Birmingham Contemporary Music Group (BCMG) is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation and one of the world’s foremost new music ensembles. Since its foundation in 1987 by musicians from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, with Sir Simon Rattle as founding patron, BCMG was soon leading the field with brilliant commissions, innovative collaborations and an inspirational learning programme. BCMG has achieved and maintained its outstanding reputation by reaching more than 10 million people through concerts, broadcasts and events, performing over 500 concerts in venues across the UK, Europe, Mexico, India and the USA, commissioning and premiering over 200 new works by established composers and emerging talent and reaching more than 1,000 young people and families each year through its vibrant learning programme.

Over the last decade, the Group has earned many awards and accolades, both inside and outside the concert hall: BCMG was nominated for a Grammy Award for its recording of Gerald Barry’s opera, The Importance of Being Earnest, and has also been shortlisted for ITV’s South Bank Show’s Classical Music Award, the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Ensemble Award, and BBC Music Magazine’s Chamber Award. Every year, BCMG introduces more people to the world of contemporary music, expanding its audiences' perspectives. International tours have included visits to the USA (Library of Congress), Mexico, India and venues across France, Germany, the Netherlands and Austria. The Group is regularly heard in concert on BBC Radio 3, and has recorded extensively.

BCMG's long-established Learning and Participation programmes actively engage young people in composing and performing and have earned BCMG nationwide recognition - in 2016, the Group was highly commended in the Family Arts Festival Awards. The ensemble has commissioned over 175 pieces of music from the world’s finest composers and emerging international talent. Many of the works have been commissioned through its innovative pioneering Sound Investment crowd-funding scheme to which over 500 donors have contributed more than £300,000; many of these works have subsequently found their way into worldwide repertoire.

In partnership with Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, BCMG has created the NEXT Music Study Programme in Contemporary Performance, an innovative programme of study which supports early-career musicians who want to dedicate their professional career to contemporary music. It is the only programme in the UK providing intensive, year-long training in contemporary music performance practice, offering musicians an unprecedented opportunity to learn from some of the most exciting performers and composers working today.

BCMG believes that music has the power to bring people of all ages and backgrounds together. It has built an inclusive community of composers, musicians, and audiences, enabling them to share their spark of imagination, creating beautiful and strange sounds. It embraces change, questions the ordinary, and celebrates brave choices. BCMG champions the free exchange of ideas, embraces all people and cultures, and is constantly moving forward.

BCMG is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation and a registered charity. The Chair is responsible for ensuring robust and effective governance of the Board, in line with legal and regulatory requirements, as well as following recommended practice as laid out in the Charity Governance Code. The Chair will lead the Board, and ensure that it is effective in its task of setting and implementing the organisation’s direction and strategy.

The new Chair will:

• Lead the Board in providing strategic direction for the organisation and ensure that this is monitored by the Board
• Ensure that areas of responsibility delegated to the Executive are clearly identified
• Chair, in Birmingham, meetings of the Board (minimum of four per year), report annually to the AGM and act as required in between Board meetings in consultation with other Board Members
• Oversee the recruitment of new Board members to ensure that the make-up of the Board embraces a wide range of skills
• Be the ultimate authority in ensuring that the organisation complies with all its legal and financial responsibilities, including resolving any conflicts of interest or failings of duty which may occur within the Board
• Lead the appointment of the Chief Executive / Artistic Director when a vacancy occurs
• Support and challenge the work of the Chief Executive / Artistic Director and carry out their annual appraisal
• Engage in direct communication with Arts Council England

BCMG seeks a new Chair who will bring senior, strategic-level experience, gained in any sector, alongside a passion for the arts. The new Chair will work closely with the Chief Executive / Artistic Director and Board members, to take forward the strong heritage of the last 30 years and build an even more successful future.

There is no preferred background for this role. The successful candidate will, however, bring strong commercial acumen, alongside prior board experience (ideally from a non-profit organisation). Candidates need not be musicians themselves, so long as they have a passion for the arts, and an interest in coming to concerts and events. The new Chair will be a high profile representative of BCMG, and will be comfortable taking on an ambassadorial role. They will be able to speak publicly, and inspire excitement for the work of the ensemble. Fundraising experience is desirable, but not essential.

Above all, the successful candidate will be enthusiastic about the arts, and will be passionate about the power that music has to bring people of all ages and backgrounds together.

You can read more about the Board of Trustees here. 

There are four Board meetings per year, which take place in Birmingham, and tend to last between 2-3 hours. The Chair also attends a number of events and concerts throughout the year, and engages with Board members and the CEO outside of meetings. It is anticipated that the overall time commitment for the role will be c. 1.5 days per month. The role is unremunerated, but reasonable, pre-agreed expenses will be payed. This role is for an initial three-year term, which can be renewed at the discretion of the Board.

Board meetings and events take place in Birmingham, but candidates can be based anywhere so long as they are happy to travel. 

BCMG welcomes applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith or disability. It is committed to equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practices and it positively encourages applications from all sectors of the community. All appointments will be made on merit, following a fair and transparent process.