              ii.         Wye Valley Music in Schools: Corinna Arnold summarised WVMiS’s activities in its seventh year: it has now worked with over 19 primary schools and over 2,600 children aged 4—11. It has now begun working with secondary schools—the Carducci Quartet visited Wyedean School in the spring.  In another first, together with Gloucestershire Music, it held a masterclass for young cello students from around the county, led by Wales top two cellists. It completed the first year of its Young Musicians Training Programme, helping recently graduated chamber musicians develop performances for primary school children while providing it with a pool of talent for future use. Three duos (violin and piano; harp and mezzo soprano; guitar and flute) and one solo pianist participated in the programme and two of the duos have graduated to delivering workshops for WVMiS. One of those, the Welsh harp and mezzo-soprano duo, is perfectly placed for the Welsh border schools with which it works and will be going into 4 schools this autumn.

9.     Items for Discussion (advance notice required): No items for discussion had been requested prior to the meeting. 

10.  AOB: Ian Hall commented that the piano can sometimes drown out other instruments when its lid is open towards the audience and suggested that, during ensemble recitals, it could be turned so that its lid faces away. It was agreed that this would be explored with performing musicians deciding the matter on the day.

CA reiterated her thanks to members for their attendance.  The meeting concluded at 2:34 pm.