Hallé Concert Society 

The Halle Concerts Society was formally incorporated on 28 June 1899, although plans for its formation had been formed almost immediately after Sir Charles Halle died in 1895. A properly constituted body of guarantors was seen as the best way of securing the future of the Halle Concerts and the Orchestra. Originally there were 50 members, including the then Lord Mayor, Alderman Gibson, the four local MPs, who included Prime Minister Balfour, three members of the Forsyth and Behrens families and Miss Gaskell, daughter of the author. The Society elected a Committee of Management, later the Executive Committee and eventually the Board. The first members were E J Broadfield, Chairman; Adolph Brodsky, Henry Simon, James Forsyth & Gustav Behrens. J Aikman Forsyth was the Hon. Secretary.

The Society’s own records are arranged in the catalogue according to the existing departmental structure. Sections of the archive that are fully catalogued include the records of the Board and the Finance Department. Some records of the Chief Executive, Concerts and Marketing Departments have also been catalogued and all these catalogues are accessible on-line.

Certain items within the archive are ‘closed’, broadly, most unpublished material less than 30 years old and other records covered by the Data Protection Act. If you think you need to consult this material please contact the archivist for guidance.


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