AGM 2006 - Minutes

Held Friday 16th June 2006 at The Central Library, Birmingham

 The meeting commenced at 6:30PM.

Present:

Trustees and committee members: Gillian Reynolds (Chairman), Pam Bishop, Philip Cox, Cathy Mackerras, Ian Parr; Sian Roberts, Sara Parker, Fiona Tait, Robert Whitworth
Friends : Alex McClure, Bob Blair, Alan Bishop, Barbara Miller, John and Maureen Davis, Joyce Parr, Joy Parr, Eileen Whiting, Steve May, Helen Lloyd

Apologies:

Trustees and committee members : Samantha Collenette, Matthew Parker, Dave Rogers
Friends : Ian Gasse, Bob Etheridge, Godfrey Nall, Sheila Smith, Colin Shaw, Jacquie and John Swift, Nin Giddings, Graham Peet, Peggy Seeger, Pat Welch (Grimmitt Trust), Roy Palmer, E H Seagroatt, Rosanna and Tony Barton, Joy Ashworth, Barry Lankester, Graham Langley, Colin Shaw, Sean Street, Paul Long

Minutes of Friends’ Meeting June 2005

The minutes were circulated for information.

Consideration of Annual Report and Accounts for 2005 – 2006

Gillian Reynolds welcomed Friends to the meeting. She explained that Connecting Histories, which would ensure digitisation of the Archive recordings, was well under way. It would be completed next year. She linked this with the founding ethos of the Archive set out in the Annual Report each year required the preservation and availability to all of Charles Parker’s work. She said that interest in folk music was at an all time high as demonstrated by the success of the Radio 2 Folk Awards, the new Radio Ballads and the recent Folk Britannia series.

Copies of the Report were circulated and there was discussion on some of the topics covered by it.

There was discussion on the copyright issues involved in making more of the Archive recordings available for general listening, including the Grey Cock recordings. It was agreed Bob Blair and Alex McClure would submit proposals for prioritising recorded material in terms of difficulty in releasing copyright. The aim would be that some recordings could be made available to the general public rather than solely through personal study the Library.

Presentation by Sara Parker

Sara Parker developed her contribution to the Annual Report by playing clips and commenting upon the background to the new Radio Ballads. Material was mainly drawn from The Enemy That Lives Within dealing with HIV/AIDS, Swings and Roundabouts the fairground community and Thirty Years of Conflict sectarian conflict in the north of Ireland through the experiences of musicians and singers.

Presentation by Ian Parr

Ian Parr used examples from the original commercial recordings of the Charles Parker, Ewan MacColl, Peggy Seeger Radio Ballads and compared the clips with the recordings obtained from the Smithsonian Library. The programmes investigated so far are covered in a report that supports the Smithsonian discs held in the Archive.

Meeting Close

There being no other business the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 7:45PM.

Ian M Parr
Hon. Secretary