The
Society of Recorder
Players, Beds. &
The Society
of Recorder Players (or
SRP for short), founded
in 1937, is a Registered Charity (numbers 282751 and SC038422) which
aims to promote the recorder and its
music.
There are over
fifty branches of the SRP
covering various areas of the
Although our
main catchment
area consists of Bedfordshire and the part of Hertfordshire from
| 7 Dec 2013 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 25 Jan 2014 | Hitchin |
| 15 Feb 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 1 Mar 2014 | Hitchin |
| 15 Mar 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe)
Playing Day with Pam Smith 10:30 - 17:00 (times to be confirmed) |
| 5 Apr 2014 | Hitchin |
| 10 May 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 31 May 2014 | Hitchin |
| 21 Jun 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 5 Jul 2014 | Hitchin |
| 26 Jul 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 20 Sep 2014 | Hitchin |
| 4 Oct 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
| 1 Nov 2014 | Hitchin |
| 6 Dec 2014 | Bedford (Putnoe) |
Meeting
times are 2:00 pm until 5:00 pm unless stated otherwise.
Please check later for any updates.
Hitchin meetings
are currently held at Walsworth
Road Baptist Church Hall (SG4 9SP), which is by
the roundabout at the junction of
How much will it cost?
Unlike many
branches, we make no charge at
all for your first meeting; you are welcomed as a guest to see how you
get on.
Thereafter, the cost depends on whether or not you become a member, but
in
either case our policy is to keep the charges as low as possible.
As a member, you would pay an annual subscription which is renewable in the autumn. This brings you the professionally-produced quarterly magazine, The Recorder, and various other benefits. Annual membership for 2013/14 is £44.50 for an adult or £66.50 for a household. Alternatively, for those who are unable to attend more than around half the meetings, there is the option of paying a reduced annual subscription of £33.50, plus a fee of £2 for each meeting you attend. The latter helps cover the cost of room hire, refreshments, music and other expenses. Student discounts are available.
Coffee, tea, squash and biscuits (even cakes on special
occasions) are provided during the interval; there is an "honesty box"
with a suggested donation of 30p per member for refreshments.
As a non-member, you pay only a fee at each meeting you attend, but this is higher than that for members as we would not receive a contribution from a subscription. Non-members do not receive the magazine etc.
Who
is it for?
At the moment,
unfortunately, we don’t have
the facilities to cope with beginners – though we may be able
to help by
suggesting a teacher for you. However if you can play the basic notes,
read music,
and sight-read to a basic level, then why not come along and see how
you get
on? Players from intermediate standard upwards will almost certainly
find
something to suit them, as we try to have a good mix of music from the
renaissance through to contemporary pieces at each meeting.
An associated
group, the Peregrine Recorder Orchestra, is always on the
lookout for competent,
reliable players and meets
fortnightly in Ickwell,
near Biggleswade,
in rural Bedfordshire. The PRO is dedicated to raising money for other
charities, and gives around three concerts per year as well as making
occasional school visits.
What
do we bring?
Any sizes of
recorder which you play, and a
music stand if you have one.
Other
help needed?
We will try to answer any questions you have concerning the recorder, or put you in touch with someone else who can help. However, please remember that all the Branch Officers are doing this unpaid in their "spare" time, so the answers may not be instantaneous!
| Recorder teachers If you are a recorder teacher taking private pupils and based in Bedfordshire, North Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire or the Milton Keynes area, please email us your details - we often get enquiries, and can then put prospective students in touch with you! |
Access
for the disabled
Both our normal venues now
have ramp/level
access and toilet facilities for the disabled. However please check
just prior to Hitchin meetings as, just occasionally, we may have to
use the upper hall which does not have such access.
Parking
At Bedford(Putnoe) the few spaces in front of the church are now reserved for disabled drivers, but there is a small car park at the rear accessed via a driveway down the righthand side of the church. This should be adequate for us unless the large hall or the church itself is in use, in which case you can park on the road (no restrictions, but please park thoughtfully as there are many driveways and bends) or use the public car park a little way along the road. This is limited to 4 hours, but is free.
At Hitchin there should be enough parking spaces for us on site; but just in case there is no space there, drive up Highbury Road and take the second left, The Avenue. Parking here, within a couple of minutes walk, is free and unrestricted on Saturdays. In the last resort, there is a public car park just along Walsworth Road in the other direction (towards the town centre), at Woodside (the Queen Mother Theatre), but it will cost you around £2 for up to 3 hours or £3.50 for longer. Please DO NOT use the Hitchin Youth Trust car park which is just to the right of the church.
Contact
us
Our Hon. Secretary can be contacted at bedsnherts@srp.org.uk
To
return to the realmusic
homepage, for information on
¨ The Bedford Waits
(Medieval &
Renaissance musicians)
¨ Peregrine Recorder
Orchestra
¨ Hitchin Symphony
Orchestra
click here: http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/realmusic/index.htm
Website updated 11/11/13
