Ұлыбритания музыканттарының кәсіби одағы

Musicians' union in the UK

The Musicians' Union (MU) is an organisation which represents over 30,000 musicians working in all sectors of the British music business.

The Musicians' Union (MU) Royalty Department, in its current form, was set up in July 2011. For the most part it deals with income for non featured (session musicians) from the further use or secondary use of sound recordings on which they have performed. The MU uses existing collective bargaining agreements with the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) to invoice record companies, film companies, advertising companies and production companies for use of performances, and is then responsible in distributing the funds collected to both MU members and non MU members. The MU has no accessible database for member or non member performers to access or cross reference sound recordings in which they have performed.

On 7 May 1893 in Manchester a meeting was held to form a union for musicians, twenty musicians attended and formed the Manchester Musicians' Union. The meeting had been organised by the union's first secretary, Joseph Bevir Williams, who became the leader of the Amalgamated Musicians' Union as the union was renamed to include artists from across the United Kingdom.

At a high point in 1932, using Douglas Anderson as the architect and Trollope & Colls as the builders, it had a house built, with grounds of 24 acres and a lake, for retired musicians, now called Merebank House, in what is now Beare Green. The name of the house is recorded on a postcard of the day, as "musicians' convalescent home, Holmwood" – the station 200 yards away is known as Holmwood railway station, and this area was then known as Holmwood. Sir Henry Wood and Lady Wood, and the composer Baron Frédéric Alfred d'Erlanger were among those who attended a ceremony to lay the foundation stone of the musicians' home on 10 June 1932, where the arrival of the Baron was serenaded by 10 trumpeters, 10 trombonists and 10 drummers; musicians were present from the London Philharmonic Orchestra and from the Covent Garden Choir. The Baron used a silver trowel (which was then gifted to him as a souvenir) to lay the home's foundation stone, still present, which bears only his name and the date the stone was laid, making no reference to Sir Henry Wood or to the purpose of the house; the write up of the ceremony to lay the foundation stone that was published in the Leatherhead and Dorking advertiser records that it was planned to build more properties in the grounds, for example a musicians' orphanage, noting that it had taken 10 years from 1922 to 1932, to raise the funds for the site and the first home there. The planning portal of Mole Valley District Council records that permission was applied for in 1948 for three more homes on the site. Later, there was a performance there of Baron Frédéric's opera, Tess, and various other musical performances as recorded in the archives of Dorking museum. Ralph Vaughan Williams spent time at Leith Hill House, 2 miles away, but no record has yet been uncovered of his visiting the house. The introduction of "talkie" films reduced opportunities for musicians, and membership fell to a low of 7,000 in 1940. By the 1950s, Merebank House and all land had been sold to Dorking and Horley Rural District Council; the land was used for social housing, and for a village hall. After World War II, it grew again, forming the International Federation of Musicians. It also joined the Confederation of Entertainment Unions and affiliated to the Labour Party.

The union sponsored Labour Party candidates in several parliamentary elections. Election Constituency Candidate Votes Percentage Position 1963 by election Rotherham 22,411 69.2 1 1964 general election Rotherham 27,585 66.5 1 1966 general election Rotherham 27,402 69.7 1 1970 general election Barry 23,286 39.2 2 1970 general election Rotherham 25,246 66.4 1 1974 Oct general election Rotherham 25,874 64.6 1