Nicholas Heyward, long serving Managing Director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, today announces that he will step down at the end of 2018, the conclusion of his current contract.
Dr David Rich, Chairman of the TSO Board, praised Mr Heyward’s innovation and significant contribution to the current endeavours and reputation of the TSO, “During his tenure as Managing Director, Nicholas has realised a vision for the TSO which has positioned the orchestra as central to the cultural life of Tasmania.”
“Under the direction of both Nicholas’s management and the artistic leadership of Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Marko Letonja, the TSO has been defined by a commitment to excellence reflected in the current quality of the orchestra, its very strong reputation nationally and internationally and its ability to attract the highest calibre of international soloists and visiting conductors.”
“Nicholas has reinforced the TSO as a vital and innovative artistic institution, and one which continues to play a key role in the current buoyant cultural climate of Tasmania, demonstrated by its ability to attract visitors to the state.”
Mr Heyward, originally from Tasmania, was appointed as Managing Director of the TSO in 2001, having held executive management roles with key Australian artistic institutions including Victoria State Opera, Musica Viva Australia, Brisbane Biennial International Music Festival and, latterly, the Adelaide Festival of the Arts where he served as CEO from 1997 to 2001. Mr Heyward previously pursued an extensive career in the UK, where he worked as Assistant House Manager and then Merchandising Manager at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
During the mid-2000s Mr Heyward navigated the process of the TSO evolving from being a part of the nationally based ABC Concert Music to becoming an independent, not-for-profit Tasmanian institution. He secured a national role for the TSO, with the introduction of elite training programs, including the Australian Conducting Academy, and established Australian music as an ongoing strategic pillar of the TSO through the Australian Music Program – which ensures the inclusion of Australian music in every TSO Masters Series – and the establishment of the Australian Composer Series which includes 21 recordings on ABC Classics, the Hush project and recordings on UK based Hyperion records. Mr Heyward established a separate endowment fund, the TSO Foundation, to ensure artistic growth and financial stability for the orchestra.
Recent highlights from Mr Heyward’s tenure at the helm of the TSO include: the orchestra’s highly successful tour of China in 2016-2017, performing nine concerts in seven cities, including Shanghai and Nanjing; and the 2016 Helpmann Award-Winning concert performance of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, featuring operatic stars Nina Stemme and Stuart Skelton.
Mr Heyward has also secured and developed important ongoing relationships for the TSO with cultural organisations both within Tasmania and interstate, including collaborations with the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) – with annual participation (since inception) in Mona Foma and Dark Mofo festivals – the Australian Ballet, the Australian National Academy of Music, Festival of Voices and, most recently, with Victorian Opera, presenting annual performances of opera in Tasmania.
Mr Heyward enabled and encouraged a range of innovative initiatives away from the concert stage, including an extensive outreach program including initiatives with Risdon Prison, and the AccessTix scheme in partnership with Hydro Tasmania, which enables free tickets for those in the community less able to attend concerts, as well as their carers.
Mr Heyward has been a driving force in the TSO’s extremely successful collaborations with contemporary music artists, who have included Ben Folds, Missy Higgins, Sarah Blasko, Amanda Palmer, Kate Miller-Heidke, Megan Washington and, most recently, The Violent Femmes for Mona Foma 2018, as well as the TSO Live Sessions series which presents the orchestra in informal settings, an initiative designed to build engagement with younger audiences.
Mr Heyward has held non-executive board directorships for a number of organisations and bodies including the Theatre Royal, chair of the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board, chair of Symphony Services Australia and the National Trust Tasmania, which he currently chairs.
Dr Rich said that the TSO Board will undertake an international recruitment process to secure an outstanding appointee to sustain and build on Mr Heyward’s many contributions.
Samuel Cairnduff Director Marketing and Communications, TSO
