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Important information for AMC members and supporters

AMC logo

AMC Board announcement

13 May 2010

Following the changes to the AMC’s constitution being ratified by the membership at the Extraordinary General Meeting on 24 February, the APRA Board has made appointments of the Directors who will serve on the AMC’s Board. They are: Nigel Westlake, Mike Perjanik, Brett Cottle, and Chris Gardoll. For more information about the Directors, please see the AMC Board of Directors subpage.

The proposed Advisory Committee is in the process of being constructed, and an announcement on this will be made shortly.

AMC members have recently received notification of the Annual General Meeting, taking place at the AMC on Wednesday 26 May at 6.00pm.

Update on AMC operations

13 May 2010

As previously reported, following the organisational restructure in January, the AMC’s retail operations have undergone a significant change in 2010, exploiting the functionality that the online system provides.

Major suppliers of Australian music products, including scores and recordings, have signed up to have their catalogues available on the AMC website, and orders delivered to the customer directly from the supplier. The entire catalogues of Tall Poppies, Jade CDs and Move Records are now available, along with the complete catalogue of Publications by Wirripang. Further suppliers will be added to this list as the year unfolds.

The technical development of the website continues, and recent development focus has been on finance and royalty management. Digital Library Loans for AMC members are next, and we expect to have these ready around the middle of the year.


------ previous updates ------

Ringing the changes

26 February 2010

At the AMC’s Extraordinary General Meeting this week, the proposed revisions to the constitution were approved by an overwhelming majority of the ballots cast by AMC members.

The changes result in a new relationship being entered into between the AMC and APRA, and provide for the AMC to continue delivering services to document and promote Australian music through its online facility, launched in 2009. This new relationship with APRA enables the AMC to continue to receive its core funding from the Music Board of the Australia Council, and deliver its services in a viable and sustainable way. 

Outgoing AMC Chair Barry Conyngham said:
'It has been a difficult and even traumatic few months for the Staff and Board of the AMC. Even the likelihood of shutting the doors got very close. As it turned out we have only had to shut the door on the past way of providing our important services. A new and promising door has opened. From now on the AMC will be significantly assisted by APRA in fulfilling and developing its crucial role for Australian Music.'

APRA CEO Brett Cottle said:
'APRA greatly values the work of the AMC and is committed to supporting and expanding the work it undertakes on behalf of Australian composers. We see our role over the next few years as providing the stability and business guidance needed to secure the Centre's long-term stability and maximise the benefits for composers of its ground-breaking technology work. We look forward to working closely with John and the AMC staff.'

 

AMC update from John Davis

26 February 2010

The AMC is currently undergoing a significant restructure, brought about by financial constraints in 2010, which sees staffing being reduced, and more reliance being placed on the online system, and the work efficiencies that it provides.

Whilst there are some changes that will be immediately evident, many members will not be aware of any change. Our retail activities are shifting, taking into account the AMC’s core focus of documenting Australian music, and making available for sale those materials in the AMC collection that are not available from any other source. We are entering into new arrangements with producers and suppliers of products to enable the AMC to continue retailing their products, taking advantage of the online system. Move Records, Tall Poppies, and Wirripang Publications are amongst those involved in the new arrangements, and we hope to see this expand as the year unfolds.

Our capacity to maintain Resonate magazine at the same levels as in 2009 will be limited in 2010, and whilst there will continue to be feature articles and blogs, and calendar and opportunities listings, we are forced to temporarily suspend reviews of live performances, and the Resonate Journal in 2010. We hope to rebuild this capacity in 2011 and beyond, recognising the important contribution that such documentation makes to the scene.

As a result of the restructure in February we saw the departure of AMC staff members Rob Laurie, Meghan Fitzgerald, and Maria Rivera. These staff members represented a total of more than 30 years accumulated service to AMC – Rob 17.25 years, Meghan 9.5 years, and Maria 3.5 years, and we thank them for their dedication to the organisation, and wish them well in their future endeavours. We also said goodbye to our Financial Controller Rachel Hadfield, who leaves to extend her family, and we again thank her for her calm guidance through a period of some difficulty.

We will miss them greatly, not only for the accumulated knowledge and experience that they provided the AMC through their work, but also for the distinctive personalities that they brought to the working environment here at the AMC. As many AMC members will know, the AMC team has always been made up of special people, who have a strong commitment not only to the organisation and what it stands for, to the members, and to AMC’s diverse constituents. The AMC staff also have maintained a strong commitment to each other, and this has always been an important part of the spirit of the organisation. The strong relationships that former AMC staff maintain with the organisation are testament to this. And this spirit lives on in the current team.

There is much on the immediate horizon to be optimistic about in regard to the new relationship with APRA, and unfolding in 2010 will be some significant developments, already underway. Stay tuned to hear about digital library loans, and about a dramatically enhanced digital download facility for e-scores, e-books, and audio files. There is much that has been planned that will come to fruition during 2010, and we invite AMC members to continue this exciting journey with us.

John Davis
CEO

The Australian Music Centre - a new future

22 December 2009

Barry Conyngham (Chair, AMC Board) and John Davis (CEO) outline future plans for the continued delivery of the AMC’s services in 2010 through a new relationship with APRA, supported by the Australia Council.

We write to inform you of some important matters relating to the AMC and its future.

2009 has been a significant year in the AMC’s 35-year history, particularly with the launch of our new interactive and multi-dimensional website. Since the launch, traffic has increased significantly, now averaging more than 1,000 unique visitors per day.

If you have looked at the website in any detail you will be aware of what it means for composers and sound artists, for performers, educators, and music lovers, and what it means for the performance and promotion of Australian music.

The site truly breaks sound barriers, and there is still more to come. In the coming months, digital library lending, and far more extensive digital downloads of scores and audio files will become available.

The AMC’s internal development of the website has demanded much planning, resources, and expense. The development would not have been possible without the support of the Australia Council, APRA, and funding via an ARC grant. It has also involved the AMC taking substantial loans with both the Australia Council and with APRA, predicated on the increased activity and revenue that such a site will undoubtedly bring in time.

The site's launch has come, however, at a time of caution and economic uncertainty. The rate of increase in membership and in other revenue-generating activity has been less than anticipated. Thus, the Centre has been facing significant cash-flow problems as it continues with the significant and ongoing task of populating the database and realising all the functional capabilities of the site.

This situation has placed the future of the AMC itself in jeopardy, by placing enormous pressure on its resources.

We have been in close communication since September with our core funders, the Music Board of the Australia Council, and more recently, have been in detailed negotiations with them, and with APRA, in order to establish a viable way forward for the AMC into 2010 and beyond. These negotiations have this week been completed, and in early 2010, the AMC Board will seek the approval of the AMC’s members to effect a constitutional change that will secure the AMC, and the services it delivers, through a new relationship with APRA, supported by the Australia Council.

Full details of this proposed change will be provided to all members in January ahead of an Extraordinary General Meeting in February where a formal vote will be taken.

The AMC’s Board and staff are fully committed to this new relationship with APRA. Along with exploiting the obvious synergies between the two organisations, the new relationship ensures that the documentation, dissemination and promotion of Australian composers, sound artists, and their work, will continue with an increased level of stability and security. It offers exciting possibilities, and the potential to fully exploit the virtual repository model that AMC’s online services deliver.

 

Barry Conyngham, Chair
John Davis, CEO