21/5/2019: AGM
The AGM will take place on Wednesday 19th June. The relevant documents are available on the right hand side of this page
31/5/2018 Annual Accounts 2017/2018
The Annual Accounts for 2017/18 are now available to view using the link on the right. These will be presented at the AGM in June, date to be announced.
29/05/17 : AGM June 7 2017
The orchestras Annual General Meeting will take place after the break at the rehearsal on Wednesday 7th June, starting around 9pm. Please come and take part in the meeting, we need your input into the running of the orchestra and its a good chance for you to hear about the progress we are making musically and financially. Meeting documents can be found on the right.
30/03/17 : Rehearsals start again on April 19 2017
Easter break means no rehearsals now until April 19. There will then only be 3 Wednesdays before the May 7 concert so make sure you come along to all of them - and sell tickets to your friends and family!
21/08/16 : Rehearsals start again on September 7 2016
We begin our rehearsals for the new season on Wednesday September 7 at 7.30pm, Aylesbury Music Centre. You will receive an email shortly with details for the coming season.
02/06/16 : Date of AGM Confirmed for June 22 2016
The AGM will take place during the rehearsal on Wednesday June 22. Please take time to read the latest Annual Accounts (using the link on the right) and use the meeting as your opportunity to raise any questions or suggestions about the running of the orchestra
02/06/16 : Date of ASO Meal confirmed for June 29 2016
The orchestra meal will be at the Broad Leys, Aylesbury on Wednesday June 29 at 7.30pm. There will be a menu available at the rehearsal on 8 June for you to make your choices, and a deposit of £5 per head is needed. We hppe you can make it, please bring a partner if you wish.
31/08/15 : New Season Rehearsals
The first rehearsal will be on Wednesday 9th September at 7.30pm, at the Aylesbury Music Centre.
The programme for next season is shown below, the concert dates are;
- Sunday 15th November 2015
- Sunday 7th February 2016
- Sunday 8th May 2016
- Sunday 26th June 2016
As usual there will be a rehearsal on the day of the concert. As always, please remember to bring your own music stand to the concerts.
We will be producing some new and updated publicity materials this year, in our continued efforts to boost our audiences. These will use our new logo shown above, which now features on our updated website, Twitter and Facebook pages. We are also taking part in some fundraising events where some of you have already kindly volunteered to play, and we are hoping to hold more of these over the course of the season. Your help with this will be invaluable to ensure we promote the orchestra as much as possible. After a good year in terms of finance, we need to push on and get more people coming to our concerts. With this in mind, there will be a brochure for the season, concert flyers and posters available in September for you to take and distribute among friends, relatives and workplaces. We will also be encouraging you all to sell as many tickets as possible, and we will make sure these are available soon. Tickets for the November concert are already available to buy online, so please promote our website, www.aylesburyorchestra.co.uk, to all your friends using Facebook, Twitter or good old word of mouth, in fact in any way you feel most comfortable with.
At rehearsals, we are providing you with new music folders this season, so please use these to take your music away to practice so that the parts stay in good condition. Please make sure you return all parts immediately after each concert, otherwise we are faced with late/replacement fees. Cello and Bass players should bring some form of spike protector to rehearsals to ensure there is no damage to the wooden floor of the Music Centre. We need you to attend as many rehearsals as possible before concerts, but in the event that you can't attend please make sure you let your section leader know as soon in advance as possible. If you don't have their details, you can always use the Contact Us page on the website to let us know, and the message will be passed on.
Subscriptions have stayed at the same level this year, which is £120 for the season, or £40 per term, payable in September, January and April. You can now pay online with the details below, or you can pay by cheque made payable to The Aylesbury Orchestral Society. Cheques should be given to our Treasurer, Gail Morgan, at the first rehearsal. If you are a tax payer and you haven't yet filled out a Gift Aid form, please do so. They can be downloaded from the members page on the website or you can ask Gail for one. Any member with a new address or married name since you last filled out a form also needs to complete a new form.
25/05/15 : AGM Reports
The 2014/15 Annual Accounts and Chairmans Report are now available to download via the links on the left. Please read these before the AGM, where you can ask any questions you may have, The Conductors report will be added in the next few days
11/05/15 : Annual Dinner
The annual dinner will be on Wednesday July 1st at the Broad Leys in Aylesbury. Mel will be sending out details and menus shortly, hope you can make it.
11/05/15 : AGM Date
This years Annual General Meeting will be held during the rehearsal on 3rd June 2015. We will send out details shortly and will post annual accounts and reports to the website as soon as they are ready.
30/12/14 : Back on January 7th 2015
Rehearsals start again on January 7th, there are only 5 left before our next concert so please make sure you come to as many as possible. Happy New Year!
27/10/14 : Half Term Break
Don't forget there is no rehearsal this week as its half term. We are back on November 5th, and there are only 2 more rehearsals before the day of the concert
25/8/14 : Vincent Nolan
Some of you will remember Vincent Nolan. Sadly he passed away on Sunday 17th August, peacefully at home. Vincent played cello and stopped only a few years ago but was a regular member of our audiences since. His funeral will be held at 11.30, Wednesday 27th August at St Mary's the Virgin Church, Stoke Mandeville HP22 5XB
30/6/14 : ASO Dinner
The ASO Annual Dinner is on Wednesday 2nd July at 7:30 pm for 8:00, in The Old Thatched Inn at Adstock
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Adstock/@51.96562,-0.929975,14z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x4876fce5834e7879:0x10b95bc7b6d279a1?hl=en-US
Please have the exact money with you to pay for the meal: if you have already paid the £5 deposit, then you need £14.50 for two courses or £19.50 for three courses. Please also bring enough for a tip, which will be collected separately. PLEASE DO NOT OFFER CHEQUES OR CREDIT/DEBIT CARDS - it makes the final tallying extremely difficult, and ensures the organisers don't get to bed!
Please note that all drinks must be paid for separately.
I hope we all have a very enjoyable evening.
03/6/14 : 2014 AGM (Updated)
This years Annual General Meeting will be held at the AMC at 7.30pm on Wednesday 4th June, followed by a rehearsal. Please take time to read the annual accounts (via the link on the left) prior to the meeting. You can download last years AGM minutes here and the Chairmans Report is here
9/2/14 : Harding Hall Rehearsals
The rehearsal on Weds 12th Feb will be in the Harding Hall, Aylesbury High School, which is next door to the AMC. Please bring a music stand. the 19th is half term and then we're back on the 26th which will again be in the Harding Hall.
6/11/13 : Nutcracker running order...
Ben has confirmed the order of the Nutcracker for next weeks concert. Click here to download the pdf
2/10/13 : Strings Sectional on 9th October
Brass, wind and percussion not required on October 9th, Ben is holding a strings sectional so all string players make sure you can attend, or let us know if you can't.
27/08/13 : Membership Fees....
Fees for this year are ;
Adult Member : £35 per term (or £100 for the full year)
Students : £25 for the full year
All subscriptions are liable to a fine of £5 if not paid within one month of first rehearsal.
Please make cheques payable to The Aylesbury Orchestral Society and present them to our Treasurer, Gail Morgan.
27/08/13 : Members Call Back Letter....
Chris has sent the new season call back letter out to all members by email. A copy is available here to download.
27/8/12 : New Season Rehearsal Dates....
Rehearsals start again on Wednesday 11th September 2013, 7.30pm to 9.30pm at the Aylesbury Music Centre. We continue every Wednesday, with a break for half term on 30th October 2013 until the concert on 17th November. See the panel on the left for all dates next season
13/6/13 : Rehearsal 19th June at the Harding Hall....
Rehearsal on Wednesday 19th June is in the Harding Hall at Aylesbury High School, please bring a stand!
27/5/13 : ASO Dinner, Wednesday 3rd July 2013....
Our annual dinner is on Wednesday, 3rd July; 7.30 for 8, at the Old Thatched Inn at Adstock... http://www.theoldthatchedinn.co.uk/
This is the fifth time we have been to the restaurant, who are so welcoming to us each year. They will give us the conservatory to ourselves if we are a big enough group, and of course, partners are very welcome. We know those who've been before will want to come again, but if you haven't been yet, or are new to the orchestra, please do come, as it's a lovely way to meet everyone.
Menu choice sheets will be available at rehearsal from Wednesday 5th June, the menu can be downloaded here. A deposit of £5 please is payable when you sign up, then the balance is due on the night; please bring cash, not a card, and include a 10% tip. We have negotiated the same price as last year
Cost : 2 courses - £19.50 3 courses - £24.50
26/3/13 : Only 2 more rehearsals til the concert...
27th March and 17th April are the only 2 rehearsals left until the day of the concert on April 21st so its even more important to make sure you can attend these two dates. Please tell us (through the form on this page) if you cant attend. Thanks
6/3/13 : Rehearsal in the Harding Hall...
Rehearsal on Wednesday 6th March is in the Harding Hall at Aylesbury High School, please bring a stand!
28/1/13 : Rehearsal Dates...
There will be NO rehearsal on Friday 1st Feb, but there WILL be a rehearsal on Wednesday 6th Feb.
16/1/13 : Advance warning of February 13th Rehearsal at Sir Henry Floyd School....
Please be aware that the rehearsal on Wednesday 13th February will take place at the Sir Henry Floyd Grammar school in Aylesbury. This is because the AMC is unavailable and we want to take the chance to play in the venue for our June concert. The school is on Oxford Road HP21 8PE and the address and map can be found here. Remember to bring a stand
2/1/13 : Rehearsals start again on the 9th January....
Don't forget there's no rehearsal on the 2nd Jan, we are back on the 9th. There are only 5 rehearsals left before the day of the concert on the 3rd Feb so please make sure you come to as many as possible. If you are not able to attend a rehearsal please let us know in advance by replying to this email or contacting Julian direct. Thanks.
17/10/12 : Rehearsal Attendance....
Please read this message from our Chairman, Julian Chilvers;
Ben and I have been discussing how the Orchestra can improve and one of the main areas that we spoke about was attendance. We know that you all lead very busy lives, particularly those of you with children. However, we also know that other amateur orchestras have a better attendance rate. So far this season, attendance in the wind section has been better than before but we have sometimes been rather thin in the strings. Ben rehearses every movement in a great amount of detail, and there is not time within our rehearsal schedule to keep repeating how he wants sections to be played for those players that have not attended the previous rehearsal. Also it’s very tempting to leave practice until the last week or two before the concert, but it is much more effective if it is done earlier.
In order to make best use of rehearsal time we are starting an attendance planner. This will be available at the interval for you to mark any future rehearsals you cannot make. Ideally we would like wind and brass players to find a deputy for the rehearsals they cannot make, in which case please mark the sheet with “D” for deputy. In that way, we will know for which rehearsals we are missing key players.
It would be great if you could make Aylesbury Symphony Orchestra the first thing that you put in your diary and the last thing you have to cancel.
Thanks very much
Julian
28/08/12 : Membership Fees....
Fees for this year are the same as last year;
Adult Member : £80 (reduction of £5 if paid by 26/9/12)
Senior Citizen : £45 (reduction of £2.50 if paid by 26/9/12)
Students : £25
All subscriptions are liable to a fine of £5 if not paid within one month of first rehearsal.
Please make cheques payable to The Aylesbury Orchestral Society and present them to our Treasurer, Gail Morgan.
18/08/12 : Members Call Back Letter....
Julian has sent the new season call back letter out to all members by email. A copy is available here to download.
16/07/12 : New Season Rehearsal Dates....
Rehearsals start again on Wednesday 12th September 2012, 7.30pm to 9.30pm at the Aylesbury Music Centre. We continue every Wednesday, with a break for half term on 31st October 2012 until the concert on 18th November. See the panel on the left for all dates next season
12/6/12 : Rehearsal on Wednesday 20th June 2012....
The rehearsal on Wednesday 20th June will be held in the Harding Hall of Aylesbury High School. Please note this is a change to the previously advised venue. Please remember to bring a stand
30/5/12 : AGM, Wednesday 13th June 2012....
The Annual General Meeting will be held on Wednesday 13th June, starting at 7.30pm and finishing at 8pm, followed by a rehearsal finishing at the usual time.
10/5/12 : ASO Dinner, Wednesday 27th June 2012....
An important date for your diaries is Wednesday, 27th June; 7.30 for 8, when ASO's annual dinner is once again in the lovely Old Thatched Inn at Adstock... http://www.theoldthatchedinn.co.uk/
This is the fourth time we have been to the restaurant, who are so welcoming to us each year. They will give us the conservatory to ourselves if we are a big enough group, and of course, partners are very welcome. We know those who've been before will want to come again, but if you haven't been yet, or are new to the orchestra, please do come, as it's a lovely way to meet everyone.
The menu is below and attached; please choose, then fill in one of the menu choice sheets which will be available at rehearsal from Wednesday 16th May. A deposit of £5 please is payable when you sign up, then the balance is due on the night; please bring cash, not a a card, and include a 10% tip.
Download the menu here
Cost : 2 courses - £19.50 3 courses - £24.50
16/4/12 : Rehearsal Schedule for May concert....
This is the schedule for the rest of the rehearsals before the May concert;
18 April - Mahler 4th and Rachmaninov
25 April - Mahler 1st and 2nd
2 May - Mahler 4th and 3rd
4 May - Rachmaninov with soloist
Please make sure you attend all the rehearsals between now and the concert and if you are in contact with any extras please pass this information on to them.
9/2/12 : Rehearsals in the High School....
The rehearsals on the 7th and 21st March will be in the Harding Hall of Aylesbury High School, next door to the Music Centre. You should park in the High School and not at the Music Centre, and please bring a stand.
9/2/12 : Conductor Auditions....
Please make every effort to come to the next 2 rehearsals as we have two conductor auditions. Benjamin Ellin will be with us on Feb 22nd and Ben Palmer on Feb 29th.
4/12/11 : Film Music Concert Poster....
Download the poster (click here, 240Kb pdf) the February Film Music Concert and print off copies to put in as many offices, schools, staffrooms and other places you can think of. Email it to your friends and family and give it as much publicity as you can, we really want to fill the church for this concert.
21/11/11 : Message from Julian....
As you know, Mahler Symphony No. 1 (concert of May 6 2012) is extremely demanding and requires a large orchestra, including quadruple woodwind, 7 horns and 5 timpani. Combined with Rachmaninov piano concerto, the 2 hour rehearsal that we usually have is not long enough to sort out all the seating issues and to rehearse the whole programme properly. The Committee have therefore decided that the best option is to reschedule to an afternoon rehearsal (say 2:00 to 5:00pm) and an evening concert (say starting at 7:00 or 7:30pm). During the break we could have a “bring a plate” dinner, where everyone brings and shares food. Please could you therefore let me know immediately if the revised timings are a problem for you.
21/11/11 : Message from Julian....
Many thanks to everyone who completed the questionnaire. The answers have been extremely informative and will help the Committee to make appropriate decisions about how we do things.
The responses on concert dress were strongly in favour of changing the dress code for men from full dinner suits to dinner suit trousers (or similar) and long sleeved black formal shirts. Of 24 responses, over 80% either tended to agree or strongly agreed with the suggestion. Only 2 members strongly disagreed. Whilst we do not want to upset anyone, the majority opinion is quite clear and therefore the committee have decided that from the February concert onwards men will be required to wear black shirts. If you do not already possess a black shirt then this should give you enough time to purchase one. The dress code for women is unchanged i.e. long black (trousers, skirts or dresses).
The other main point to come out of the questionnaire was that I have not been sufficiently clear about the precise process for choosing our new conductor. In the past the final choice has always been made by a member vote and the Committee see no reason to depart from that. We now have 5 candidates as follows:
Alice Farnham, Tim Hooper, John Beswick, Benjamin Ellin, Ben Palmer
Subject to availability, the two Bens will be taking the first two rehearsals of Mahler 1 in February, so please make every effort to come to those rehearsals.
If in the event there is no clear favourite, one possibility would be to give 2 (or even 3) of the candidates one concert each in 2012/2013. Again, the Committee would be very interested to hear your views once we have seen all the candidates. Whilst the Orchestra would benefit from the certainty of knowing who our new conductor is, we also need to make sure we are making the right decision.
Finally, the feedback regarding the exchange trip with Amersfoort was useful but inconclusive. We are therefore using SurveyMonkey to set up a more detailed questionnaire regarding this and in response to comments received I will at the same time provide more information about how the exchange would work.
I look forward to receiving further feedback.
2011/2012 Membership Fees...
Due to additional rehearsals this season fees have increased by £5 this year. Unfortunately the members letter that was sent out in August incorrectly stated that fees hadn't changed, but due to increased rehearsal costs the fees are now; Full Adult Membership - £80, Senior Citizen (existing) - £50, Students - £30. A £5 reduction will be applied if paid by September 28th, a £5 fine will be applied if not paid by October 12th...so please send or give cheques made payable to The Aylesbury Orchestral Society to Gail Morgan our Treasurer....use the form above to contact us if you are not sure how or who to pay.
Click here to download a copy of the letter to all members August 2011
05/05/11 : ASO Meal....
These are the directions and final arrangements for this year's dinner in The Old Thatched Inn at Adstock, on Wednesday 25th May 2011.
Please note if you are unable to come at the last minute due to sickness, you MUST phone The Old Thatched Inn yourself, and you may still have to pay, as they now have final numbers; 01296 712584
Please bring the exact money with you;
2 courses - £20.95 less £5 deposit = £16
3 courses - £24.95 less £5 deposit = £20
As before, all drinks are paid for separately.
Please also bring a 10% tip ie £2.00 - £2.50, which will be collected separately.
Directions can be found here ....www.theoldthatchedinn.co.uk/directions.htm
As usual the time is 7.30 for 8pm. There is no dress code, but some of the ladies are planning posh frocks!
05/05/11 : Speen Festival....
We have received an open invitation to all our members to take part in the Speen Festival. The aim is to form a massed orchestra to include players from Bucks and South Oxfordshire, Sam Laughton is conducting. The event is free and the aim is to make collections at the end for charities nominated by the participating groups. They are offering lunch and there are great walks direct from the performance venue!
This is a great opportunity to be involved in a large scale community event in a local homegrown but well respected Festival. More details about the Festival can be found at www.speenfestival.org.
Although the “reply by” date in the PDF file below is 14 May, we understand it is not too late to apply. Please could you reply directly to Kate or Annabel (see addresses below) , but copy the orchestra email address in. If there is enough interest from individuals then we can discuss with Jacques and the organisers the possibility of performing as a group as well as within the massed orchestra.
Download the PDF Article on Sam Laughton
email addresses: Annabel Warr Kate Laughton please copy any emails to [email protected]
15/04/11 : AGM....
Our AGM will be held at 7.15pm Wednesday 11th May at the AMC, immediately before the first Mahler workshop. Please make sure you attend, its a good time to raise any questions or items for discussion and for those that are interested, there are committe vacancies. Download the latest Annual Accounts and the Business Plan for next year, using the links on the left.
Related Documents: Agenda for AGM 2011Chairmans Report 2011Minutes of AGM 2010 Annual Accounts for 2009/2010
10/04/11 : Mahler Workshops....
The first workshop is at 7.45pm on Wednesday 11th May at the AMC. The second will include a full run through and starts at 7.30pm Weds 18th May at AMC.
02/03/11 : March 9th Rehearsal....
The rehearsal on Wednesday 9th March will be in the Harding Hall at Aylesbury High School. For those who dont know, the High School is next door to the AMC. Please bring a music stand with you!
02/03/11 : March 16th Rehearsal....
The rehearsal on Wednesday 16th March will be at St Louis Catholic Primary School (click here for map and address). Please bring a music stand with you!
22/02/11 : Workshop in May....
We are holding two workshops in May to work on Mahler's Symphony No. 1. On Wednesday 11th May we will rehearse the piece and on Wednesday 18th May we will play it in full straight through. We need to get as many players as possible on both of the evenings, including quadruple wind, seven horns and double timps. Please make sure you can attend and ask around for other players to come and join us.
05/01/11 : New Conductor?
Have a look at this new conductor!....a promising Dep for Jacques?