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Amended by Council at Helsingør on 23 June 1995 (see Fontes 43/2 (1996), p162-3); at Périgueux on 13 July 2001 (see Fontes 49/1-2 (2002), p16-17); at Berkeley on 4 and 9 August 2002.
Rule I
Members
Membership shall commence on payment of the prescribed annual dues.
Honorary members shall be elected by the General Assembly on proposal of the Council. National Branches may elect their own honorary members, who do not, however, thereby become honorary members of the Association.
Rule II
Dues
The financial year shall be the calendar year.
Dues shall be paid to the International Association before 1 March of the current year.
Membership shall cease if dues have not been paid by the end of the year.
Members in arrears of payment at the time of voting shall not be entitled to vote.
In countries where a National Branch of the Association exists, members shall pay their dues to the Treasurer or Secretary of the Branch, unless the Branch prefers another arrangement. 20% of the dues may be retained by the Branch; the remainder shall be remitted to the Treasurer of the Association.
The National Branch may use its share of the dues at its own discretion. The Branch shall be entitled to assess additional dues upon its members and shall have the sole right of disposal of such funds as well as of revenue from any other sources. Members in countries without a National Branch shall remit their dues to the Treasurer of the Association, either directly or through an intermediary designated for this purpose.
Honorary members of the Association shall be exempt from dues. This does not apply to honorary members of a National Branch; however, the Branch may pay the dues of such members.
Rule III
The General Assembly
The date and place of the meetings of the General Assembly shall be determined by the Council. Notices shall be circulated by the Secretary General to all members not less then six months in advance of the meetings.
The meetings of the General Assembly shall be presided over by the President of the Association. In the absence of the President, one of the Vice-Presidents shall preside, upon selection of the Council. In the absence of the President and the Vice-Presidents the General Assembly shall elect one of its members to the Chair.
Proxy votes shall require written authorization by the person giving the proxy. It must reach the Secretary General not later than three days in advance of the meeting of the General Assembly, either by mail to the venue of the meeting or by hand.
In addition to the reports of the Board and Council, the meeting of the General Assembly may receive reports of other bodies within the Association, particularly the Subject Commissions and the Editor of the Association's journal, covering the past three-year period. Such reports shall be submitted in writing to the Secretary General and circulated in advance to those attending the meeting.
The minutes of the General Assembly shall be published in the Association's journal. The minutes must include a summary of the transactions and the texts of adopted resolutions.
Rule IV
The Council
The names of national delegates to the Council shall be communicated to the Secretary General.
The Council shall be entitled to invite advisors of its own choice to attend its meetings.
Any member of the Association shall be entitled to attend the Council meetings as an observer. Such observers may be asked to withdraw during discussions of confidential issues.
The meetings of the Council shall be presided over by the President, or in the absence of the President--upon selection of the Council--by one of the Vice-Presidents or a Past-President of the Association.
Meetings of the Council shall be convened by the President in consultation with the Secretary General. Notices of the meeting and the agenda shall be circulated to all members of the Council not less than two months in advance. Minutes shall be taken of all Council meetings and circulated to all members of the Council. A summary of the transactions and the texts of adopted resolutions shall be published in the Association's journal.
Rule V
The Board
The Board shall be entitled to invite advisors of its own choice to attend its meetings.
The Secretary General shall coordinate the work of the Association and shall have the overriding authority over the professional program of conferences and congresses; shall circulate notices of meetings, agendas and minutes of the Board, the Council and the General Assembly; shall circulate proposals for changes of the Constitution or Rules of Procedure, as well as any other documents of importance to the Association. The Secretary General shall organize the elections to the Board (cf. Rule VI) and shall be responsible for the minutes of the meetings of the Council and the General Assembly.
The Secretary General may claim expenses up to an amount specified in the budget and shall be empowered to engage additional staff within limits set by the Board.
The Secretary General shall be appointed for an initial terms of four years, and may be reappointed for subsequent terms of two years.
The Treasurer shall sign cheques and other documents of financial importance to the Association; shall keep a record of all income and expenditure and balance the accounts; shall provide the Board and Council with an annual financial report and a budget for the coming year; shall present at the meeting of the General Assembly a report covering the previous three financial years and a budget for the coming three-year period. The Treasurer shall keep a record of the members of the Association and publish a membership list at least every three years.
The Treasurer may claim expenses up to an amount specified in the budget and shall be empowered to engage additional staff within limits set by the Board.
The Treasurer shall be appointed for an initial terms of four years, and may be reappointed for subsequent terms of two years.
Rule VI
Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of the Association
Every member of the Association shall have the right to propose candidates for the offices of President and Vice-President up to the annual conference the year before an election. The proposals, together with an agreement by the proposed candidate to stand and a brief curriculum vitae, shall be sent to the Secretary General.
All proposals shall be put to the Council during its first session in the year before that of a meeting of the General Assembly. At that time, the Council may propose additional candidates, provided that their consent can be obtained before the nomination. At its second session, the Council shall nominate, by secret ballot, no more than two candidates for each position.
The candidates for the office of President may also be nominated for the office of Vice-President. The voting for the offices of President and Vice- President must be separated. The votes received for the office of President shall not be taken into account in the voting for Vice-Presidents.
Voting papers listing the candidates plus curricula vitae shall be sent out to all members of the Association either with the journal of the Association or by a special mailing from the Secretary General not less than four (4) months before the meeting of the General Assembly.
Members of the Association wishing to vote shall return their ballot papers in a blank, sealed inner envelope to the Secretary General. The inner envelope shall be enclosed in an outer envelope, bearing the name and address of the voting member and postmarked no later than two (2) months before the first Council meeting. Unless standing in this election, the election shall be conducted by the Secretary General; if the Secretary General is standing in this election, the Board shall appoint a IAML member to conduct the election.
The Treasurer shall supply the person conducting the election with a list of members eligible to vote immediately prior to the counting of the ballot papers.
The ballot papers shall be counted by the person conducting the election and two other IAML members no later than one month before the first Council meeting of the forthcoming conference, and the candidates and Board members informed of the result. The result will be announced at the first Council meeting of the forthcoming conference, and also at the General Assembly.
The time limits given in this Rule are the outside limits. In the year before each election, the Council shall determine if more generous limits can be applied, with a view to avoiding unnecessary special mailings.
The new Board shall take up its duties at the close of the General Assembly. Incoming Board members shall be invited to attend Board meetings held during the conference as observers.
Rule VII
Professional Branches, Subject Commissions and Working Groups
Any member of the Association shall have the right to attend all meetings of all Professional Branches and Subject Commissions.
Elections shall be held in the Professional Branches and Subject Commissions the year after a meeting of the General Assembly. The elections must be announced in the preliminary and official conference programs.
The Council shall appoint a Vice-President of the Association or another Council member to receive nominations and manage the elections.
The members of the Association present at such an election shall elect a Chair of the Branch or Commission for a term of three years. No Chair may serve for more than two consecutive terms. Normally, there should be at least two candidates for Chair, elected by secret ballot. If there is only one candidate, voting may be by open ballot, unless a secret ballot is called for by any member. A Vice-Chair and a Secretary may be elected by the members present by open ballot, regardless of the number of candidates, with the same proviso.
Chairs of Working Groups shall be appointed by the Council for a specified term. Other officers may be chosen by the members of the Working Group. The Working Groups shall be required to submit terms of reference to the Council for approval. The purpose of Working Groups is to work on a particular finite project during their sessions at IAML conferences, and also via email or regular mail between conferences. Papers that relate to Working Group projects should be presented at sessions of the Commission or Branch to which the Group reports, rather than at the Working Group sessions themselves.
Rule VIII
Annual meetings, Congresses
International congresses may be arranged in conjunction with the meetings of the General Assembly. Annual meetings shall be arranged in between. Place and date shall be set by the Council.
The organization of meetings or congresses shall normally be assigned to a National Branch at the invitation of the Branch, which shall be in charge of local arrangements. Responsibility for the professional program shall rest with the Association (cf. Rule V,2).
The annual meetings shall primarily be intended for furthering the work of the Professional Branches, Subject Commissions and Working Groups, and for the coordination of their activities.
International congresses may focus upon particular aspects of the work of the Association.
Notice of annual meetings and congresses must be circulated to all members of the Association not less than six months in advance.
Rule IX
Publications
The Council shall establish a Publications Committee chaired by one of the Vice-Presidents of the Association to provide general oversight and coordination of all its publications. Members of the Committee shall include the editor of its journal Fontes artis musicae, the Newsletter editor and the Webmaster.
Within guidelines laid down by the Council for the policy and general management of Fontes, the editor shall have sole editorial responsibility.
