LANA Music Sales Report for July and August 2022

For the month of July, LANA had a total of 18 sales and free downloads for members and friends in Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Three music books were sold in the US, and there were 6 paid downloads of John Billing’s Scales book.  In addition, there were 3 free downloads for the US, the UK, and Canada.

We also had 4 LANA membership renewals – two each from the US and Brazil.

For the month of August, LANA had a total of 48 sales combined with free downloads to members and friends in the US, Canada, Switzerland, Korea, Japan, the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands.

Nine volumes of music and two books on music were sold to members and friends in the US in addition to two used books from the Kerry Lee Collection.  We had two paid music downloads for the US and Canada as well as 27 free music downloads for Korea, Japan, UK, US, Canada, Netherlands, Switzerland, Ireland.

We also had accessory sales of one tuning fork, one tuning wrench, and lyre strings in addition to two additional LANA membership renewals from the US.

Sally Willig, for LANA Music Sales

Seeking New Board Members

Dear Members and Friends,

LANA is looking for prospective Board members who are aligned with the mission of the lyre in our time as expressed in LANA’s mission statement:

The Lyre Association of North America is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is to initiate, to inspire, and to support the sounding of the lyre in artistic, pedagogical, and therapeutic activities in North America and throughout the world.

We are an active board, and members are asked to serve in various working groups as needed for the smooth running of our organization.

At present, the LANA Board working groups are organized by their connection to the designations of the Three-fold Social Order:

• Cultural Realm: Events (Conference, Study, and Workshops), Publications, and Outreach (Website, Blog)

• Economic Realm: Finance, Music Sales, and Lyre Rental program

• Rights Realm: Membership, Lyre Connection program, and Governance 

In addition, LANA has a Coordinating Circle that consists of the officers and rotating Board members. The Coordinating Circle sets the agenda for our monthly Board meetings and establishes priorities for the organization’s work.

Each Board member is elected for a term of three years. Participation in monthly Zoom conference calls constitutes the major part of our collegial work. Communication for committee work is additional.

At this time, we are in need of someone interested in helping us in the Membership Working Group. Experience with spreadsheets, database management, etc. would be a plus to communicate with members and support new lyre players, though these skills are not required. 

If you are interested in learning more about the LANA Board of Directors and would consider becoming a member of our Board – or if you would be interested in being a non-board member of the Membership Working Group – please contact me at nancycarpenter680@gmail.com.

Nancy Carpenter, President
Lyre Association of North America
www.lyreassociation.org

Board members – Top: Diane, Margo, Nancy. Middle: Julia, Colleen, Debbie. Bottom: Sheila & Sally.

90th Birthday Celebration Weekend for Christof-Andreas Lindenberg

Please join us for a weekend of choral and lyre music in celebration of Christof-Andreas Lindenberg’s 90th birthday! (Follow the link below for details and to register as a participant October 13-15, 2022.)

Read more: https://lyreassociation.org/events/90th-birthday-celebration-cal

Oct 15 Celebration for Christof-Andreas Lindenberg

Book Review: ''There is a Path: Music for Daily and Festival Occasions '' by Channa Seidenberg

There is a Path: Music for Daily and Festival Occasions* by Channa Seidenberg is an amazing collection of music – a true classic. There are 54 compositions within its 75 pages, which are suitable for general use as well as within Camphill Communities, Christian Communities, or Waldorf School settings. These compositions may be enjoyed by small or large ensembles of singers, lyre players, and other instrumentalists. We could describe the exquisite vocal melodies Channa has composed, lilting and uplifting to sing. Or we could think of some of the inspiring lyrics: “Angels down to me are bending, always with me, they are ever caring, tending.…”  for an infant at a christening. Or we could examine the beautiful instrumental accompaniments for the vocal melodies. All of these aspects are present in this collection in abundance.

In addition to songs for christenings, there is a range of other occasions for which these songs are meant to be used: lullabies, mealtimes, birthdays, and seasonal festivals.

Beyond such riches, there are lyre accompaniments to support the voice and enrich the sound in various rounds and three- and four-part choir pieces. There are also pieces for bell choir, even with an added part for glockenspiel!

Dies ist Die Nacht, a famous German poem from as far back as 1683, has been set to music many times, and in this collection, Channa has added hers. Then there is a memorable setting of the well-known O Magnum Mysterium, a Latin piece that has been set by several prominent composers and sung by choirs throughout the world. Such an illustrious history didn’t hold Channa back – she composed her own lovely setting for this as well.

Extending her attention to modern poetry, she composed music to serve as prelude, interludes, and postlude to T. S. Eliot’s verse play The Rock, which refers to Christ as the Cornerstone. She also includes pieces with vocal parts for poems by Angelus Silesius, Sara Teasdale, W. B. Yeats, a Native American song, and musical settings of verses from Rudolf Steiner’s Calendar of the Soul. Quite a range!

In addition to composing, Channa brought music to residents of Camphill Village USA in Copake, New York over many years. During that time, she formed choirs as well as the renowned Camphill Village Ensemble, which performed numerous times at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall.  Her collection of pieces in There is a Path represents just a fraction of the music she composed for these groups and for other community occasions over several decades.

There is a path into the heart of things,
There is a gate to truth;
In morning light the way seems clear;
On starry nights the way seems sure;
In deepest love the way is found…

Book review by Colleen Shetland, Marcellus, NY
*Windrose Publishing and Educational Services of Rose Harmony Association, Inc. 1995.

Is your Lyre in search of a Lyrist?

The Board of the Lyre Association of North America is very proud of our lyre rental program.  We recognize that finding and buying the lyre of your dreams can be an enormous commitment of time, money, and psychological energy.  In support of anyone who would like to play the lyre but isn’t ready to make that kind of investment, we have always made it one of our key member services to provide lyres to rent as a stepping stone to purchasing a forever instrument.

LANA offers a variety of beautiful rental lyres, built in European and American lyre workshops, and in varying sizes for beginners, seasoned players, and those working with young children.  Many of our lyres are available through our rent-to-buy program, and we make every effort to match the right lyre with the lyre player.  Monthly fees for lyre rentals range from $25 to $35 per month, with the option to rent for two years before committing to purchase.  A bonus to renting through our program is enrollment in the Lyre Connection program, which matches beginners with volunteer mentors!

Would you like to help new lyre players begin their journey with a rental instrument?  Do you have a lyre that has been sitting in the back of a closet or one just not being played that is in need of a lyrist to bring it back to life?  We would warmly welcome your donation of such an instrument and would be happy to restore your lyre to good condition for use by a new lyre player.  Through our rental program, your lyre will bring joy to players for years to come.

We are also glad to advertise used lyres for sale by LANA members through our website and our blog.  We can help assess your instrument and offer suggestions for a sale price, and we will list it until it is sold.  This is a great way to reach out to the lyre community with your used lyre!

Please contact Julia Elliott at juliabelliott@gmail.com or (978) 352-5581 to donate or to sell a lyre. 

Thank you,
Julia Elliott (for the Lyre Rentals Committee)

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Regional Workshop in Wisconsin

The Rafael Foundation for New Impulses in Music presented a workshop featuring Veronika Roemer in Pewaukee, Wisconsin on August 6-8.

The workshop took place in a local church with a spacious room large enough for 16-20 people to work along with a table full of resources for the participants, and another three long tables where a variety of instruments were displayed.

On Friday evening, Veronika led the group through singing and interactive work with gongs, metal rods, and Bordun lyres. On Saturday morning, the group was introduced to the children’s lyre, which was followed by Gail Sauter’s presentation of her story, ‘Little Lyre, Sing to Me’. 

On Saturday afternoon, Veronika introduced us to wooden rhythm instruments and finally to the metal instruments. We worked together throughout the weekend to improvise and create soundscapes with all these beautiful instruments. 

This valuable and engaging workshop concluded with Veronika performing on the solo chromatic lyre and then Veronika and Debbie Barford offering Colin Tanser’s duet, Sun Child.

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NEW – Free Download of Lyre Music from John Clark

We are pleased to be able to include with this blog post a free download of music composed by John Clark from Northern Ireland. He has added the following note about this lovely piece entitled "The School of Life". Thank you, John!

"The School of Life" was composed for a Christian Community confirmation for the school Youth Service, but it could also be played as a birthday greeting. The top part can be played by beginners and the bass part for slightly more advanced players. A metronome marking of 72 would be the slowest it should go, but it could be a little faster – perhaps as much as 90.

With best wishes,
John C

The School of Life can be found in the LANA STORE under PDF Downloads (https://lyreassociation.org/pdf-downloads/clark-john-school-of-life)

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