Editorial
Last year a number of people offered to run or help with future forum events. If you haven’t heard from the committee yet, you probably will soon. Thank you very much for your offers, and particular thanks to Judith Hughes who ran the Striggio event at Waltham Abbey which I hear was a great success. Next year the Waltham Abbey joint event will be a Gabrieli programme centred around the Magnificat a 33, organised by EEMF, but we haven’t got a date from Philip yet. Do let me know if you have ideas for an event or would like to help to organise one.

We are trying to sort out our autumn events at the moment, but as usual the problem is to find a tutor and suitable venue on the same day. You will see that I didn’t manage to get the lovely large hall at Amersham Community Centre for this year’s Christmas event although I tried to book it soon after last Christmas, so I have already booked it for next year! One event we are planning this year is a day with Alan Lumsden, probably on a day during the first two weekends of October, and one of his ideas is a workshop on large scale settings of the same texts by different renaissance composers, similar to the day which MEMF are holding in July. I would be interested to know if people would be put off coming to such an event because they are already going to the MEMF event, or conversely would be pleased that they don’t need to travel as far as Warwick. We would not, in any case, need to do all the same works as MEMF. Other events in the pipeline for next year include Bach motets with Philip Thorby and a medieval day organised by Jim Wills, tutor yet to be decided.
Victoria Helby

Chairman’s Chat
From where I was standing, the Sheppard workshop seemed to go pretty well, as we made a good attempt at the monumental Media Vita together with a few shorter pieces. There was perhaps a more than usual post-lunch slump but David Allinson managed to inspire and amuse us as always, in spite of a sore throat, so the final run-through was really memorable. The Dutch Church was as welcoming as ever, and its temperature was particularly pleasant in contrast to the excessive heat outside. It was a football-free zone and no metatarsals were damaged even during the warm-up.

Next month we have another in the successful series of masses with Michael Procter in St Augustine's, Kilburn. I gather the church is newly refurbished and structurally rather sounder than it was, while the acoustics are as good as ever.
David Fletcher

Letter to the Editor
I thought this Early Day Motion tabled by Tony Baldry, MP, might be of interest (and relevant) to members, it reads:

EDM 1827 PIPE ORGANS 16.03.2006

'That this House is concerned at the threat to church pipe organs from the EU Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances which will ban the use of lead in pipe organs and as from July will make it illegal to build new organ pipes or to move old ones from one church to another unless they are blown by hand; believes that such a ban will have a serious impact on England's cultural and liturgical life and will mean an end to English organ building; and calls on the Government to negotiate with the European Commission to find a way to protect traditional pipe organs for cathedrals, concert halls, colleges and churches.

Further details at: http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=30301&SESSION=875

By the way, I thought the Waltham Abbey event was excellent, very educational, enjoyable, great place to play etc.
Kate Gordon