Report from LANA’s 2018 Annual General Meeting in Zeist, Holland
/By Julia Elliott, LANA Secretary
The 2018 Annual General Meeting of the Lyre Association of North America was held on July 24th at the lyre conference in Zeist, Holland. Sixteen members and friends of LANA from five different countries (U.S., Brazil, Ecuador, China, Germany and the U.K.) were present. The current Board President, Sheila Johns, greeted the group and detailed the current status of the Lyre Association of North America as follows: LANA has 49 members to date; membership dues are $40 (regular membership) or $50 (supporting membership); LANA’s members benefit from LANA publications (Soundings and Lyre Notes), the music sales and lyre rentals programs, conferences, and news from the lyre community.
The election of a new Board member and the announcement of an interim Board member were among the items of business. Cheryl Martine was elected to a three-year term and Catherine Decker was presented as an interim member, filling the remaining year of Seeya Zheng’s term. The membership also elected Sheila Johns and Colleen Shetland to another three-year term each as their terms expired in July.
The 2018 slate of officers is as follows:
Sheila Johns, President
Nancy Carpenter, Vice President
Julia Elliott, Secretary
Margo Ketchum, Treasurer
It was announced that the Board is seeking names for consideration as nominees for future election. Any member of LANA may recommend a name for the Board’s consideration. Please contact a Board member with nominations.
Sheila gave a report on LANA’s lyre conference rhythm which rotates through a 3-year cycle including the international conference, a Movement for Musical Renewal conference (in the U.S.), and a lyre intensive (also in the U.S.). Margo gave a treasurer’s report on the financial health of LANA (please see LANA’s Annual Report for a full overview of the organization’s finances). There were also reports on the lyre rentals program, the LANA website, Lyre Notes, Soundings journal (with a reminder to LANA members that they have all been invited to choose a piece of lyre music as a replacement for Soundings this past year -- please contact Margo Ketchum if you have not yet chosen yours).
Margo Ketchum was excited to announce the introduction of LANA’s Online Music Sales Service. LANA is the first lyre association to offer such an online service! Using LANA’s music sales service, customers can pay online and have music shipped anywhere in the world.
At the closing of the AGM, Sheila relayed a message from Christof-Andreas Lindenberg. She said that he is concerned about the current deterioration of listening in our world and the ability to hear tone, saying that “we need to awaken the listening capacity in people around us.” He encourages everyone to “go out and play the lyre,” adding that “the lyre wafts the air of youth” (we become old but the lyre remains young). Please share this message!
