The Leicester Music Society, 1871 (Walsall New Art Gallery)
Leicester Music Society 79th Year
First Meeting - Nick Bailey
The first voice in our new season was the first voice of Classic FM. On Tuesday 13th October erstwhile radio pirate Nick Bailey will make a welcome return to talk about his broadcasting career, starting as a newsreader on Radio Caroline in 1966, through to work in Australia, the British Forces Broadcasting Service in Gibraltar, Cologne (including Family Favourites) and Berlin during the Cold War. And in Hong Kong, working for the government station hosting the morning current affairs programme in the run up to the handover to China in 1997.
Also, for those who missed it last time, he'll retell the story of how Classic FM was set up, and how he became the station’s first voice when it opened on the 7th September 1992.
NEW SEASON 2026–2027
| Date | Speaker | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Oct | Nick Bailey | Radio Caroline to Boom Radio - a Life on Radio |
| 10 Nov | David Calow | The Name's Barry ... James Barry! |
| 8 Dec | Mick Lessiter | The Richard Rodgers Songbook |
| 12 Jan | Julian Hellaby | Librace. How Good Was He? |
| 9 Feb | Nigel Simeone | Leoš Janáček - His Magnificent Last Decade |
| 9 Mar | Robert Ramskill | Fugues and Tangos - The Music of Robert Ramskill |
| 13 Apr | Sierra Farquhar-Wulff | Choral Music of the USA and UK |
| 11 May | Sue Bland | Weather Music |
| 8 Jun | "Love It or Loathe It" and AGM |
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 usually the Annual Music Quiz after business is taken care of in the AGM. However in 2026 in place of the quiz we are introducing 'Love it or Loathe it', asking members to introduce a short piece that they either 'love' or 'loathe', and to explain why.
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 scholar and author Nigel Simeone, whom regular listeners to Radio 3's 'Record Review' will recognise from his frequent appearances on the programme. In February 2027 he will return to talk to us about Janáček.
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 click on this map to find a music society near you.
