Bernard Heinze

Bernard Heinze

Sir Bernard Thomas Heinze, AC (1 July 1894 – 10 June 1982) was an Australian Professor of Music, conductor, and Director of the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music.

He conducted all the orchestras run by the ABC, most particularly the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, of which he was chief conductor from 1933 to 1950. He was chief conductor of the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic from 1927, becoming Honorary Life Conductor in the 1960s, and continuing his association with the RMP until 1978.

He was also Guest Conductor of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in 1939. Discouraged by Australian audiences' lack of interest in music, he founded Children's Concerts. He also initiated the Young Performers Awards, which continue to showcase emerging international talent.

He introduced Australian audiences to the works of Anton Bruckner, Dmitri Shostakovich, Béla Bartók and William Walton, and promoted Australian composers. He was the first Australian to be knighted for services to music, in 1949. He played a central role in shaping Australia’s musical life through teaching and performance, habits of listening, broadcasting and composition. At his retirement, Bernard Heinze was hailed as the most influential figure in Australian music, critics declaring: 'there is not a fibre of our musical life that has not been modified by his career.'

Read more about Bernard Heinze:  Biography, Honours, Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award

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