Dame Malvina Major
Dame Malvina Major, of Hamilton, received the Insignia of a Member of the Order of New Zealand, for services to New Zealand. Dame Malvina is one of New Zealand’s great opera divas. She has had an outstanding international career as a singer, but is also renowned as a teacher of voice and for her encouragement of the next generation of artists through the Dame Malvina Major Foundation. Her international career spans 28 major operatic roles, an extensive oratorio and concert repertoire and a significant discography of commercial recordings. She has held teaching positions as a Professor of Voice at the University of Canterbury and is a Senior Fellow in Music at the University of Waikato. The Dame Malvina Major Foundation was formed in 1992 and continues to support the training of young New Zealand artists. The Foundation’s Emerging Artists Programme was established in conjunction with New Zealand Opera and PricewaterhouseCoopers, along with an understudy programme with Canterbury Opera. Dame Malvina completed a ‘Heartland Tour’ entitled ‘My Life in Song’, touring the North Island in 2009 and the South Island in 2010 as well as opera concerts with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. She performed at the Christchurch earthquake memorial service in March 2011. Dame Malvina continues to perform regularly, most recently at the Waikato Times Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival with current student, Amina Edris, in February 2012. She has maintained her connections with international institutions in the United States, England and Europe and is pursuing new contacts in Asia.