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Choir Constitution
DALESMEN CONSTITUTION
CONSTITUTION THE CHOIR 1.1 The Choir shall be called “The Dalesmen Male Voice Choir”. 1.2 It shall be non-political and non-sectarian. OBJECTIVES 2.1 The study and practice of Choral music in order to foster public knowledge and appreciation of such music by means of public performance. 2.2 To assist and support such charitable institutions or purposes as the Committee shall from time to time determine. OFFICERS 3.1 The Officers of the Choir shall consist of Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Concert Sec. COMMITTEE 4.1 Management of the Choir shall be conducted by the Committee, consisting of Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Concert Secretary, Concert Manager, Press and Publicity Officer, Assistant Secretary, plus four (4) members representing the voice sections of the Choir (one from each section). 4.2 A Vice Chairman shall be elected by the committee from amongst themselves. ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE 5.1 The Officers and Committee of the Choir shall be elected by a majority of the members voting, by ballot if necessary, at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). 5.2 Any member filling such a position must have at least one year`s membership of the Choir. 5.2a If an Officer has to relinquish his/her position through unforeseen circumstances a suitable replacement must be sought as soon as possible. Should this require an appointment to be made of a member who has not served in the choir for twelve months duration, normally required prior to appointment as an officer, in such an instance, and subject to unanimous Committee approval rule 5.2 may be waived following a Special General Meeting of the choir membership and their majority approval. 5.3 Nominations for the above must be submitted, in writing, to the Secretary, two (2) clear weeks before the AGM. 5.4 Members will be given three (3) week’s notice of the date of the AGM. The AGM will be on a date, some-time between the end of the financial year and the December break. 5.5 Members not present when notice of the AGM is given will be notified in writing. 5.6 Members attending the AGM will constitute a quorum. 5.7 The Committee will normally meet once a month on a date to be decided by it. 5.8 The overall function of the Committee is to facilitate and support the musical aspirations of the Choir and to ensure that administrative procedures are smooth and efficient. 5.9 A quorum shall be formed by three (3) members of the Committee (including any two of Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer & Assistant Sec.) or one third of the total number of the Committee, whichever is the greater. 5.10 The Committee will have the power to co-opt others to serve on the Committee and to appoint sub-Committees to deal with specific matters. 5.11 The Chairman will not vote unless a casting vote is required to end a “deadlock”. 5.12 The President will be welcome at Committee meetings but will not have a vote. OFFICERS – MUSICAL 6.1 Will consist of Musical Director, Deputy MD and Accompanist(s). 6.2 Their appointments will be confirmed on an annual basis at the AGM. 6.3 They will direct and advise on all musical matters pertaining to the Choir. 6.4 They will be invited to attend Committee Meetings but will have no voting rights. MEMBERSHIP 7.1 Any male over 16 years of age is eligible to join the Choir, subject to a three (3) month probationary period. During this period he will; a) Be placed under the supervision of a suitably experienced member in his voice part. b) Be required to attend all practices (illness or prior accepted reasons apart). c) Not appear on stage at concerts. d) Be expected to attend concerts to gain experience of Choir style. e) Be made aware of the musical aspirations and social activities of the Choir. f) Be required to commit himself to the Choir to as full an extent as he possibly can, in respect of all activities. g) Be allocated a Choir number and will be required to sign the book held by the Secretary, signifying that he agrees to the rules laid down in the Constitution. 7.2 On satisfactory completion of this probationary period he will be formally invited to join the Choir by the Musical Director. 7.3 Notwithstanding anything stated above, the Musical Director will have overriding authority to recommend that the probationary period should be shortened, if he believes that it is right to do so. 7.4 Any former member of the Choir who Wishes to re-join the Choir, should apply in writing to the Committee. DISCIPLINE 8.1 For good and sufficient reason the membership of any individual may be terminated by the decision of the Committee, provided that the individual shall have the right to be heard by the said Committee, before the decision is made final. FINANCE 9.1 All financial matters will be subject to ratification by the Committee, with all matters of capital expenditure being subject to general membership endorsement. 9.2 Membership subscriptions will be reviewed annually by the Committee and any changes submitted to the AGM. 9.3 The Committee will be the final arbiters in all matters concerned with sponsorship. 9.4 Disposal of concert revenue will be at the discretion of the Committee and only in furtherance of the Choir`s objectives. 9.5 The Treasurer will ensure that independently examined accounts are available at the AGM and other financial statements as requested by the Committee. 9.6 The independent examiner shall be appointed annually at the AGM. 9.7 The financial year of the Choir shall terminate on 31st August. The financial position shall be reviewed monthly by the Committee. 9.8 Reasonable out of pocket expenses incurred by members on the authorised business of the Choir will be reimbursed at the discretion of the Committee. An additional allowance may be made for the Musical Director and Accompanist, for rehearsals. 9.9 Bank account(s) shall be maintained in the name of the Choir and operated under the signatures of any two from Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer. 9.10 When a payment is made by BACS the Treasurer shall produce a form headed "Authorisation for payment by BACS" giving all relevant details to enable payment. The form must be signed by any two from Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer. MUSIC 10.1 All music is the property of the Choir and must not be sold or loaned without sanction from the Committee. No music may be borrowed by a member, for any purpose, without permission of the Librarian. 10.2 The choice of music shall be in the hands of the Musical Director who should have in mind that programmes should be balanced in content and should consist of traditional male voice music, show music and more modern pieces that may be available in four or two part harmony. He will be responsible for programme selection for concerts. 10.3 Before a batch of sheet music is ordered, a Musical Director`s copy should be obtained, so that the piece can be judged, by the Musical Director, for suitability. 10.4 No bulk purchase of music shall be made without the authorisation of the Committee. GENERAL 11.1 A Special General Meeting (SGM) may be called at any time at the request of at least twenty (20) members, to discuss matters of importance or urgency. Members must be given at least three (3) week’s notice of an SGM. Members not present when such notice is given will be notified in writing. Attending members will constitute a quorum. 11.2 A copy of this Constitution shall be supplied to each member. 11.3 The rules of the Choir, laid out in the Constitution, shall only be altered at the AGM or at an SGM, duly called. No alteration shall be made to the rules that would cause the Choir, at any time, to cease to be a charity at law and no alteration shall be made to rule 2.1, 2.2, 11.3 or 11.4 without prior written approval of the Charity Commission. 11.4 If, upon the winding-up or dissolution of the Choir, there remains any property whatsoever, after the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities, the same shall not be distributed among the members of the Choir but shall be given or transferred to some charitable institution(s), having objectives similar to the objectives of the Choir. Such institution(s) shall be determined by the members of the Choir, at or before the time of dissolution and, in so far as effect cannot be given to such provision, then to some charitable object. 11.5 Any Committee member missing more than two (2) consecutive meetings shall be deemed to have resigned from the committee unless reasons acceptable to the Chairman have been given in writing. 11.6 All committee members shall make themselves conversant with the guidelines of the Charity Commissioners regarding required behaviour of the Committee and its members. Constitution as Ratified at the AGM of the Choir October 27th 2014 and amended at SGM 6th July 2015 Amendment 1 :- Clause 5.2a added |
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