Page 151 - Weiss, Jernej, ur./ed. 2026 Skladateljska društva nekoč in danes.../Composers’ Societies Past and Present...

The Composers’ Guild of Great Britain and “unofficial” musical diplomacy …
in Czechoslovakia the Syndicate of Composers is allotted regular space
in the broadcasts of the Czech Broadcasting Stations for programmes in
which the choice of items is the responsibility of the Syndicate. Among
these concerts are regular periods given up entirely to works by young
and as yet unknown or little known Czech, Moravian or Slovak com-
posers. A similar situation exists in Yugoslavia, where the Society of
Slovenian Composers in Lyublyana [sic] is particularly active in this re-
spect. In addition in Yugoslavia the composers’ organisations receive fi-
nancial assistance from the Treasury to help them in the publication of
musical works of all kinds, for the selection of which they are responsi-
ble. In the U.S.S.R. the Union of Soviet Composers is one of the most in-
fluential bodies in all questions relating to the whole musical life of that
country. Thus contact with composers’ societies abroad is both inspiring
and instructive. 37

As Bush indicates elsewhere in the article, the Guild had a very active
sub-committee for Film Composers and links with the USA were primar-
ily in that context due to the greater experience of Hollywood composers
of securing appropriate rights and working conditions. Of the remaining
countries with which links had been established, these were, barring Nor-
way and Sweden, entirely due to Bush’s recent efforts. His aims, using what
he had learned, were to target publishers and the BBC in particular to try
and achieve the sort of financial assistance and quotas for performance and
broadcast that he envied in Eastern Europe. While in his article for The
Author Bush omitted the paens to socialism that featured in his writings
about the tour, it is striking that this account of emulating and making
links with societies behind the Iron Curtain was published so openly and
uncontroversially in a trade magazine. It is also notable that Bush’s meet-
ings in Prague included the British cultural attaché and the British Coun-
cil, in spite of the fact that his movements were being watched with suspi-
cion by MI5. He was also able to broadcast talks about his experiences with
38
the BBC. As noted earlier, in 1947 it was still conceivable that British post-
war cultural links could traverse both East and West, in a way that could
tolerate Bush’s ambitions.

37 Alan Bush, “The Composers’ Guild,” The Author (1947), copy in Alan Bush Archive,
Histon, 2 (my emphasis).
38 See: Memo from Eastern Europe Talks Clerk, Yugoslav Programme, to European
Programme Executive, 17 April 1947, BBC Written Archives Centre RCONT1: Cop-
yright, Bush, Alan, 1934–1962.

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