ABOUT
THE NCEM
Welcome to the National Centre for Early Music (NCEM). The NCEM is based in the medieval, Grade I listed, converted church of St Margaret’s which stands in the heart of the City of York in an attractive and spacious church garden. It was converted in 2000 thanks to a National Lottery grant, which transformed the building into a stunning setting for concerts. We are an accessible, flexible and intimate music venue that seats audiences of up to 180.
Our aim is to involve as wide a range of people as possible in the pleasure, enrichment and inspiration that music and music-making can offer, and we promote NCEM as a national and international exemplar of the highest possible standards of creative practice, artistic performance and public engagement.
Our Mission is to:
- Promote NCEM York as a national and international exemplar of the highest possible standards of creative practice, artistic performance and public engagement;
- Engage with a culturally diverse artistic base in order to run a season of varied and inspiring performances across a wide range of musical genres;
- Offer flagship festivals celebrating early music in particular;
- Strive constantly to widen our audience base through innovative engagement activities and creative evolution of our digital channels;
- Enhance the wellbeing of individuals and communities through music;
- Share understanding and enjoyment of all forms of music, and early music in particular, through exemplary learning and participation activities that tackle historic and systemic inequities in creative ways;
- Inspire young people to study, perform and enjoy music;
- Support career access and progression at all levels and in all spheres of music-making and artistic management, with a special focus on performers specialising in early music;
- Continue to build a network of local, regional, national and international partners who share our values, offering them support, inspiration and leadership;
- Ensure that St Margaret's continues to be a source of joy for future generations.
All our work is guided through our core values which are: welcoming, excellence, integrity, authenticity, quality and ambition.
As an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation 2023-2026, the NCEM is committed to delivering the Arts Council's Investment Principles of Inclusivity & Relevance, Ambition & Quality, Environmental Responsibility, and Dynamism. Our ambitions over the three year funding period (2023-2026) are:
Inclusivity & Relevance
To engage with diverse artists in a range of genres reflecting the diversity of our community, developing an inclusive mindset within our teams in order to welcome people from a wider range of backgrounds to the NCEM. Success will be a wider range of voices involved and engaged in our work.
Ambition & Quality
To develop a cycle around our established evaluation process; setting ambitions, interrogating results and building outcomes into planning. To engage with new audiences by understanding perceptions from those outside our community. Success will be a planning cycle and plans developing new audiences.
Environmental Responsibility
To better understand our data and share our carbon-reduction intentions across the NCEM and our audiences. We will partner in the city-wide sustainability focussed group of NPOs who support council net zero goals. Success will be a full decarbonisation plan by the end of the funding period.
Dynamism
As a small & specialised team we will continue to develop our resilience, creativity & innovation. We will strengthen links with Higher Education partners to build our knowledge and skills and share these across the sector. Success will be a recognition of NCEM as a hub for creative innovation.
Delma Tomlin MBE
Director
Cherry Fricker
Executive Director
Dr Christopher Roberts
Operations Manager
Dr Sophie Horrocks
Artist Development Manager
Libby Burborough
Box Office & Communications Manager
Vicki Sumner Finance Officer
India Ashberry
Events Coordinator
TRUSTEES
Professor Christopher Fox
Christopher is a composer with a life-long fascination for music from all eras and cultures. He writes about music and edits the quarterly journal of new musicTEMPO for Cambridge University Press. Christopher is Visiting Professor of Music, the University of York and Emeritus Professor, Brunel University London.
Menna McGregor
Menna was Clerk to the Mercers' Company from 2008 to 2015, having previously spent 13 years working at the National Theatre. Menna holds a number of trusteeships including The Royal Ballet School and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Previous trusteeships include Wilton’s Music Hall, the Shakespeare Schools Foundation and the National Foundation for Youth Music.
Martin Stancliffe
Martin is an architect specializing in the conservation of historic buildings. From 1990 to 2011 he was Surveyor to the Fabric of St. Paul's Cathedral in London, and is now Surveyor Emeritus. He is chairman of the York Consortium for Conservation and Craftsmanship, a member of the Fabric Advisory Committee of York Minster, and a trustee of the Landmark Trust. He is also a keen baroque oboist.
Paul Murphy
Paul has worked in central and local government, and public and private sectors. Recent roles in York have focused on education, including NYBEP Ltd, City of York Council, and York St John University. He is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Mental Health Trust. Paul became Chair of the board in December 2020.
Dr Simon Procter
Simon is a music therapist and music sociologist. He is Director of Converge and Professor in the School of Arts at York St John University, and previously Director of Music Services for the music therapy charity Nordoff and Robbins, overseeing their education, research and public affairs work. He has worked as a music therapist in a wide variety of settings, publishes about people’s engagement with music in both English and Polish, and contributes to the training of music therapists in the UK and abroad.
Paul Tyack
Paul is Director of Advancement at Newcastle University and was recently Head of Institutional Philanthropy at the University of York, having held previous roles at the Anne Frank Trust UK, Shoreditch New Deal for Communities Trust, Family Rights Group and Barnardo’s. Paul was a chorister at New College, Oxford, studied Music at the University of York and now sings regularly with the Ebor Singers.
Dr Anita Datta
Anita is a musician, researcher, and educator from the East Riding of Yorkshire. She received her doctorate in Social Anthropology from the University of Durham, and engages this expertise to further meaningful Equality, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives in education and Western Classical music. She is an alumna of conducting programmes at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, the Royal Opera House, and the Royal Philharmonic Society, and has been commissioned to write new works by a range of organisations and ensembles including the BBC Singers. Anita continues to deliver freelance performance projects alongside her continuing roles as founder and artistic director of The Swan Consort, and Creative Learning and Participation Producer at London Handel Festival.
The Reverend Canon Dr Victoria Johnson
Victoria is the Dean of Chapel at St John's College Cambridge. Prior to her role in Cambridge she was the Precentor of York Minster, overseeing the musical and liturgical life of the Cathedral, a Canon at Ely Cathedral and Parish Priest in Manchester. Before ordination she worked as a cancer research scientist. Victoria has sung in and directed choirs of all sizes and abilities. She is passionate about access to music and the arts.
Derri Lewis (Associate Trustee)
Derri is a composer with a portfolio ranging from concert music to electronic installations. He won the NCEM Young Composers Award in 2019. Derri is an alumnus of King’s College London (MA), the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (BMus), and Zürich University of the Arts. Derri works as Artist Development project manager at the Royal Academy of Music.