PGS AGM 2023

2. 1. The Year in Review
2. Interlude: The Graingers in White Plains
3. The Year Ahead
4. Q & A and Open Discussion
Please post questions, thoughts, contributions and ideas in the
chat during the presentation.
Introduction and Format of Meeting

3. Year in Review
The Percy Grainger Society

4. Communication
with Members
 of Note
 Blogs
 Journal

5. New for
2024
 Expanded
Review
Group
 News from
the Grainger
Museum
 News from
Members

7. Resources
 Expansion of content
 Redesign
 New Projects
 Location of manuscripts
 Word-List

8. 2009
Not in good
shape!
2023
Almost
like new!

9. Percy Grainger
and Free Music
‘Ihaveheardfreemusicinmyheadsince
Iwasaboyofelevenor twelve… it ismy
onlyimportant contributiontomusic.
’
Conservation
In 2021,thePercy Grainger Society applied for,
and wasawarded,aNYSCA/GHHN Conservation
Treatment Grant for theconservation of our Free
Musicmachine,GlidingTonesofWhistle,Noteson
Recorders.Theconservation project hasbrought
about astriking transformation through thecleaning
processand theplacing back of theelementsthat
had been removed and saved during thelong years
of storageon theupper f oor of thehouse.
In common with all of theFreeMusicmachines,
it incorporatesatwo-
part design,acontrol
mechanism and asound producing element.
Grainger drew on hisearly experiencesasa
recording artist with player pianosin thedesign
of many of themachines,using paper rollswith
slitsand holescut into them to play thevarious
instruments.Thesecomprised organ pipes,
harmonium reeds,simpleelectronicoscillators,and,
in thecaseof thismachine,two recorders,and a
slide,or swaneewhistle.Therecordersand whistle
would havebeen connected to avacuum cleaner
or hair dryer by meansof rubber tubes,which
provided thenecessary amount of air to producea
continuoussound.Asthepaper rollspassed over
theholesof therecorders,emulating thef ngersof
ahuman player,dif erent noteswould havebeen
produced.Thismadepossiblean approximation of
apitch glideastherecordersmay havebeen tuned
to realizefractional tones,smaller than thestandard
musical semitone.Theslidewhistle,theonly part of
themachineableto producecontinuously gliding
sounds,may havesimply been controlled by hand by
pulling and pushing themetal control lever.
It isunlikely that theGlidingToneson Whistle,Notes
on Recordersmachinewasparticularly successful,
asthetension required to ensurethat thepaper rolls
stayed suf ciently closeto thebody of therecorders
would havemeant that the paper wasliableto
tearing and uneven f ow,problemsthat Grainger
experienced in many of themachines.But it remains
afascinating testament to Grainger’sdogged pursuit
of hisvision of FreeMusic,encapsulating hismulti-
faceted character asvisionary composer,performer,
artist,designer and inventor.
Through closeexamination of thethreeperiod
photographsfrom the1950s,and with clues
drawn from Percy’sday-
bookswherehemadeshort
notesof hisexperiments,it waspossibleto identify
themissing components.A rolling pin,visually
matching theonein theperiod photograph,was
found in thekitchen. Therecorderswereidentif ed
asthosemadeby Arnold Dolmetsch,thenoted
English instrument maker with whom Grainger
collaborated in theediting of anumber of early
musiccompositionsin the1930sand 1940s.The
curiouscircular object at thesideof themachine
wasalso identif ed asaBlow-
a-
Tune,achild’stoy
madeby theAmerican toy manufacturer Kenner in
1949.Theseinstrumentshavebeen re-
introduced
into themachineto allow correct routing of the
paper rollsand to completetheimpression of how
themachinemay haveoperated.
GlidingTonesonWhistle,Noteson Recordersis
now on display on thef rst f oor of thePercy
Grainger Homeand Studio,thesamespaceswhere
Grainger created all hisfreemusicmachines.It is
arevealing illustration of histhought processes,
methodsof construction and creativity,and
providesinsight into Grainger’scontribution during
an important moment in thedevelopment of
electronicmusic.
TheconservationofGlidingTonesonWhistle,NotesonRecorders
wassupportedthroughtheNYSCA/GHHNConservationTreatment
Grant ProgramadministeredbyGreater HudsonHeritageNetwork.
ThisprogramismadepossiblebytheNewYorkStateCouncil onthe
Artswithsupport oftheOf ceoftheGovernor andtheNewYork
StateLegislature.
‘FreeMusicdemandsanon-
human
performance.Likemost truemusic,it isan
emotional,not acerebral,product andshould
passdirect fromtheimaginationofthe
composer totheear ofthelistener bywayof
delicatelycontrolledmusical machines.
’
Percy Grainger Society
7Cromwell Place
White Plains,NY10601
(914)281-
1610
percygrainger.org
GlidingTonesonWhistle,NotesonRecorders
(after conservation)
Kangaroo-
Pouchmachine,c.1952
GlidingTonesonWhistle,NotesonRecorders, (detail)

10. Members’ Meetings and Programs: 2022–2023
 Lincolnshire Posy Roundtable Rambles
 Grainger and Choral Music
 Volunteer Orientation
 Third-Sunday Tours
 The Jungle Book immersive reading

11. Membership and Programs Committee
Recruitment and Retention
Developing plans to spread the word of the Percy Grainger Society to:
 Professional and Trade Bodies
 College and Universities
 Music Associations, Societies, and Organizations
 Music Conventions and Conferences
Chair: Bill Garlette

12. Membership and Programs Committee
Programs
Continue to offer programs of value and worth to the members:
 The Grainger Journal
 Website Content
 Members’ Webinars
 2021–22: Lincolnshire Posy
 2023: Grainger and Choral Music
 2023–24: Grainger Reimagined
Chair: Bill Garlette

13. Membership and Programs Committee
Projects
Established Committees or Project Managers for:
 Grainger Music Repositories
Jennifer Martin
 Oral Histories Project
Dana Perna
 Music Conference Project Group
Marissa Kyser and Rebecca Weissman
Chair: Bill Garlette

14. July 9 2022 to July 8 2023
Income
Events $680
Membership $2,560
Donations $13,905
Total $17,145
Income and Grants
Grants
Won: NYSCA/MANY Partnership
Capacity Building ($5,000)
Awaiting outcome:
Preserve New York ($13,000)
In preparation:
NYSCA organization and capital

15. Strategic Planning
To read the complete Strategic Plan, go to www.percygrainger.org/the-society

16. The Graingers in White Plains
Interlude

18. The Year Ahead
The Percy Grainger Society

19. Third-Sunday Tour
2–4pm, Sunday 16 July
 Frederick Fennell Visits 7 Cromwell Place
With Rebecca Weissman

20. President’s Visit to White Plains: 12–18 September
 Book Launch
Friday 15 September
‘The Life and Times of Percy Aldridge Grainger:
Till Life Becomes Fire’ - Teresa Balough
 Free Music Exhibition Opening
2–4pm, Saturday 16 September
 Third-Sunday Tour
2–4pm, Sunday 17 September
Free Music Machine

21. Programs
 Reimagining Grainger
 Third-Sunday Tours
 Giving Tuesday
 Open House 2024

22. REIMAGINED
The Percy Grainger Society presents
three virtual meetings celebrating how Percy Grainger
has influ
e nced music beyond his time

23. Reimagining Grainger through Arrangement
Professor Chalon Ragsdale
Thursday, October 26, 4 pm (EDT) via Zoom
Reimagining Grainger through Performance
James Chirillo
Thursday, February 22, 2024, 4 pm (EST) via Zoom
Reimagining Grainger through Composition
TBA
Thursday, May 17, 2024, 4 pm (EDT) via Zoom

24. Upcoming Programs and Events
 Grainger Reimagined
 Third-Sunday Tours
 Giving Tuesday: 28 November 2023
 Open House: 14 April 2024

25. Getting Involved – Committees, Projects and Volunteering
 ????
 ????
 ????
 ????

26. Getting Involved – Board of Directors
 Finance
 Architecture/building conservation
 Institutional relations (education, archives, museums, civic)

27. Q & A and Discussion
The Percy Grainger Society