The piano concerto commissioned by Jack from New Zealand composer Gareth Farr in 2014, had a repeat performance on April 1 2015.
Pianist Tony Lee returned to perform the concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in London.
Tairawhiti Museum Free Concerts
Jack Richards is sponsoring an annual series of afternoon recitals in the Tairawhiti Museum in Gisborne, featuring student performers from the New Zealand School of Music.
There will be six concerts scheduled throughout the year. These will be free events for Gisborne residents and are intended both to showcase the talents of NZSM students as well as to help expand the community outreach of the museum.
Gao Ping Trio Commission
Following the enthusiastic reception of the piece for bassoon and piano Jack commissioned from Chinese composer Gao Ping, Jack has commissioned a further piece – a trio for piano, flute and bassoon. You can hear the bassoon and piano piece played on Saturday Jan 10th 2015 during the Tiromoana Summer Concert Series here.
Classical Guitar Competition Sponsorship
Dr Richards is principal sponsor for the New Zealand Classical Guitar Competition, held at the New Zealand School of Music in Wellington.
Find out more here.
Oscar & Joshua Han
Young musicians Oscar and Joshua Han – finalists in Australia’s Got Talent – are being supported by Jack Richards in the Rising Stars Progamme at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
Jack Richards commissioned a violin for Oscar. Click here to see a video on the making of the violin.
New Zealand Composers
Dr. Richards is an enthusiastic art and music lover and supporter of activities such as the Tiromoana Summer Concerts and the New Zealand School of Music Composer in Residence.
“Composers are often dependent upon commissions to enable them to devote time to full-time work on significant pieces. Many famous works in the musical repertoire resulted from private commissions, and in recent years I have begun sponsoring a range of both small-scale as well as larger-scale works by New Zealand (or New Zealand-based) composers, in order to help them enrich the New Zealand musical landscape.”
Gareth Farr
Jack commissioned a piano concerto by leading New Zealand composer Gareth Farr. The first performance of the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra was performed with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra on March 28, 2014, with pianist Tony Lee. Read a review of the concerto here.
Gareth Farr Concerto
The first performance of Gareth Farr’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, commissioned by Jack Richards, was performed with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and pianist Tony Lee on March 28, 2014. The concerto has received rave reviews on its first performance. Read the reviews here, here and here.
Toihoukura School of Contemporary Arts
Jack Richard’s home town of Gisborne, New Zealand, has a long tradition of excellence in Maori arts.
Many of the finest examples of carved and painted meeting houses (known as Marae) in New Zealand are located in the district, and the region is home to a number of nationally renowned Maori carvers, weavers, ceramists and specialists in other fields of Maori art.
The local Polytechnic in Gisborne has a school of contemporary Maori art, called Toihoukura. It offers a range of courses in contemporary Maori art and design. Tutors in the program are nationally recognized leaders in the field of contemporary Maori art.
In order to facilitate participation by Maori students in Toihoukura programs and to encourage the wider recognition of the quality of work produced by students in Toihoukura, Professor Richards offers annual scholarships to students in the program and sponsors special commissions and awards.
Birthday Celebrations
In 2013 Dr. Richards’ birthday celebration was held at the Sydney Conservatory of Music.