Rodewald Concert Society

The Rodewald Concert Society (RCS) is a promoter of musical education and chamber music in Liverpool City Region. It was established in 1911 as the Rodewald Concert Club, in memory of Alfred Edward Rodewald, an amateur conductor in Liverpool. It is the second oldest chamber music society in the UK. It changed its name to the Rodewald Concert Society in 1916. Its founding chairman was Ernest Bryson, a composer. Its first Honorary President was Sir Charles Villiers Stanford. The first concert was given by the Rawdon-Briggs String Quartet at the Carlton Restaurant on 16 October 1911.

Education
Education has been a part of Rodewald Concert Society (RCS) activities from its inception. Alfred Edward Rodewald, the Society's dedicatee, was known for his public lectures on music. At the inaugural meeting, lectures on musical subjects, as well as concerts, were envisaged. The second event of the society was a lecture-recital given by baritone, Harry Plunket Greene. The first Rules only specified that chamber music concerts were to be given “under informal and social conditions”. Education was not specifically included as part of the Object of the Society in its Rules until 1955, when the Rule on Dissolution was also expanded in more detail. These changes were linked to the avoidance of tax on a legacy.

The most significant educational development was the introduction of exceptionally cheap seats for students, which were marketed through schools in 1944 and attracted significant support. There have been only two specific educational projects since then: regular Play Days for amateur ensembles with professional tuition, and financial support for various projects at the University of Liverpool in Session 2016-17.

Artists
At first, concerts were given by local musicians, usually the Rawdon-Briggs String Quartet, then principals of the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, who were succeeded by the Catterall Quartet and, later, by the original Brodsky Quartet from Manchester. Since the 1930s, the Society has brought internationally famous chamber music ensembles to Liverpool, including such as: the Léner, Prague, Griller, Hungarian, Amadeus, Camilleri, Janáček, Smetena, Melos, Borodin, new Brodsky, Škampa, Belcea and Pavel Haas String Quartets. Other chamber groups have included the Robert Masters Piano Quartet, Melos Ensemble, Beaux Arts Trio, and the Florestan Trio. Recitalists have included: Harriet Cohen, Albert Sammons, Dennis Brain, Yfrah Neaman, Stephen Hough, Ian Bostridge, Radu Lupu, Midori, Andreas Scholl, Tasmin Little, Wolfgang Holzmair, Mark Padmore, Paul Lewis, and Nikolai Demidenko.

Commissions
The Society has a record of commissioning new works, made possible through grant aid. The first commission was from Judith Weir, in partnership with the South East Arts Association, to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the RLPS, and the Endellion Quartet as Quartet-in-Residence for the South East Arts Association. To assist with commissioning, a special fund-raising scheme was set up, known as 'Sounds Creative'. The second commission was for a Clarinet Quintet from Hugh Wood, to celebrate Liverpool as European Capital of Culture in 2008. Two commissions were made in 2012 to celebrate the Society's Centenary, a Horn Quintet from John McCabe, its President, and a Clarinet Quintet from Emily Howard. Professor Emily Howard, from Wirral, is now recognised as one of the UK's most significant composers. In 2014 Ian Stephens, also from Wirral, was commissioned to compose an Oboe Quintet in memory of two former committee members who were brilliant amateur oboists.

Notable founders

 * Robert Ernest Bryson (1867-1942), Cotton merchant, organist and composer
 * Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924), Composer and Professor of Music at Cambridge and the Royal College of Music
 * Harry Plunket Greene (1865-1936), Bass-baritone, long-standing friend of Rodewald, who gave lecture-recitals to the Society

Honorary Presidents

 * Sir Charles Villiers Stanford 1911-1924
 * Ernest Bryson 1926-1942
 * Sir Thomas Beecham 1944-1961
 * Sir Adrian Boult 1961-1983
 * Walter Weller 1983-?
 * John McCabe (composer) 2008-2015