'City of Sunderland Millennium Orchestral Society'
- CoSMOS.
'To complement, enhance, encourage and develop
musical activities in Sunderland.'
'To promote, improve, develop, and maintain public
education in, and appreciation of, the art and science of music in all its aspects,
particularly but not exclusively through the presentation of concerts, the provision of
tuition, the establishment of an orchestra, and by other such charitable ways as the
Society, through its trustees, shall from time to time determine.'
The Society was a response to Sunderland Council's
initiative for each Ward to commemorate the Millennium. Rather than create a monument or
hold a one-off event, the three councillors for the Thornholme Ward of the City of
Sunderland decided to facilitate a long lasting commemoration of the Millennium, that
would develop the musical potential of people in Sunderland and provide enjoyment for many
people for many years by enriching and complementing the City's musical environment.
The Three Founding Councillors, pictured left to right
Mark Greenfield, Winifred Lundgren, John Lennox
Following a public meeting in West Park Church on
Friday 1st October 1999, it was decided to go ahead and form a Society, and Rupert Hanson
accepted the challenge of becoming Musical Director.
Initially, the intention
was to build an orchestra,
the Sunderland Symphony Orchestra because it was felt that Sunderland
was
big enough to sustain an orchestra and also that the people of Sunderland deserved the
best.
Those persons
present at the initial meeting became the first members of the new
society and the musicians among them formed the core membership of the
new orchestra.
The formation of the Orchestral Society
and the Orchestra marked the beginning of a new era of music making in the City of Sunderland.
It was intended to encourage progress in the
musicality of younger and inexperienced musicians by giving them the opportunity to
perform alongside professional players.
It was also envisaged that
as the Society developed, there
would be other musical groups and activities provided to suit all tastes.
