The Leicester Music Society, 1871 (Walsall New Art Gallery)
Leicester Music Society 77th Year
FIRST MEETING OF THE SEASON
David Calow – A History of the Wind Band
Our 77th season starts on the 8th of October with a marvellous survey of wind bands over the centuries. With recordings ranging from renaissance music by the wonderful trailblazer David Munrow and his ensemble right up to the present day, including music arranged and conducted by the evening's speaker.
Music Director and conductor of the Bardi Wind Orchestra David Calow looks into the development, instruments, repertoire and arrangements of the wind band from the renaissance town band to the full symphonic wind orchestra of the 20th century.
SEASON 2024–2025
| Date | Speaker | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Oct | David Calow | Wind Bands, A Personal History |
| 12 Nov | Neil Crutchley | 60 Years Of Music In Leicester |
| 10 Dec | An Edwardian Christmas | |
| 14 Jan | Chris Ouvry-Johns | TBC |
| 11 Feb | Nigel Simeone | Elgar and Boult |
| 11 Mar | David Fisher | The Many Versions of Handel's Messiah |
| 15 Apr | Michael Lessiter | The Spooky In Opera |
| 13 May | John Florance | The Music Shakespeare Inspired, from the Globe to Dire Straits |
| 10 Jun | AGM and Quiz |
See our Programme pages for more detail.
OUR VENUE
We meet in the comfortable Keene Room of Christchurch Baptist-Methodist Church on Clarendon Park Road. See the Church's web site for a location map and directions.
About Us
We are a friendly group of people keen to learn more about music from composers, performers and others with expert musical knowledge.
Our entertaining and informative illustrated talks are usually held on the evenings of the second Tuesday of each month from October through to June.
Our final meeting of the season is the Annual Music Quiz after business is taken care of in the AGM.
Membership is open to anyone interested in learning more about music. Just turn up to any meeting and we will make you very welcome.
See our About page for information on where and when we meet and our charges. Go to our Programme page for the topic of each meeting in the current season.
Notable speakers in the past have included the composers John Rutter, Will Todd, George Lloyd and Geoffrey Bush; former Director of the BBC Proms Robert Ponsonby; eminent oboist Lady Evelyn Barbirolli; Denis Matthews, noted pianist and Professor of Music; Annetta Hoffnung, widow of the much-missed Gerard; distinguished conductor Norman Del Mar CBE; Peter Cropper, late leader of the Lindsay String Quartet.
Famous critic and broadcaster Edward Greenfield, and the 'doyen of opera critics' John Steane used to visit us nearly every year; both now sadly deceased.
Distinguished choral conductor Donald Hunt, another regular speaker since 2004, died on 4th August 2018 at the age of 88.
Other popular regular speakers include Stephen Varcoe and the late Malcolm Goldring..
In 2024 we welcomed for the first time music scholar and author Nigel Simeone, whom regular listeners to Radio 3's 'Record Review' will recognise from his frequent appearances on the programme. He is returning in 2025 to speak about the musical relationship between Sir Adrian Boult and Sir Edward Elgar.
Our Society was formerly known as The Leicester Recorded Music Society. We changed the name in 2016 to reflect the changing nature of the ways in which people now encounter music, and also a broader interest in musical performance as well as musical appreciation.
We are a member of the Federation of Recorded Music Societies (FRMS). If you don't live in Leicester check their site listings to find a music society near you.
