The New York Recorder Guild (NYRG) was established on October 16, 1960, as the New York chapter of the American Recorder Society,[1] and incorporated under its current name in 1975.[2] The goal of the organization was to increase interest in the recorder as an instrument and to promote music written for it.[3]
History
The first president of the New York Recorder Guild was Bernard Krainis; Martha Bixler was appointed vice-president and, one year later in 1961, music director.[1] By 1972, the group had 185 members and organized rehearsals monthly with rotating conductors.[3] In the late 1970s, the group moved into offices shared with its parent organization, the American Recorder Society, at 12 East 16th Street, New York, NY.[4] They published the Early Music Newsletter regularly from 1977 through 1991.[5][6] NYRG organized performances at St. Peter's Episcopal Church[7][8] and Columbia University.[9]
Monthly gatherings of the group included into the early 2000s,[10] after which point group became largely inactive.[2] In 2017, the NYRG was revitalized by Natalie Lebert and Deborah Booth,[11] with meetings at The Unitarian Church of All Souls in Manhattan.[12][13] In 2022, these monthly meetings moved to the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin in Manhattan,[2] and NYRG members took part in subway performances of music by Bach, with The Uptown Cantata Project.[14]
