THE NEWSLETTER OF ENTERPRISE MUSIC SCOTLANDOCTOBER 2012

NATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC DAY 2012On Saturday 15th September 2012, some of Scotland’s finest chamber musicians performed across the country reaching over 4200 members of the public. For the 2nd year running, our promoters took chamber music to the streets of Scotland to promote their clubs in the most unusual of venues. The day was hugely important in making chamber music more appealing and accessible to the public and raising awareness of chamber music concerts happening in local areas…

“...what a pleasant surprise to hear Aleksei and Olga playing chamber music at this venue. Many thanks to them both.” Ian Leitch - member of the public passing through Simpson’s Garden Centre in Inverness

The promoters did a fantastic job of selecting unusual yet appropriate venues to capture their new audience in Garden Centres, hospitals, museums, shopping malls, supermarkets, Burns club, Visitor Centres, Cafés, community campus, train stations and bus stations. They even appeared on the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry, at a coffee morning and in a library.

The event was well spread over Scotland with 26 performances in 25 locations in Aberdeen, Aboyne, Angus, Arran, Crieff, Dunoon, Dumfries, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Helensburgh, Inverness, Inverurie, Irvine, Falkirk, Linlithgow, Lochaber, Lockerbie, Melrose, Milngavie, Lanark, Peebles, Perth, Tillicoultry and Whithorn.

“It was great fun! the promoter we were matched with was very supportive and seemed to have put a lot of effort in to bring people to listen. The venue was lovely to play in - even better that the first bit was performed outside in the glorious sun!!”Athenaeum Winds | Music In Peebles

EMS NEWS

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RESIDENCY PROJECT ROUND-UP

THE SUTHERLAND DUOAs the tenure of the Residency Project recipients 2010-2012, The Sutherland Duo, draws to a close, the duo enjoyed a run of concerts across Scotland, premiering their EMS commissioned work ‘Worry Doll’ by Gareth Williams. In advance of the tour, Christina and Harriett worked with Gareth over a three day residency in Argyll, providing an opportunity for the composer to get to know the musicians and how this would help to sculpt his composition. The Duo then toured in September and October, stopping at Osprey Music Society, Moffat Music Society, Pollok House Arts Society and University of Glasgow.

The Sutherland Duo have been a fantastic addition to the list of ensembles who have been awarded the Residency Project since its inception in 2006. Performing

to the highest standard, they have been worked hard to make the most of the opportunity and will no doubt go from strength to strength.

The Duo’s pianist Christina Lawrie gave us her thoughts on the last two years:

“Huge thanks to everyone at EMS for giving us this fantastic opportunity. It has been an amazing two years, and we have played at some very special venues. We are thrilled that, as an indirect result of the Residency, the chance to make our debut duo CD has arisen. Another highlight has been the opportunity to play James MacMillan’s “Kiss on Wood” in the presence of the composer at the Chamber Music Matters conference. We have also had the privilege of working with guitarist Allan Neave and composer Gareth Williams at beautiful Crear in Argyll. Last but by no means least, we’d like to thank the wonderful folk at music clubs all over Scotland for their boundless kindness, enthusiasm and support.”

TOURS BOOKThe latest Tours Book has been released and you should all have your copies by now. The book lists even more musicians than last year featuring ensembles of various combinations, sizes and genres.

We do our upmost to ensure that all promoter information is accurate at time of printing, but do let us know if there have been any changes to your club’s contact details by emailing Sophie at sophiegordonems@gmail.com

The EMS Tours Conference 2012 will be held at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland on the 24th of November.

through the scheme we now have a very busy concert diary, performing at music clubs across the country throughout the year. The residency project has also opened doors for us to perform at high profile music festivals and concert venues, including Lammermuir Festival and at Perth Concert Hall, and to collaborate with renowned musicians such as pianist Benjamin Grosvenor and Allan Neave. In addition to all this we get a great deal of professional support from the EMS team, relating to how to run your group as a business, which has been invaluable, especially in the current economic climate”

You can hear the Maxwell Quartet at one of these upcoming concerts next month:

DUNBLANE MUSIC SOCIETY 4TH NOVEMBER 2012

STRATHEARN MUSIC SOCIETY 14TH NOVEMBER 2012

MILNGAVIE MUSIC CLUB 16TH NOVEMBER 2012

DUNFERMLINE ARTS GUILD 18TH NOVEMBER 2012

RESIDENCY PROJECT ROUND-UP

THE MAXWELL QUARTETThe 2011-13 Residency Project ensemble, The Maxwell Quartet, have had a fantastic year, most recently enjoying a three day residency at The Big Shed working with EMS Artistic Adviser, Allan Neave ahead of their performance at Lammermuir Festival.

We caught up with George Smith from the Maxwell Quartet who told us:

“We have greatly enjoyed our two year residency with EMS. It has been a fantastic and completely unique opportunity for us to develop professionally. We have benefitted from some great coaching and mentoring experiences- working with Krysa Osostowicz, Erich Hobarth, Steven Osborne and Will Conway in inspiring locations across Scotland, including Space to Create at Crear and the Big Shed at Killin. In addition to this, EMS has given us a platform to showcase our talents in the Scottish Chamber music scene;

CHAMBER MUSIC FORUMEnterprise Music Scotland is delighted to announce a renewed and widened agenda! EMS has taken on the remit of the previous body the Chamber Music Forum. The CMF was established to represent the interests of Scotland’s chamber music groups, ensembles and promoters and work to develop audiences for chamber music and raise the profile of its performers. We, in consultation with Creative Scotland believe that EMS is in a strong position to take on this new role and to be instrumental in the development of the chamber music sector. We are delighted to announce that the former CMF Chairman, Oliver Searle, has joined the board of EMS, bringing with him the expertise garnered from his time with the organisation.

On 19th September, EMS hosted an event at the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow, inviting chamber music performers to meet with EMS staff to discuss how we can best work together to strengthen and develop chamber music in Scotland. The event was well attended and attracted musicians and ensembles from early career stage through to the more established and well known groups. The discussion was extremely positive and the feedback generated will prove to be invaluable when shaping how we move forward in our relationship with chamber music performers.

Following this initial piece of work, we want to hear the views of the from performers and to let them know about future opportunities we will be providing. One such opportunity is an upcoming series of professional development residencies to be hosted at Crear in

Argyll. Three ensembles will be invited to take up residency together in Crear, alongside a facilitator, as an opportunity to work separately as ensembles and together in a peer-to-peer sharing environment. The interest in this project has already been great, with several groups asking to take part before we have even made the formal request for applications.

Over time, EMS will be looking to attract a roster of chamber music promoters, performers and collaborators to become ‘Interested Member Parties’ to ensure we continue to shape the chamber music sector in Scotland and live up to our objective of being the National Body for Chamber Music in Scotland.

This is an exciting time for EMS and the chamber music sector - thanks for continuing to be a part of the story.

MEET THE CHAIRMANThe new chairman of EMS is Roy Alexander, who has served on the board of EMS since 2005, bringing with him his expertise as a chartered accountant and the use of his office address at Abercorn School in West Lothian.

Roy was then a member of Linlithgow Arts Guild and since his retirement from professional practice lives at Newtonmore and is a member of the Osprey Music Club at Boat of Garten. He also regularly promotes concerts by EMS Residency groups at St Brides Church in Newtonmore.

From his recruitment to the board by Tom Chadwick, whom he now succeeds, Roy has also served on the Executive and acted as board minute secretary. His knowledge of the affairs of EMS and commitment to the organisation’s work make him an ideal chairman and his financial background means he will also take on the preparation and maintenance of the accounts, although Tom will retain an advisory role in this and in our relations with our funders at Creative Scotland.

Roy’s first work has been to revise the constitution of EMS to take account of our recent development, the role of the board and our expanded staff complement and changes in legislation regarding charitable bodies. These will be presented to the Annual General Meeting at the Tours Conference for the approval of all those associated with chamber music in Scotland, for whom EMS is now the recognised national representative body.

KEEP UP TO DATE...You can hear about the latest EMS news as it happens on the ‘Whats New’ section of our website www.emusicscotland.co.uk or why not follow us on Twitter @EMusicScotland or find us on Facebook.

PROJECTS ASSISTANTEnterprise Music Scotland is delighted to announce the appointment of Sophie Gordon as our brand new Projects Assistant.

Sophie will work two days a week in a diverse role including admin support, website maintenance, social media and the design of marketing materials. Sophie brings a range of skills to the EMS team and we are very happy to have her on board!

“I studied Graphic Design at Edinburgh College of Art and graduated at the start of the summer with a First Class Honours degree. During my time at ECA, I enjoyed the project management side of my studies as well as working creatively with design. Having grown up with Childrens Classic Concerts and

played the saxophone to Grade 8 level, music has always meant a lot to me; and I enjoy attending concerts whenever possible.I have previously acted as a temporary administrative assistant for EMS, compiling the concert tours diary and I am looking forward to getting more involved with such an exciting and diverse organisation.”

Enterprise Music Scotland c/o A9 Partnership Ltd, Abercorn School, Newton, Broxburn EH52 6PZ

Tel: 01506 834700 Fax: 01506834710 Email: info@emusicscotland.co.uk

www.emusicscotland.co.uk

Scottish Charity No. 20803