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The Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation - THE FIRST 4 YEARS …On the international opera stage, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa commands the degree of fame and esteem afforded to such New Zealand icons as Sir Edmund Hillary, and the All Blacks. A remarkable achievement for a woman of modest beginnings from a small New Zealand town who, through her formidable drive, application and hard work has become one of the greatest opera singers of modern times. Indeed, it is that hard work, and the international success resulting from it, that has driven Dame Kiri to establish a Foundation to bring to reality her vision - to help talented young New Zealand singers and musicians to succeed internationally, just as she has. The Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation, and its associated "Friends of the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation" in England, were created and are committed to assisting those young New Zealanders who have complete dedication to their art, with judicious mentoring, financial support and career assistance. Dame Kiri is well aware of the challenges facing talented young people who aspire to an international career. She had to work hard to pay her way, and to create opportunities for herself. But her early career opportunities were also assisted by the financial support she received from a range of philanthropic sources in New Zealand, enabling her to move to London to learn from the best teachers in the world. Dame Kiri is committed to ensuring talented young New Zealanders have the same opportunities. While classical music is her first musical love, she has always had a keen interest in all forms and styles of musical expression. The Foundation's first four years have been enormously successful, with excellent corporate support from UBS, Rolex, ASBbank, Air New Zealand,the Lion Foundation and a number of individuals and Trusts, several fundraising concerts and three recipients of Foundation grants named.
The Foundation had always envisaged working co-operatively with a range of similar organisations, and it was a special thrill for Dame Kiri to have the immediate and enthusiastic support of her old friend Dame Malvina Major as a partner in this particular project. All three have embodied the Foundation's criteria of complete dedication to their art. And all have spoken of the honour of receiving a Foundation grant, the prestige it offers and the profile it affords them. The Foundation's latest project involves assisting well-known professional opera singer and teacher Jenny Wollerman to undertake a research trip beginning in February 2007 to observe and absorb conditions in the United Kingdom for about 3 months and to then share this knowledge with music teachers and aspiring New Zealand students considering furthering their music education in the UK through a series of ongoing seminars and personal contacts. Read the press announcement and reports from Jenny For her part, Dame Kiri says she is delighted with the progress the Foundation has made in a short time. "It has taken on its own life. There are endless singers and musicians coming forward and asking for help. There are not enough hours in the day for me to keep up, but I love every second of it." |
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The first was Dunedin-born soprano Ana James now on the prestigious Young Artist Programme at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the second, young Auckland conductor Kerry Jago just completing a four year conducting course in Germany, and most recently, pianist Kirsten Simpson who was the first pianist to attend the Summer Academy of the Solti Accademia di Bel Canto in Italy. This last grant provided the additional opportunity to join resources with the Dame Malvina Major Foundation to enable Kirsten to complete her studies.