The British Music Society was first set up in 1918 by Arthur Eaglefield Hull to "advance the cause of British music at home and abroad".'A New Musical Society', in The Musical Times, Vol. 59, No. 906 (August 1918), p. 351 Its address was 19 Berners Street in London. The supporting committee included influential names such as Adrian Boult, W. W. Cobbett, E. J. Dent, E. H. Fellowes and George Bernard Shaw.Karen Arrandale. Edward J Dent: A Life of Words and Music (2023), pp. 269-71 The Society put on concerts and talks, set out to establish a catalogue of British music, and published a regular bulletin.A. Eaglefield Hull. ' A Few Words about the British Music Society', in The Musical Times, 1 February 1919, p. 71

Elgar's Violin Sonata in E minor was first performed on 13 March 1919 at a semi-public meeting of the Society, performed by W. H. Reed with Anthony Bernard on piano.Howard Smith. Notes to Signum Classics CD SIGCD376 (1993) The first performance (in its orchestral version) of The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams was presented at a BMS concert in the Queen's Hall on 14 June 1921, with Marie Hall (soloist) and the British Symphony Orchestra conducted by Adrian Boult.'British Music Society: An Unknown Programme', in The Times, 15 June 1921, p. 8

But the Society lapsed in 1928 after Eaglefield-Hull's death.Jürgen Schaarwächter. Two Centuries of British Symphonism (2015), p. 471 By 1933 it had been dissolved, claiming it had fulfilled its original objectives of promoting British music and improving the standard of music and musical awareness in Britain.History of BMS York

Several local branches were established in the UK, such as the Todmorden Clef Club set up by Ronald Cunliffe in June 1920,'Proposed Music Club for Todmoden', Todmorden Advertiser and Hebden Bridge Newsletter, 11 June, 2020, p.3 and around the world, including one in Bangalore and one in Melbourne.Sarah Kirby. The British (and International?) Music Society: Australian Identity and Musical Internationalism in Interwar Sydney, Cambridge University Press (2024) The British Music Society of York was also an offshoot of the original BMS, and continues to operate today under that name.BMS York website

The British Music Society as it is today was revived in 1979 and granted charitable status in 1995. It promotes and sponsors recordings (via its own original label and a more recent partnership with the Naxos record label) and issues printed publications, including a newsletter and the annual British Music Journal. There is also a biennial BMS Awards competition. The Society has around 600 members.British Music Society website

See also Society of British Musicians

References

External links British Music Society Website British Music Society of York