LANA's Annual Members’ Meeting
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The Annual Members’ Meeting of the Lyre Association of North America convened on Sunday, July 30th at 4:15 p.m. at the Hawthorne Valley School in Ghent, NY. The meeting served as the opening to our four-day summer lyre conference and provided an opportunity for LANA members and friends to learn about the work of the LANA Board over the past year. The meeting was held in a hybrid form (both in-person and on zoom), with several LANA members joining remotely and 20 others attending in person.
For the last three years, the Lyre Association Board has operated out of a three-fold model that honors the multi-faceted nature of its work. As an organizing structure, we identify three “realms” (Cultural, Economic, and Rights), and within each of these realms, there are three working groups, each overseen by one Board member, who works closely with the other members of their realm. During the course of the Annual Members Meeting, all of the LANA Board members addressed their specific work areas and noted the past year’s accomplishments.
During the 2022-23 fiscal year, the work of the Cultural Realm was overseen by Sheila Johns, with Debbie Barford and Colleen Shetland. At the Annual Members Meeting, Sheila reported on LANA publications, including the next issue of the Soundings journal and an upcoming book by Reinhild Brass titled The Pedagogy of Listening, which has been translated from German. Debbie, who oversees the website and blog, noted that the blog is used to update information on music sales, lyre rentals, and events. She also pointed LANA members to the new Instagram account that will be a powerful platform for spreading the word and making connections in the broader community. Colleen spoke of LANA-sponsored events, including regional workshops in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and LANA’s support of the international lyre conference in the Czech Republic.
Following the Cultural Realm, members of the Economic Realm (Margo Ketchum, Sally Willig, and Julia Elliott) offered a review of their work during the past year. Margo referenced the financial report for the fiscal year (see page 4 of our Annual Report) and underscored the overall financial health of the organization. Sally reported on her work with the online music store, highlighting the store’s 1,000th sale since going online in 2018, and noting that there had been 255 pieces of music sold (or downloaded for free) to customers in 19 countries in 2022-23. Julia, who works with the lyre rental program, reported that LANA’s rent-to-buy program offered LANA members a unique opportunity to try out instruments before purchase.
The Rights Realm, supported by Nancy Carpenter and Sarah Stosiek, oversees LANA membership and governance. Sarah reported that membership had increased this year (with 25 new members) and that the Rights Realm has been working on a new calendar-year membership renewal system that will streamline its work. Beginning in 2024, all LANA memberships will renew on January 15th of each year, and a member survey soliciting feedback will be sent out at that time as well. Nancy mentioned the Lyre Connection mentoring program, saying that 10 members had availed themselves of this member service during the previous year. In her role as LANA president, Nancy reported that the Board had held its Annual Directors Meeting on Saturday, July 29, 2023 and that the three-year Board terms had been renewed for Debbie Barford, Margo Ketchum, and Nancy Carpenter, while the current officers had all agreed to remain in their positions for the 2023-24 fiscal year.
After the Board members had concluded their reports, Nancy Carpenter welcomed regional updates from all gathered. Stories from California, Oregon, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, and South America highlighted the joyful and important ways in which the lyre drew us together during the last year. At the conclusion of the meeting, Christof-Andreas Lindenberg left the group with this thought: “We know that the lyre is actually the instrument of the future. Any great effort that is made to bring the lyre forward – to bring the lyre into the focus of present-day musicians – would be an unbelievable deed. And you are doing it!”