| I. Objectives II. Activities III. Membership IV. Dues V. Organization VI. Elections VII. Business Meetings VIII. Amendments to the By-Laws |
I. OBJECTIVES
II. ACTIVITIESA.The performance and dissemination of music composed by or of interest to members of the Society.
B.The promotion and facilitation of a forum for the exchange of information and ideas pertaining to music composition, its performance, and its teaching.
C.The representation within the Society of as wide a variety of musical styles and beliefs as are to be found among the members of the Society.
D.The representation within the Society and its governing bodies and meetings of all member regions of the country and all persons insofar as this is fiscally realistic and possible.
E.The representation, insofar as legal and appropriate, of composers and all aspects of their compositional activity to the federal government, the media, and universities.
F.The promotion and facilitation of communication with other music organizations and with other artistic and scientific communities.
G.The facilitation of contacts for students and young professionals with the music composition community.
III. MEMBERSHIPA.The sponsorship of an annual meeting of all SCI regions at which music by the members is played and papers by the members are read. A member may have a composition performed at but one Annual Conference out of three successive ones. Only the host institution shall have the authority to change this schedule and only in the event of extreme circumstances.
B.The sponsorship of annual meetings in each of the Society's eight regions at which music of the members is played and papers by the members are read.
C.The sponsorship of other such colloquia, seminars, and workshops (such as special summer institutes) as will advance the cause of contemporary American music and promote the interests of the Society.
D.The publication of Monographs, a series wherein papers taken from the annual and regional meeting are printed, and other such material as the editorial board may deem appropriate.
E.The publication of the Newsletter giving details of the members' activities and announcements of items of interest to members.
F.The sponsorship of the SCI series of radio programs whereby music of the members is given national and international radio distribution.
G.The publication of the SCI Journal of Music Scores, containing scores by members of the Society.
H.The manufacture and distribution of recordings of compositions contained in the Journal and other music by members of the Society.
I.The holding of an annual student composition contest.
J.The promotion of performance groups devoted to contemporary music and to high standards of performance of such music.
K.The discussion and review of ideas and materials for the teaching of musical composition-related disciplines at all educational levels.
L.The promotion of new performance and compositional techniques.
IV. DUESA.Full membership is open to all composers: only full members will be eligible to vote in conducting Society business and in elections for Society positions.
B.Student membership is open to all student composers currently associated with a university, college, music conservatory, or a private composition teacher.
C.Associate membership is open to any person interested in the aims and objectives of the Society.
D.Joint membership in any membership category except institutional is open to two members sharing the same address. Each member of a joint membership enjoys all privileges of his/her category except that they jointly receive only one copy of publications and announcements.
E.Senior membership is open to composers over the age of 65. Senior members enjoy all the privileges of full members.
F.Institutional membership is open to any library, school, or organization. Institutional members receive all publications and announcements of the Society and may send representatives to meetings of the Society.
G.All members shall be entitled to receive the Newsletter and all notices pertaining to activities of the Society and to participate in activities in their respective regions.
H.Only members in good standing may participate in the regional and annual meeting. Good standing is defined as the full payment of dues for the academic year in which the events take place. Dues must be paid by January 1 or the member will be considered delinquent.
I.Membership in the Society may be canceled for non-payment of dues. If there is a break in the continuity of membership as here defined, it should be for a period not less than an entire academic year unless full dues are remitted. Members seeking to re-establish continuity will not be held liable for previous dues in arrears, but they will also not be given the rights and benefits (performances, etc.) of the Society during the period of the membership break.
J.Affiliate membership is open to any composer who is a member in good standing of an organization (other than a library) which is an institutional.
V. ORGANIZATIONA.Full membership dues shall be forty-five dollars a year.
B.Student membership dues shall be twenty dollars a year.
C.Associate membership dues shall be twenty dollars a year.
D.Joint membership dues shall be sixty dollars a year.
E.Senior membership dues shall be twenty two and one-half dollars a year.
F.Institutional membership dues shall be twenty dollars a year.
G.Affiliate membership is forty dollars a year.
VI. ELECTIONSA.The National Council
1.Function and membership
a.the National Council shall be the highest policy-making body of the Society. It shall consist of from seventeen to eighteen members: one chairman, the sixteen regional co-chairmen, and sometimes, as designated in Article VI, a chairman elect or a past chairman.
b.members of the National Council may not serve simultaneously on the Executive Committee.
2.Duties of the National Council
a.to formulate the over-all policy of the Society.
b.to elect the Chairman of the National Council and such other officers as it deems necessary.
c.to evaluate the progress of the Society toward its stated objectives.
d.to meet with the Executive Committee at each annual conference.
e.to meet itself as a separate body at each annual conference to formulate the Society's evolving goals and direction.
f.to maintain communication with the Executive Committee through communication with the Chairman of the National Council.
g.to create such committees as it deems necessary to carry out the objectives of the Society.
B.The Chairman of the National Council
1.The Chairman of the National Council shall be the chief elective officer of the Society.
2.Duties
a.to preside over the annual meeting of the National Council and the joint meeting of the National Council and the Executive Committee.
b.to preside over the annual business meeting.
c.to maintain communication with all regional chairmen and actively to encourage the holding of annual meetings in each of the regions.
d.to maintain contact with the chairman of the Executive Committee and such other Executive Committee members as may be necessary for the carrying out of the Society's business.
e.to maintain communication with the editors of the Journal, the Newsletter, the Monograph Series, the SCI radio series, the SCI recording series, and such other efforts of the Society as they may arise.
f.to represent the Society before various cultural, artistic, musical, and governmental groups of the country as financial realities permit.
g.to select, with the advice and consent of the National Council and the Executive Committee, the site of each annual conference.
h.to appoint, with the advice and consent of the National Council, a program chairman, and a local committee for the selection of scores and the making of arrangements for each annual conference.
i.to call such other meetings, other than the annual conference, as may be fiscally possible, at which members of the National Council may be expected to be present.
C.The Regions
1.The Society's membership is organized into eight regions, defined geographically be the National Council. All changes in the number of regions, or the realignment of states, are the responsibility of the National Council. The means by which a region fulfills its local and national responsibilities are determined locally except where defined in these by- laws.
2.The treasurer of the Society shall make available five dollars to each of the various regions for each full member of the region, except that the money made available to an individual region shall not be less than fifty dollars a year, for the purpose of holding regional meetings or conducting other business of the Society.
3.the regions of the Society shall be constituted as follows:
Region I.Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, New Hampshire, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Rhode Island, Vermont.
Region II.New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico.
Region III.Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington DC, West Virginia.
Region IV.Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina Tennessee.
Region V.Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Manitoba, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, Ontario, South Dakota, Wisconsin.
Region VI.Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas.
Region VII.Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Southern California, Utah.
Region VIII.Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Northern California, Oregon, Saskatchewan, Washington.
4.Foreign memberships other than from Canada shall be members at large and may affiliate with region nine or the region of their choice.
5.Duties of the Regions
a.to hold an annual regional meeting where scores and tapes of the members' music are played and where papers are read and panels convened.
b.to represent the full range of compositional activity within its area.
c.to actively recruit new members and to maintain its present members.
d.to support within its region all SCI activity and the activity of other groups which may be consistent with the Society's objectives.
e.to appoint such committees as the co-chairmen deem necessary to carry out the business of the region, i.e., publicity, membership, new programs, etc.
D.The Executive Committee
1.Function
a.the function of the Executive Committee shall be the carrying out of policy and procedures developed by the National Council.
2.Membership
a.The Executive Committee shall consist of sufficient persons to fulfill whatever jobs are needed, at present including:
1.a chairman elected by the Executive Committee.
2.a treasurer elected by the Executive Committee.
3.the editor of the Newsletter.
4.the editor of the Monograph Series.
5.the editor of the SCI Journal of Music Scores.
6.the editor of the SCI recording project.
7.the Student Member Representative.
8.the Associate Member Representative.
9.other such persons as the Executive Committee in concert with the National Council deems necessary to the carrying out of the Society's business.
b.the term of office for all members of the Executive Committee, with the exception of the editors of the various publications and the Student Member Representative, shall be for a period of three years. The chairman of the Executive Committee shall create a system of election that will constitute the membership so that no more than one-half of the Executive Committee may be new members at the time of change.
c.editors of the various SCI publications are appointed by the Executive Committee with the advice and consent of a majority of the National Council. The terms of office for each of the editors shall be determined by the Executive Committee with the advice and consent of the National Council.
d.in view of the financial necessity that requires certain members of the Executive Committee to be in close proximity to one another (mainly the national office staff), other at-large members may be appointed to the Executive Committee by its chairman with the consent of the National Council.
e.a vacancy on the Executive Committee, for any reason save that of normal expiration of term, may be filled by appointment of the chairman of the Executive Committee, with the approval of the chairman of the National Council.
f.failure adequately to perform the required duties may result in removal from office by the chairman of the Executive Committee, with the consent of the chairman of the National Council.
g.members of the Executive Committee may not be simultaneously members of the National Council.
3.Duties of the Executive Committee
a.to achieve the objectives of the Society in accordance with the policies developed by the National Council.
b.to elect its own officers, currently chairman and treasurer, and to inform the Society's membership of these elections.
c.to disburse the Society's funds through the treasurer for the achievement of the Society's goals.
d.to enlist and solicit financial assistance from appropriate agencies.
e.to collect dues from all members of the Society and to account to the Society for all monies received and disbursed in a written financial statement that shall be available to all members of the Society.
f.to inform the membership of the Society through a national Newsletter, published four times a year, of the current activities of the Society and to report on regional, national, and individual members' activities.
g.to hold regular meeting where appropriate and financially possible.
h.to assist the leaders of each annual conference in planning and operating the annual conference.
i.to assist the regional co-chairmen in any aspect of regional activity.
j.to disburse such funds as are necessary and earned by the membership size for the holding of regional meetings in each of the eight regions.
k.to assist the editors of the Monograph Series, the SCI Journal of Music Scores, and the recording series in production and distribution.
l.to represent, in consultation with the chairman of the National Council, the Society to the public to other appropriate organizations both governmental and private when such representations cannot be made by the National Council.
E.The Corporation: Society of Composers, Incorporated.
1.The Corporation shall consist of the founding members so long as they maintain membership in the Society, the chairman of the National Council for his or her entire term of office and for four years thereafter, all members of the Executive Committee except the student member for their entire terms and for three years thereafter.
2.The chairman of the National Council shall serve as President of the Corporation. The treasurer of the Executive Committee shall serve as treasurer of the Corporation. A Vice President and a Secretary shall be elected by the Corporation.
3.A majority of the corporation members must be present in person or by proxy to constitute a quorum and conduct by legal business of the Corporation. Membership in the Corporation may be terminated for non-payment of dues.
VII. BUSINESS MEETINGSA.The Nation Council
1.The Chairman of the National Council
a.the chairman shall be elected for a term of office of three years by the members of the National Council only. The term of office is to be preceded by one year on the National Council as non-voting chairman-elect and followed by one year as past president during which time voting privileges will be retained.
b.a formal election with secret ballot shall be held at the conclusion of the annual meeting of the National Council in the year preceding the one in which the current National Chairman's term expires.
2.The Regional Co-Chairmen
a.the co-chairmen of each of the eight regions shall be elected, through formal process, by members of their respective regions for a term of two years. The co-chairmen shall be members in good standing and shall be elected in alternate years so that both chairmen are not new in a given year.
b.the election shall be conducted by the co- chairman remaining in office before the annual conference at which the other co- chairman's term expires.
c.the co-chairmen should be from different localities within the region whenever possible.
d.a member shall be a full, joint, or senior member in good standing in the Society to qualify for service as a regional co- chairman.
3.Procedure for Election of Regional Co-Chairmen
a.by October 1 of each calendar year the junior co- chairman will mail a call for nominations to all eligible voters of the region with a return deadline of October 21.
b.nominees will be contacted by the junior co- chairman to ascertain willingness to serve if elected.
c.by November 1 of each calendar year the junior co- chairman will mail to all eligible voters a ballot containing the names of the confirmed nominees with a return date of November 30.
d.a majority of responding voters will be sufficient to elect: the junior co-chairman will notify the regional membership and national office of the co-chairman-elect not later than January 15 following the balloting.
B.The Executive Committee
1.Members of the Executive Committee are elected by a joint vote of the National Council and the Executive Committee.
2.The Newsletter shall inform the Society as a whole of approaching vacancies, and it should be made clear that written nominations for membership on the Executive Committee will be received by the chairman of the Executive Committee.
3.All nominations received by the chairman of the Executive Committee are to be reported to the joint meeting of the National Council and the Executive Committee.
VIII. AMENDMENTS TO THE BY-LAWSA.The Annual Membership Meeting
1.A business meeting of the entire membership shall take place during the annual conference.
2.The agenda of the annual membership meeting shall include, but not be limited to, the following items:
a.report of the Chairman of the National Council.
b.report of the Chairman of the Executive Committee.
c.report of the Treasurer.
d.introduction of new members of the National Council and the Executive Committee.
e.announcements.
f.new business.
B.The Annual Joint Meeting of the National Council and the Executive Committee
1.The National Council and the Executive Committee shall meet jointly at each annual conference before the annual membership meeting. This shall constitute the legally required meeting of the Corporation.
2.It is recommended that both the National Council and the Executive Committee meet separately at least once at the annual conference.
C.Quorum
1.Five percent of the total membership shall constitute a quorum at the annual business meeting for the purposes of voting and enacting Society business.
2.At meetings of the National Council a majority of those present shall constitute a quorum providing that there are at least ten members present.
These by-laws may be amended on the recommendation of three-fourths of the National Council, ratified by a majority vote of the membership present at the Annual Membership Meeting at the annual conference.
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