JAVS Spring 2013

F ROM THE P RESIDENT

agement system and website. This is a priority. It would allow a more seamless approach and provide you with many perks, including mem bers’ only access to the website, access to premium web content, the ability to update your member infor mation online, the ability to take over conference registration func tions, and other streamlined opera tions for our society. We welcome and need your support in this mod ernization of our operations. We have implemented many things from last year’s strategic plan, includ ing more frequent board meetings. Rather than an annual meeting, we have met quarterly online, and it has improved our efficiency. We are also moving forward with endowment building, also outlined in our strate gic plan, with emphasis on the Dalton Fund. We must think ahead one, five, and ten years so that our organization and its offerings will not only survive but prosper. The next international viola congress will be hosted by the Polish Viola Society September 12–15, 2013, at the Kraków Academy of Music. It promises to be an incredible event! Best wishes to all of you this spring, and I look forward to a great year with viola projects worldwide.

Membership is vital to the ongoing mission of the AVS. If your member ship has recently lapsed, please renew online at http://americanviolasoci ety.org/support-avs/join-avs/. We need you! Invite your friends to join. The board actively pursues member growth and retention, and your help in encouraging friends, students, and all those interested in promoting the viola is much appreciated. Come celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Primrose International Viola Competition! The next competition will be held January 12–17, 2014, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Primrose Festival, which includes the Las Vegas Viola Fest, will be held January 15–17 and will be our c ongress-type event for the year. We are proud to collaborate with the Las Vegas Philharmonic, the Nevada School of the Arts, and the Las Vegas Council of Cultural Affairs. This promises to be a memorable week, and I look forward to seeing all of you there. If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, please contact me to discuss. We need your support to make this event great! We are in the midst of our first Orchestral Excerpt s Competition. The prizewinners will be announced June 1. Thank you to both our prelimi nary and final jurors for providing such a wonderful opportunity.

Dear Beloved AVS Members, Happy spring! I hope it has been a lovely year for all of you. It was great seeing many of you at this year’s ASTA convention while bringing new members into the fold. It was also lovely cultivating relationships with other organizations and busi nesses. I enjoy letting them know the exciting activities we’ve been up to. Kathryn Steely, focused on contact ing lapsed members. Thank you to D’Addario for their generous offer of string sets for our membership drive. We are proud to announce that eighty-four past members returned, and overall membership has increased by 20% since June 2012! Last fall our membership committee, spearheaded by President-Elect

Most Sincerely, Nokuthula Ngwenyama

We are seeking support to help our organization update its content man

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