Find me at: Merchant Adventurers' Hall

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Researched by Merchant Adventurers Hall and York Centre for Early Music

Designed by HazardOne

Delma Tomlin MBE is a living trailblazer. Her achievements and energy are rarely matched. Delma came to York in 1984 to administer the York Festival & Mystery Plays and loved the city far too much to ever leave – championing the move to return the Mystery Plays to the streets of the city and was CEO of the Millennium production in York Minster.

As the founder of the National Centre for Early Music, based within the medieval church of St Margaret’s in Walmgate, Delma has been a pivotal figure in music making – focusing her energies on supporting young professional musicians locally, nationally and internationally – and flying the flag for York whenever possible. A member of the York Merchant Adventurers Company, in 2022 Delma became the first woman to be Governor since the Company’s inauguration over 650 years ago in 1357. She doesn’t plan to be the last!

Delma Tomlin MBE DUniv is truly a trailblazer – she is the founder of the National Centre for Early Music (NCEM) in York, and the first female Governor of the Company of Merchant Adventurers, established in 1357!

Under her leadership, the NCEM has gone from strength to strength: the flagship York Early Music Festival attracts patrons and musicians from around the world. She is an ambassador for Early Music nationally and across Europe, with the NCEM renowned throughout Europe for its festivals and development projects. She leads a national network of Early Music professionals and is a leading figure in the European Early Music Network. Her advocacy and influence within the continental European music world have played a considerable part in maintaining England’s status as a centre for excellence both in the performance and study of Early Music.

Delma is also a passionate advocate of musical education, ensuring that the joy of musical inspiration is available to everyone, regardless of their background. Many hundreds of young people in the last 20 years attribute their early inspiration, or their musical development, to Delma’s work. She has directed numerous projects, from music-making opportunities for young people from challenging backgrounds, for D/deaf young people, unique projects for talented young composers, through to projects for emerging ensembles across the UK and Europe.

After attending Manning Grammar School for Girls, Nottingham, Delma embarked on her studies as a classical singer at Trinity College of Music. Working for various high-profile music organisations, she came north to run the 1984 York Festival & Mystery Plays. Since then, she has built up a highly successful business model supporting the cultural development of the region, with clients including Sheffield Chamber Music Festival, English Heritage, National Trust, and the Yorkshire & Humberside Museums Council. Career highlights include the restoration of the Plays to the streets of York, the award-winning millennium production set in York Minster and the restoration of the medieval church of St Margaret’s leading to the creation of the NCEM in 2000. She is also an acknowledged expert in the promotion of the Medieval York Mystery Plays.

Delma is a board member of the European Early Music Network, the East Riding of Yorkshire Music Hub and has been a member of Court of the University of York since 2001. Delma has previously been a governor of both Leeds College of Music and York College. She has a particular interest in mentoring the careers of emerging professional musicians – nationally and internationally.

Delma was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of York in 2000 for her work in the city, and an MBE for Services to the Arts in Yorkshire & Humberside in 2008. In 2018, she was appointed Cultural Champion for York and in 2020 was elected an Honorary Freeman of the City.