Ocllety The Trustees, Annual Report l January 2020 to 31 December 2020 Published in the Elgfirsociety News Rn April 2021 th and presented to the Annual General Meeting on 6 June 2021 THE ELGAR SOCIETY Trustees, Annual Re ort for the eri(trd l JAnuarv 2020 - 31 Deeember 2020 THE SOCIETY Charitable Status Foundcd in 1951, thc Socicty rcgistcrcd as charity no. 298062 on 22 January 1988. Office The Society ha5 no registered office. Correspondence should be addressed to the Society's Secretary at 10 Cullin Park Grove, Siraihaven, Lanarkshire. MLI 0 6EN. Trllstees Thc following actcd as Trustecs during thc pcriod undcr rcview= stl￿￿ Freed Philip Pelchey Paul Grafton (To 20 Oct 2020) Geoff Scargill (To 20 Oct 2020) Ruth Hellen (To 20 Oct 2020) George Smart Liz LudcT Pclcr Smith Neil Mantle Helen Whittaker Matyn Marsh {From 20 Oct 2020) Roy Whittaker Peter Newble Prof. David Young (From 20 Oct 2020) Elected Officers Chair.. Vice-Chair= Secretary= Treasurer.. Neil Mantle MBE Stuart Freed Georgc Smart Peter Smith Other National Post-holders Archivist.. Data Protection Officer: Joumal Editor= Mcmbcrship Secretary". News Editor: Web Officers: Richard Hall Richard Hall Kevin Mitchell and Board Chris Bcnnctt Petei James Stuart Free(VRobert Gilbert Branch Officers BrAnch Chair Secretarv East Anglia East Midlands Peter Newble Chris Wiltshire Michael Toseland* Sam Dobson London Philip Pctchey Arthur Rcynolds Rcv. John Knowlcs David L. Joncs Ruth Hellen North Amcrica Lcc Kaufman North-wcst Scotland Tom Kelly David Pearce Kitty Parker Wendy Wiseman Richard Smith Southern West Midlands John Harcup Yorkshire & North East David Young *Sadly, Michael Toseland died in May 2020 and Wendy Wiseman died in October 2020 Paul Grafton Advisers Bankers: Independent Examiner: Lloyds TSB Adrian Benselin Honorary Posts and Aivards President- Sir Mark Elder CH CBE Vice-Presidents - Diana Mcveagh, Dame Janei Bakcr CH DBE, Leonard Slatkin, Sir Andrew Davis CBE, Dr Christopher Robinson CVO CBE. Andrew Neill, Martyn Brabbins, Tasmin Little OBE, Julian Lloyd Webber FRCM Recipient5 of the Elgar Society's Medal 1992 Dr Jerrold Northrop Moore 1992 Leonard Slatkin 1999 Jerzy Maksymiuk 2000 Tadaaki Otaka 2007 Andrew Litton 2008 Sakari Oramo 2013 Sir Andre￿, Davis 2013 Sir Mark Elder 2015 Danicl Barenboim 2015 Diana Mcvea 2016 Martin Bird 2016 Teresa Cahill IFIL 2009 Danube Sytnphony Orchestra 2009 Vladimir Ashkenazy 201 l Michael Kennedy 201 l Anthony Pa￿e 2012 Barry Collett 2012 Jacek Kaspszyk 2012 Sir Colin Davis 2016 Alexander Walker 2019 Anastasia Vedyakova 2019 Adrian Brown 2019 Dame Janet Bakcr {Prescntation to be arranged when conditions perniit) Struetllre, Governance and Management Thc Socicty was govcrncd undcr a constitution adoplcd with effect from l January 2008 and subsequently amended in June 2010 and June 2011 and June 2018. Its Council consisted of the elected officers, and seven other members of the Society. The Executive Committee consisied of the elected officers. representative of the Branch Chairnien's Committee is a non-voting member. The task of the Executive Committee is to carry out the policy decisions of the Council and to deal with any matters which lie in its terms of rcfcrcnce. There were two committees { l ) Elgar in Perfonnanc4 which includes Elgar in Education) which dccides on grants in respcct of pcrfonnances of Elgar and in respcct of educational project (and special PTOJCCts) and (2) the Branch Chair's Con]millee. composed of the Chairs of d]c branches of the Society. Working Parties active during 2020 Name Chairlconvenor Elgar in Perfonnance Steven Halls (including Education) Members Barry Collett, Martyn Marsh, Pctcr Ncwblc, Exccutive Committee All other Branch Chairs Branch Chairs Committee Philip Petchey Council and Executive The Council mct twicc (oncc live and oncc online) dunng the year. The Executive Con]n]iCtee met more frequently than normal, once live and six times on Zoom during 2020. Much of the business was progressed by e-mail. The Branch Chainnen met once jointly with the Executive via Zoom. The year was dominated by adjusting to thc implications of thc Covid-19 pandemic, which had significant implications for the usual functioning of the Society and the branches. The main developments during the year were'.- progress on the remaining components of the Society's adopted strategy; After thc early months of the year thc bulk of thc programme of events to bc supported by Elgar in Performance and the education and special projects fimds were cancelled or postponed with the bulk held over for dates to be agreed for 2021. with live branch meetings suspended because of Covid restrictions branches have sought to keep in touch with thcir tnembcrs and somc havc pioneered online branch meetings and committee meetings. a national progrdmmc of onlinc prcscntalions has bccn mountcd to kccp in touch with members generally and has been welcomed (alongside some branch online meetings), particularly by members who do not generally atlend branch meetings. sorne branches have arrangcd Zoom branch meetings which can be viewed by the membership generally and visitors. the AGM 2020 for the r￿st time was conducied on Zoom and attracted greater numbers of members and a number who had not previously attended meetings in Worcester- the Festival and Birthday Weekend events had to be cancelled because of restrictions. monitoring the membership numbeTs; continuing link5 With Elgar Frcundcskrcis Dcutschland in Gcrn]any- cditorship of thc Journal conlinucd undcr Kcvin Mitchcll and thc cditorial board arrangement. keeping under review the Societys financial wsition- the development of initiatives to increase membership of the Society and revised arrangcmcnts for subscnptions and Gifi Aid- the developments in relation to music education and young people have largely been in abeyance during the pandemic. Branches There are eight UK Branches organised geographically. and a further Branch covering America and Canada. The creation of a Branch is at the discretion of the Society's Council and requires substantivc evidence from a sufficicntly largc group of members that there is a reasonable assurance of viability. Branches report on their activities via the Elgar Society New's and are required to submit their annual accounts to ihe Treasurer for consolidation with the accounts of the national Society. Risks No major risks have been identified by the Twstees. The Society is substantially dependent on subscriptions and Gift Aid for Ils Incotnc and i115 Ihus vital to retain and increase mernbership while ensuring that subscription rates are realistic in the light of the charity's activities and costs. The Trnstees consider that if this is don¢ there are no serious risks to future viability. This Annual Rcport statcs thc position a5 at 31 Dcccmbcr 2020 and thc Trustccs arc not awarc of any matcrial change in risk which needs to be reported. Reserves Policy The Council's policy is to retain reserves equal to at least one year's expenditure. Objeetives and Activities Under its Constitution, the Society's objective is thc cducation in, and promotion of. the appreciation of the public in the music of Edward Elgar and the education of the public in the life of Edward Elgar through: a) the provision of educational progrdmmes and activities to widen knowledge of Elgar's rnusic for all- b) support for the Elgar Birthplace museum (now known as The Firs) and educational establishments that attract the general public to Elgar's music and life. c) thc funding and encouragcrncnl of pcrforrnances and rccordings of his works. d) the encouragement of research into Elgar's music, and the publication of a scholarly Journal containing the results of such research- e) thc publication of or support for a scholarly edition of Elgar's music. The Society seeks lo promole perfomlance of Elgar's music. especially the more rarely perfonned works. While its focus has heretofore been on perfonnances in Britsin, it has emphasised cncouraging p¢rforman¢¢s of Elgar's music abroad as far as its Tesourecs permit, conccntrating particularly on Gerniany. It is concemed to introduce the composer and his music to younger audiences and, by making grants for appropriate educational activities. to enhance the quality of life of members of the public. The Society publishes its Journal three times a year, which contains the results of Elgar research and is sold to educational inst1￿110n$ and the generdl public as well as being sent to members as part of thcir subscnplion bcnefit. There 15 also a Ihn"cc-ycarly Ar￿1.5 publication sent to members only. The Society maintains a website which is proving increasingly valuable for members and non- members alike. Funds are centrally adminIstered, the Council approving the annual budget and budget heads. Branches submit bids for support of their activities based on their administrative costs plus an element in support of their local meetings. Grants are made both to Branches and outside bodies in respect of spccific chanlablc aclivilies and arc awardcd only whcn a proposed project is shown to have satisfied strict condilions relating to the stated aims and objectives of the Society. The Society's grant-making policy is conditioned by its objectives and its relatively constrained financial resources. In gcnerdl, grants are made for thc major purposes listed below. Assisting sole or wup perfonners, especially in non-commercial simations, who are prcparcd to play rarer Elgar woiks or to perforni in locations in which the composer's music is unlikely otherwise lo be heard and al which the public constitute the majority of attenders. Supporting cducational activilic5 al all Icvcls from pnmary to higher and continuous learning that inculcate in the participants special and intellectual skills by using Elgar, his life an(Vor music as a test bed for such activities or which enhance knowledge of English culture and history. Aiding institutions which have a role in the musical and historical aspects of Elgar to widen the accessibility of their services to socially diverse audiences andlor to PTovide specific Elgar-related public benefits. ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE (l January 2020- 31 December 2020) General Overview Under Initial Achievements & Plans, the last Trustees, Annual Report stated that the Society in partnership with other organisations would undertake the tasks listed below. Progress is described on each one in italics below. In considering undertaking any activities. the four objectives below are the criteria against which we judge any proposa15 so thai wc might= increase our membership; raise money in support of our aclivities- add demonstrably to the funding and encourag¢Tnent of performances and Tecordings of Elgar's works; increase access to the Elgar oeuvre. At natioThal level, and with all due acknowledgement of Branch activities, OUT efforts will focus on the following areas. Elgar in Performancc and thc Othcr Projects Fund - We set the budget at £18, Ooofor 2020 bui ihe pandemic situalion meani iha¢ liiile M as spenl and ilems ii'ere deferred to 2021 or cancelled. Elgar Journal: Under Kevin Milchell as Edilor and (he editorial board Éhe produclion of an informatii'e and ip7terestingJournal continued. Sponsorship and Legacies- We contiiiiie lo encoui'age donations and legacies for specific project5. Education & Young People= Initialives in relation to Youpig People have also been affected by the pandemic bi£t w'ill be resiimed once ihe resÉ1-ictions allom? Elgar Society Medal and Certificate of Merit. An aii'ard of rhe medal was made, at a coplcerl in London to Adrian Bmm'n. A presenlalion is to be agreedfor the uward io Doppze Jonet Baker M,hen condiiions permit. Collaborating with Ihc National Trust on local and national initialivcs. The West MEdlands Branch in particular fosters M'arm links M'iih ihe maiiagemeiii of The Firs. and regular discussions lake place on waj's of supporling M ider ipiiliatiijes and these w'ill be re5Un7ed when conditions ollow. The AGM and Birthday Weekend . The Society. .4GM look place oplline in September. The Elgar Festival in Fyorcesier and Birihda}- Weekend had io be cancelled in 2020. 11 is understood that the Worcester Fe5tii'al 2021has been poslponed unlil the.4ulumn. Elgar WoTks and the Elgar Complete Edition". We conliniie 10 promote Elgar Works ond the Elgar Complete Edilioii lo make mol'e of Flgai s niusic available in a limelyfashion at a reasonable cost to performers and conducloi-s all oi'er ihe H-orld. Recordings Whilst there have been discussions on particular projects there have not been any recordings supported financially during the year. Elgar in Performance The table below lells the sory story of the effect of the Corona Virus= the grants listed were awarded out of a total of 16 application5, using the Council-mandated grancs budget of £18,000. Naturally, most of the grants were awarded during 2019 so a few of the events took place in the United Kingdom and abroad during the first quarter of 2020. The sums against these perfomied event5 arc shown in the lablc. As the virns progressed, performing and promoting societies contacted us to ask our advice on postponements and, in all cases, we offered to hold the gThnts over if the groups intended to perforn] the work5 in the next two ycar5. As thc year progrcssed, we naturally received no further applications and the groups wilh grants could not as at Febn￿ry 2021 safely plan further perforn]ances. There are a couple of recordings planned at ihe time of writing but the budgets for 2021 and 2022 remain virtually untouched. We all hope for a speedy resurnption of cultural events during this calendar year. The Elgar in Performance Group comprises the Executive Committee. Steven Halls and Martyn Marsh; sadly we 1051 through death the expert and stalwart Barry Collett dunng 2020 and he remains much missed. Cobbe Piano Collection Somm recording Konzengessellschaft Schwerte Elgar Chorale Elgar sinfoni￿A.BrOWTh Hereford Chamber Choir WelwGC Choravorch Soc High Wycolnbe CS Aa¢h¢n¢t Ba¢hvtr¢in Guildford CS Cart of Elgar'5 Piano Military Band arrgmts The Aposiles Guildford 15(M)con%idered sCh￿'ent 4(M) Agreed Rejected Postponed Rejected 7(H) Took Plac¢ Postponed Postponed Postyoned l(K)O Took Plact Postponcd Postponed Rejected Cartcelled Cancelled Cancelled ected Pa}￿e￿]gar 3 Banner ofst. George Spirit of England BanrSt.GeorgelVlnConc The Apo511¢5 The Aposilcs The Awstles Spanish Lady Oi.. Bavarian Highlands Vario Dream of Gerontius i Fitst S ho Wat¢iloo, London Hereford Caihedral Welwyn GC High Wycornbe Aarhen Guildford Salisbury Music Society English Music Festival Treni College Elgar Festival Barnet CS Nova Fur¢si¢i OrLh Salisbury Doiche5ter Abbey Nottingham Worcesier,.Broadheath Saffron Walden Steven Halls - Co-ordinator, the EIP Group The Journal The new team, led by Kevin Mitchell, succeeded Meinhard Saremba as editors of The Elgar Society Journal in December 2019. t>uring 2020 editions olvolume 22 of Tlle Journal were published in Apnl, August and Deccmber, running lo 77, 77 and 69 pagcs rcspcctivcly, and colour front covers were introduced for the August and December issues. The April issue contained an article on Alarchci'ofi Manoi. by Kevin Mitchell, Richard Westwood- Brookes wrole an article on 'Alice Elgar at Brinkwells.. Arthur Reynolds produced letters pa55ing between Elgar and Dons Johnson. Tihomor Popovic wrote an in-dcpth study of The Crow'n ofIndia In August Andrew Neill wrote about Sir A(Irian Boult and David Jones paid tribute to Sir John Barbirolli. Christopher Redwood looked at Elgar Conducting in Italy, with Arthur Reynolds writing about Dan, Sinclair's English mastiff. Professor Jonathan Wainwright examined R.J. Buckley's score of The Dream of Gei'onlitis. The December issue opened with the first of three articles on The Black Knight by Professor Julian Rushton, followed by an hisloncal appreciation of Elgar from Diana Mcveagh, being a Tepriiit of a lecture she gave to The Elgar Society in 1955, and an in-depth study of the music for Beau Brummel by Robert Kay. During the year four books wcrc rcvicwed. with two music reviews, onc DVD and 20 CD reviews. The recordings Elgar made between 1918 and 1920 were considered and the '100 Years Ago . column expanded. The new editorial team is working well together and with, we hope, a continuing good supply of contributions, we feel oplimislic about the futurc of the Journal. The invaluablc assistance of Mike Byde in carrying out detailed forniatting and producing final copy for the printers is gratefully acknowledged. Kevin Mitchell, Andrew Dalton, David Morris and Andrew Neill. The News As usual, three editions of the Nem's were published in 2020 with the aim of covering all news with an Elgarian content, together with the latest inforniation from the Society's officers and Branches. The News relie5 on largcly unsolicited iterns of intcrcst from occasional contributors so Society members should not hesitate to send their articles or letters. Special thanks go to Robert Gilbert, typesetter and compiler of the (at present) highly speculative concert diary, and to regular contributors including Richard Smith, John No￿lS and Andrew Neill. Peter James, Editor of the New's Membership Report May 2020 saw the first "cull" of the membership since I succeeded to Membership - that is those mcmbcrs who were over a year bchind with their subscription. Prior to thc cull, they had all been contacted by either email or snail mail. In May alone 62 members were removed from the membership list. 2020 saw 31 new members enrolling. These are all paying members. The total number of Members is 946. Branch analysis Branch membershi East An East Midlands London North Americalcanada North_west Scottish Southern South-wcsl West Midlands Yorkshire/North- East No Branch Affiliation 2020 2019 56 37 320 2018 57 31 321 2017 50 24 2016 65 33 338 2015 56 26 349 2014 51 17 2013 52 io 353 2012 47 54 34 286 307 362 350 52 119 49 120 42 45 113 45 127 36 125 34 128 46 120 63 125 117 50 86 45 50 89 54 47 97 58 216 59 90 58 187 59 102 61 86 67 210 72 107 69 247 68 106 79 229 71 116 84 281 192 229 210 52 55 53 45 50 46 46 24 li 119 161 127 143 160 180 258 270 285 Although the South West Branch is no longer functioning members who are recorded against that Branch are included here lo indicate the geographical spread of mcmbcrship. Chris Bennett - Honorary Membership Secrelary The Archives There have not been any additions to the Societys archive during the past year. Several items are awaiting deposit Wlth Ihc archivc ai The Hive In Worcc5tcr, bui this has been closed for most of the year because of lockdown reslrictions. It is hoped that nornial business will be able to resume at some point during 2021. Richard Hall - Hon. Archivist Branch Activitie5 The Society reCO￿lseS that Branches contribute to ihe Society's health as they promote membership and local activity throughout the country. They arc particularly important for mcmbers who enjoy meeting fellow Elgarians and listening to Elgar tslks and perfomiances in their home area. East Anglian Branch At the first East Anglian branch meeting of 2020. Christopher Wiltshire led us through a third instalment of interviews with those who knew and worked with Elgar= a series which has proved consistently fascinating and more cornprehensivc than wc ever expected. At the branch AGM which preceded it. Ihe future of the branch was discussed. Numbers attending had bccn falling to a levcl that bcgan to look unsustainablc. With lowcr attcndancc thc fundraising income ai meetings dropped considerably, and the sparse audiences were an embarrassment when welcoming speakers who had put so much work into their tslks and, in most cases, travelled considerable distances. The meeting decided to continue with the branch for at least one more scason, with a reduced progratnmc of six tncclings in 2020121, and to rcassess the situation at the 2021 AGM in the light of attendance at the remaining meetings in 2020. Sadly, of course, the next meeting was cancelled due to the pandemic and no more have been possible since. Peter Newble- East Anglian BTanch Cha East Midlands Branch Membership: Currently we have 35 members. General Outline: 2020 has been a year like no other. This year we have staged 2 'proper' meetings before we were hit by Covid. The committee decided that as the choice was between no meetings at all or Zoom meetings. we would go ahead with Zoom which we arranged for October, November and December. Yorkshire and North East Branch took the same decision but as far as I know other branches have not gone down the Zoom roufr. We have receivcd many positive cmai15, both for our decision lo go with Zoorn and for the fact wc open to members, and non-members nationally and indeed beyond. We have lost 2 stalwarts of the branch, our dear much loved and much respected friends Michael Toseland and Barry Collett in May and September respcctivcly. Both made hugc contributions to the society and will be sorely missed. Another of our long-time regulat altenders, Detek MeaT was thken senously Ill in J}￿uary and is still in a nursing home recovering. l am sure we all wish him and his family well. An attendance of 30 to 40 for Zoom meetings is not unusual. I believe this figure may grow as we become more widcly known. Most meetings will be rccordcd so thcrc is usually an option of viewing the resulting recording. li is our intention to hold monthly Zoom meetings at least until 'proper' meetings be¢om¢ viable. W¢ will probably survey our members wishes nearer the time. During the ycar, rnysclf, Graharn Cooper, Wcndy and Kathcrinc have scrved a full tenn. I would like to thank them all foi their contnbulion to the tunning of the branch. Special thanks go to Wendy for taking over the distribution of Newsletters to members who are not online. Graham has decided not to renew his membership for 2021. We wish him well for the future. l am pleased to see that one of our ncwcT mcmbers, Julie Johns, Is standing for Branch Trcasurer. Publicity.. We started the year with a two sided A5 leaflet but this was quickly voided by Covid. This type of 'paper' publicity is really aimed at attracting people to our Leicester meetings. We have decided to discontinue this while Covid prcvails. In thc last 12 tnonth5 1 havc produced 9 electronic newslcttcrs which are intended to keep people in the loop. Apart from publicising our events they contain other newsworthy items, most provided by members. I send out frequent reminders to 'spread the word by passing them on. It is rnosl important ihal cvcrybody works to increase the membership,. We also have the website which I have kept up-to-date. I feel that publicity, especially of the electronic tjpe is probably best handled nationally. Is anyone any good a Facebook? I'm afraid I'rn not. Outline of Meetings: There have becn 2 'actual' mecling5 in 2020. Our AGM in February had an attendance of I l and the March meeting with Pauline Collett on Elgar's Homes was very well supported with an attendance of 33, our highest for 3 or so yearsl Well done Pauline! In the tunnoil we dropped our usual April, May and Junc mcetings bul started on Zoom in October with Martin Firth's excellent talk on Elgar and Vaughan Williams. This was a popular talk with 40 joining and 10 viewing the recording. In November we had Christopher Wiltshire taking us through the second part of his 'Elgar as we knew him, archive and in December, Steven Halls held a conversation 'Filling the Gaps, about the CD5 produced dunllg the I l year5 of his chairrnan5hip of the society. Over 30 people joined this conversation. Fuller details of meetings can be found below. The Treasurer Reports we are continuing to be very careful with funds and feel that money has been spent wisely. It would be fair to say that Covid ha5 cascd ihc financial prcssures on thc branch. The expcnse of room hirc has disappeared altogether, as has speaker travel. Zoom costs just over £14 per month. The branch has raised over £100 through sale of second hand books. Sam Dobson - SecTetary East Midlands London Branch London Branch held meetings as follows- February 3 "Music, whcn soft voices die. vibrates in the memory" (Shelley)= Andrew Dalton Edward Elgar and Ivor Atkins . The Worcester connection: Adrian Lucas October 5 (Zoom) 2020 Branch AGM and qui2 November (Vimeo) The pursuit of Diamlid and Graimie: Andrew Neill November 16 (Zoom}Grania & Diannid question and answer session with Andrew Neill December 21 (Zoom) Inforn]al discussion session March 2 Reports of the February and March meetings appear in the August 2020 issue of Elgar Society News. In common with the rest of the S￿iety, London Branch activities were curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic. It is fortunate that ihere havc been so many opportunities to hear and see music online and on radio and TV. The Society and some blanches also took the bold step of producing a series of online presentations which have been excellent and very welcome. We have all learned a great deal about alternative ways of presenting talks and holding meetings. Our thanks go to all who contributed in any way to the year's events. Ruth Hcllcn - London Brdnch Sccrctary North Americ Unhappily, I have little to rcport. The main activity of the Branch is sponsoring inembers, Elgarian projects and holding an annual conference. The beginning of the year found us hard at work planning an April 2020 conference in Pitt.sburg when the pandemic put paid to our efforts. We did managc to sponsor onc projecl.. Lalli Spahr's spl¢ndid WQTk on Volwne 2 of Elgar from Arnerica. Arthur Reynolds 10 LNorth West Branch During 2020, the regular series of meetings planned by the North West Branch were, as for many other branches, severely curtailed by the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Our home base for meetings, at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchcster, has also been closed to members of the public since early April 2020. However. we were able to hold our planned meetings in January, February and March, which were as follows: 18 January Elgar s Celtic Heroes- Grania & Diarniid Andrew Neill (A well-researched and stimulating audio-visual presentation, which gave an in-depth look at Moore and Yates play and the heavily criticised early perfonnances in Dublin - with English-speaking actors, Elgar's fascinating musi written to accompany the play, and a spcculativc look at the music of somc of the Irish composers who might have been asked to provide alternative musical accompaniment.) This was followed by the Annual General Meeting. 16 February North Wesl Branch Annual Luncheon (held at the Alma Lodge Hotel, Stockport) This was followed by two short, illustrated talks given by branch members, Pam Scargill and David Jones, on a piece of music which held a special Si￿lfiCance for thcm. Elgar in A Flat David Owen Norris (In the first half of his presenlation, David gave an erudite and fascinating talk which hc illustrdtcd by playing many musical excctFts on thc piano. Dunng the second half of the afternoon, David gave a piano recital in which he played (and talked about) Elgar's Fiiie Improi:isaiions (1929) and the Concerl Allegro.) Full reports of the above meetings appeared in our branch new51etter published in July 2020 and these are available for viewing via the link given on our Elgar Society NW Branch webpage. The meetings scheduled for April. May. October. November and December were all cancelled. Geoff Scargill, our Programme Secretary. contacted the speakers who were to have appeared at our planned season's meetings to see if any wete willing lo give their pTesentatIons on-line as a Zoom- style meeting, but none wished to do so, and all the meetings were therefore cancelled. Our meeting in May 2020, entitled Sirjohn Bai-birolli.. A Miracle in Manchesler (which was to have been presentcd by Geoff Scargill and David Joncs) had bccn planned as a NW Branch tiibute to Sir John Barbirolli, to coincide with the 50, anniversary of his death in July 2020. Instead, and with the professional help and expertise of Peter Newble, this was subsequently adapted to become one of the serics of Vimeo prc5cntations to bc given by the Elgar Society. Our branch membership has remained sthble in the pasi twelve months ai 120. The inevitable losses due to natural causes has been balanced by an equal number of welcome new members. Our AGM, originally planned for mid-January 2021, is now scheduled to take place as a Zoom meeting on SatUTday, 13, February. Th15 will bc followed by short, Illustrated talks from three of our branch members. The existing officers (Chair, John Knowles" Secretary. David Jones; Programrne Secretary, Geoff Scargill; Trcasurcr, Brian Walkcr. Minutcs Sccrctary. Richard Hall. Indcpendcnt Examincr, David Dickman; have all agreed to put themselves forward for nomination for re-election to otrice. The six existing committee members have, likewise, agreed to be nominated for re-election to office, along with one proposed new member. No other nominations have been received to date. 07 March David L Jones, Secretary North West Branch Scottish Branch Lockdown restTlCtions put Ihc progratntnc of Scottish Branch meetings planned for 2020 on hold after just one meeting on 19 January. This was our celebration of the centenary of the Cello Concerto with a presentation by Stephen Halls and Tom Kelly on the origins and character of the work followed by a compelling perfomiance of Elgar's own duo version by student musicians Alasdair Morton-Teng(cello) and Jia Ning (piano). Although the audience was swelled by family and friends of the musicians, there was a disappointingly low turnout of Branch members. The Branch also joined forces with thc Scottish Arts Club for a pcrfonnance of the piano quintet by the, renamed but familiar, Jupiter Ensemble. This was well supported by meinbers of the Scottish Arts Club several of whom were previously unaware of Elgar's chamber music but captivated by this excellent performance. It had been hoped to have more joint meetings of this kind. But we have had to postpone to 2021, and may have to further poslpone, joint meetings for the first time with Edinburgh Society of Organists (with a live perfonnance of the first Organ Sonata to be played by John Kitchen) and Seottish Gramophone Group (wiih the ehanee lo heaT some of ElgaT'8 early recordings on 78 Tpm discs on period equipment to be brought north by Peter Newble). It was particularly sad that we had to cancel the "come and play" event for young musicians planned for 2020. The ever-continuing lockdown mcans this may havc to be postponcd until 2022. Lack of technical prowess ha5 prevented the Scottish Branch from contnbuting Its own online presentations and webcasts. However, our Branch members were able to enjoy and leam from the splendid efforts of others in the Society. Tom Kelly - Branch Chairnian, Scottish Branch Southern Branch The Southern Branch managed to hold its meetings on 18 January and 29 February in our usual locations at Winchestcr and Havanl, Including ihc AGM concurrent with its Fcbnjary meeting. January, William Cole, our fornier Chainnan, gave a tslk on 'What Might Have Been, a reflection on major perfonners and perfonnances ihat did not quite make il onto disc. Joe Tierney, the National Trust Manager of The Firs gave a most interesting talk about how the 'Birthplace Museum, progressing under the NT management. The meeting was very well attended, Including members of the NT and delivered the news that ihe stolen Elgar's decorations had been recovered. Ed W15etnan wa5 elected Treasurcr at Ihc AGM in placc of Jean Joncs, who had 5ervcd in the rolc for many years, and was roundly ihanked for her sterling service. The planned meetings from March were progressively cancelled for the rest of the year as the Covid 19 pandemic took a hold. However, our Vice Chair, Duncan Evcs, has planned to reinstate thc meetings programme, thus far cancelled, from April 2021 if this is allowable, which will hopefully include our live concert. In October, we received the trdgic news that our Brdnch Secretary, Wendy Wiseman, had died. A full Inbule will bc placed in Ihc Elgar Society News. Shc will bc much misscd and all our condolences are sent to her husband Ed. This leaves us without a Branch Secretary and we seek urgently, a volunteer to take on the role. In the mean time, I will head up the secretarial function with hclp from Margaret Morphew and Ed Wiseman, and thc rest of the committee. I have not found it possible to persuade anyone to attempt an on-line presentation, but the presentations prepared by others within the Society have been much appreciated by SB members. In particular, we would likc to thank our Nalional Vicc Chair, Stuart Frced, and East Anglian Chair, Peter Newble for the truly excellent presenlalion made available on Vimeo and also the branch officers that have produced live presentations on Zoom. These presentations Tequire many hours of carcful prcparation and we should bc grateful to thcm all. Like so many others back in March when the pandemic began, I had hardly heard of Zoom as a piece of softwarc, but as an elderly pcrson living alonc, I have cmbraced its usefulness as a communications mechanism for the several organisations of which I still have a hand in running. I 12 have joined in most of the Elgar Society national and regional on-line events and have found it a ost use￿1 tool. It is, howcvcr, no 5ubslitutc for real livc rnccLings, but our Elgar Socicty May find it of continuing use as things gei back to some sort of nonnal in giving access to people who have difficulty in travelling to our meeting venues. However. may I offer a word of warning. My perception is that some are still finding difficulty in accc551ng live on-linc events, be it technical or psychological, and that we should be prepared to do even more to access and extend our membership wilh modern technology. It remains to be seen how our membership numbers will hold up as a result of the pandemic, but early indications suggest that fewer SB members have renewed. It is no surprise that SB has spent less money in 2020 than pr¢dict¢d. This surplus could be used to further personal communications with those who are rcluclant to renew, or lakc part in on-line events, but we will need a rcplaccment secretary in order to achieve ihis. David Pearce- Chair Southern Branch West Midlands Branch In Common with all Elgar Society Branchcs w¢ w¢r¢ unabl¢ to hold any 'livc' BTaneh mcetings aft¢r March 2020. However, we did manage to hold three of these before the first lockdo￿￿ hit us in the middle of March. These were: 18 January 'Elgar's Sea Pictures. A recital by the mezzo soprano, Rebecca Leggett accompanied by Nicole Johnson interspersed by Peter Sutton's talk on the poetry of Sea Pictures. 15 Febmary Annual Branch Lunch at Christ Church Hall, Malvern including a short musical quiz. 7 March AGM and a talk by David Parkc5 rcmin15cing on past Three Choirs Festiva15 With memories of some of the artists who he remembered. All othcr live events for 2020 wcrc canccllcd. Thc prcscnt situation did not prevent us from publishing our bi-yearly Branch Newsletter which is distnbuted by mail to our members and, electronically, to the Secretaries and Chaimien of all other Branches. Due to the pandemic, we published an extra autumn edition which. like that which followed in the winter, contained articles by n]ernbcrs with an Elganan Ihctnc. Mcmbers of the Branch were also able to 'attcnd' a number of Zoom and Vimeo meetings via the intemet, including a Pomp and Poetry video compiled by Stuart Freed and read by Peter Sutlon. We still don't know what the ￿tUre will bring, but we have plans for talks later in 2021 should these become possible. Our Committee meelings have been help, of course, by Zoom. Richard Smith, Branch Secretary Yorkshire & North East Branch The 2020 season began with the AGM on 25 January at our home, the Bar Convent, York. The Committee was re-elccted as follows= Dr David Young (Chair), Paul Kampen (Treasurer), Caroline GildeTdale (Speaker Secretary), Paul GTafton (BTanch Secretary), with HowaTd Gregg, Tony Pook, Prof Bernard Porter, Prof Julian Rushton, Pamela Scowcroft, Philip Scowcroft, and Richard Surrey completing the team. Sadly, Tony Pook died on E&ster Sunday 2020 in his 84 year. an obituary tributc appeared in Elgar NeH's No. 71 (August 2020}. The AGM was followed by a talk by the Chair, David Young, entitled 'Reading The Miisic Makers, which was illustrated with a coinplete recorded performance of Elgar's Ode, complemented by A Listener's Analytical Guide which David had spccially prcparcd for thc occasion. 13 By the time of our Annual Committee Meeting on 29 February. the coronavirus had broken out in the UK. Littlc did wc know, a5 wc gaihcrcd at the Hotcl du Vin, York (the first UK city to record cases of the virus), that this would be our last gathering in the flesh for some considerable time. Faced with the national lockdown, the committee carefully considered its options, which came down to doing nothing or keeping up intcrcst by mcans of on-line meetings. The Branch takes a degree of quiet satisfaction in having thken ihe initiative with on-line meetings. The first of these {on 23 May) was given by Christopher Wiltshire, whose lopic was 'Elgar as Remembered in Radio Interviews by Those who Knew Him,, and we are eternally grateful to Christopher for his courage and skill in bnnging off such a technical achievement of cotnbinin¥ Powerpoint, archival recordings, and Zoom and at the same time presenting such a fascinating portrait. The second talk (on 27 June), 'The Lighter Side of Elgar,, was given by Stuart Free(L and we are indebted to Stuart for the way in which he mixed rccordcd and livc prcsenlalion, thc results of which were not only Interesting, lively and attractive but also technically adept. We are equally indebted to Peter Newble for his Vimeo recording (played on 26 September) entitled 'Judas as represented in Music through the Ages, the product of a most ihorough picce of rescarch prcsented with that technical acumcn for which Peter is nghtly celebrated. Our final meeting of the year {on 28 November) featured a Zoom presentation by committee member Bernard Porter on 'Elgar, the North, and King Olaf, in which Bernard took a brilliant, multi-disciplinary approach, highlighting various strands of cultural history. The tslk was cnjoyed not only by branch tncmbcrs but by thc good numbcr of guests who joined us frorn other branches, a characteristic of all four on-line meetings. Our year was brought to an end with a pre-chrislmas social (via Zoom, of course), which featured an Elgar quiz and several short presentations by members and guests on 'My first engagernent with Elgar's music and what it meant to me., In addition to these on-line talks ihe Branch issued a number of interesting Newsletters, and we are grateful to Paul Kampen for editing these and for keeping our website up to date would like to end this Annual Report by thanking our Committee especially our Branch Secretary, Paul Grafton, Speaker Secretary. Caroline Gilderdale, and Treasurer, Paul Kampen - for their dedication, hard work and excellent spirit during this challenging year. David Young - Chair Yorkshire & NE Brdnch 20211NITIAL ACHIEVEMENTS AND PLANS Given the purpose of the Society is the education in and promotion of the appreciation of the public in the rnusic of Edward Elgar and the cducalion of the public in his life, Council have agreed a strategy that enabled our activities to be grouped under the aims mentioned under it, viz: a. the provision of educational pr0￿mm¢S and activities to widen knowledge of Elgar's Music for all and to dcvclop thc public bcncfit achicvcd by thc Socicty- support for the Elgar Birthplace, museums and educational establishments that attract the general public to Elgar's music and life. c. the funding and encouragement of perforniances and recordings of his works- d. the encouragement of research into Elgar's music, and the publication of a scholarly journal containing the results of such research; e. the publication of or support for a scholarly edition of Elgar's music. During 2020 the Covid -19 pandemic had a major impact on the live activities at branch and national level. As Chair of the Society I would like lo pay tribute to my colleagues on Council and the Executivc and each and cvery post-holdcr in Ihc Society and Its Branches, for all their hard work, enthusiasm, support and help during what has been a challenging year. The Executive in 14 particular has been busy in adapting to the pandemic changes and the development of online activities. In particular Stuart Frced with support frotn Pctcr Ncwblc and others have promoted son]e excellent national streaming presentations. These have been supplemented by Zoom meetings from certain branches which have been made available to members generally. l arn sure these efforts have enabled members to "keep in touch" and enjoy mccling with others. although not in person. Regular publication of the News and Joumal have been able to continue as normal. I look fonvard to building on this work in the coming year as we strive to keep the Society active in difficult circumstances. Neil Mantle MBE 15 - �� � ) -  !"# $%&'$$ $%&'$$ $*&+%, ) - +&$12 +&$12 3&%22 - 4"567!8 +$$ ) +$$ +19 $+3 ) $+3 '&+** - $&,'2� *13� 3&*+3 +2&1$3 - ?!>8 12 ) 12 *%2 121�� ,3&$'2�� ,3&9'1�� %2�� - 3$&%33 ,3&%+3 +$1&**1 **&3'* - ((((((( (((((((((((((( ((( ((((((( - -.!(/0 ((((((((( (((((((((((((( ((((( ((((((((( CDE   (((((((((((( (((((((((((((( (((((((( (((((((((((( - :#;8!<8#!(#"<8 (((((((((((( (((((((((((((() (((((((( ((((((((( +2&*1* +2&*1* +2&*$9 - =6#>(88 ! (((((((((%&'*' (((((((((((*22 (((((%&,*' (((((((+9&391 /-V (((((((((((((() (((((((((((((() (((((((((() ((((((((((((31* @"#6!"#(6#0(A8B68 ((((((((((((,2 (((((( ) ((( ,2 (((((((((((((('2'  � ((((((( *3$ (((((( ) ( *3$ ((((((( 1,2 3%+ ) 3%+ ) - #05 9+* ) 9+* +&31% FGHIJKLMGNOJHKIPJQ 1&+*$ ) 1&+*$ +1&3$, R"#67(S(T8U78!!8 (((((((+&**1 (((((((((((((() (((+&**1 ((((((( ) =6#>(/!;!8Z[\I]IQK^_KIG] ((((((((( ((((((((((() ((((( ((((((( ((((((((((((((,%% (((((((((((((() (((((((((((,%% (((((((((((($&31, - W4(S(/0;8!#B (((((((((((((() (((((((((((((() (((((((((() ((((((((((((++* X8(!8 (((((((((((($9&$9+ ((((((((((((((*22 (((((((($9&19+ (((((((((((('2&''$ ?#)7#8( 88#!6!"#(6#0(<88!#B (((((((((((( (((((((((((((( (((((((( (((((((((((((( (((((((((((( (((((((((((((( (((((((( ((((((((( - b E cd *&*'$ ,3&3+3 ,%&%1' e1&+,9f Y7B6(#( 8."<6#8 ((((((((( (((((((((((((( ((((( ((((((( Y7B6(V8067 ((((((((( (((((((((((((( ((((( (((((((((((((( %1&%19 $+&1*2 ,9&*29 +2*&121 e+&,1* ((((((((((((((+&,1* ) - /!>"80(8` (a"#7(S(Y`8!;8 ((((((((((((%*&92* (((((((((((((($3&12* ((((((((,9&*29 ((((((((( V8<8> (60<#!6!"# (((((((((((((( (((((((((((((( ((((((((((( ((((((((((((  �CDE   ((((((( ((((((((((( ((( ((((((( jk�lm mkj mkjn okpo - ((((((((( (((((( ((( (((((( ( - =676#8(g.(6(8 "!80 ((((((( (((((( ((( ((((( h6#.8(8!U88#(.#0 (((((( f((((((((( ((((((((((( =676#8(g.(8!6!80 ((((((( (((((( ((( +1 - i �c ������� ���� � ������� - �� � - ! " ## ## - $" %&' #(( ) &%,-,. L H KM�N / 0,* #(/ //# *! 2 2# 4 5678�� 96:9�� ; - � ��� ������� - ?+@ � /( ��� �������( &% � �()*+�  /(/ ��� �������������� � � ��� ������� / ( - � �1 *�" ����� ��������� - D.E * ���/#3� ������/(3� � � ������� - FG HIJK  5678<<< 96:9 =!*�> * ; ; � ������ ��������� �2A*�B�C�$!*.*�3 ������ ������� � ������� - � ��� ������� - � � ������� <<< <<< / ## **The Elgar Society** ## **Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2020** ## 1. Basis of accounting These accounts have been prepared on the basis of historical cost in accordance with: - the Statement of Recommended Practice: Accounting and Reporting by Charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102); and - the Charities Act 2011. The charity constitutes a public benefit entity as defined by FRS 102. ## 2. Accounting policies ## 2.1 Subscriptions Subscriptions are accounted for in the year in which they are received, except for subscriptions received in advance which are carried forward to the next year. ## 2.2 Other incoming resources These are included in the Statement of Financial Activities (SoFA) when: - the Society becomes entitled to the resources; - the trustees are virtually certain they will receive the resources; and - the monetary value can be measured with sufficient reliability. Where incoming resources have related expenditure (for example, subscriptions) the incoming resources and related expenditure are reported gross in the SoFA. ## 2.3 Donations and legacies Donations and legacies are only included in the SoFA when the Society has unconditional entitlement to the resources. During the year a generous donation of £93,250 was received from the Kay Trust Fund following the death in January 2020 of Ernie Kay. The Society is very grateful for this gift. ## 2.4 Tax recoverable on subscriptions, donations and gifts Incoming resources from tax recoverable are included in the SoFA at the same time as the income to which they relate. ## 2.5 Branches Although the regional branches of the Society are constituted under separate rules the income and expenditure of the branches are included in these accounts. ## 2.6 Taxation The Society is a registered charity no 298062 and accordingly is exempt from taxation on its income and gains where they are applied for charitable purposes. 18 ## 3. Trustees’ expenses During the year, travel and other out of pocket costs amounting to £667 were reimbursed to 6 members of the Council and the Executive when appropriate claims were made (2019 £2,369 reimbursed to 13 individuals). No member of the Council nor any person connected with them has received any remuneration in the year. ## 4. Donations, sponsorship and projects Grants and other financial support given to institutions are a material part of the total resources expended by the Society. Elgar in Performance grants amounting to £6,142 were made to 9 organisations (2019 £16,829 to 27 organisations). Many of the performances supported had to be postponed or because of the pandemic, but are expected to take place in 2021. ## 5. Restricted funds Kay Trust The funds received during the year from the Kay Trust have been combined with those remaining from an earlier gift made by Ernest Kay during his lifetime. Both gifts were given with the proviso that the funds may not be used for routine running expenses but should be devoted to capital or other longer term projects. ## 6. Elgar Enterprises A wholly owned trading subsidiary, Elgar Enterprises (a company limited by Guarantee; Registration No: 3821653), was established in 1999. The company has been dormant, and was dissolved on 11 February 2020. 19 ## **Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of The Elgar Society** I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of The Elgar Society (the Society) for the year ended 31 December 2020. ## **Responsibilities and basis of report** As the charity trustees of the Society you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’). I report in respect of my examination of the Society’s accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act. ## **Independent examiner’s statement** I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect: 1. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Society as required by section 130 of the Act; or 2. the accounts do not accord with those records; or 3. the accounts do not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a ‘true and fair view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Adrian Benselin 3 Maylands Avenue Breaston Derbyshire DE72 3EE 22 June 2021 20