View Photo Gallery

Sir Howard Morrison

The late NZ entertainer, Sir Howard Morrison, was a close friend of GFF founder Owen Glenn. During his lifetime, the GFF gave significant support to causes associated with Sir Howard’s passion for youth, music and entertainment. The legacy of their friendship lives on in the Foundation’s initiatives below.

Vocal Scholarship

The Sir Howard Morrison Vocal Scholarship was developed following discussions by Owen Glenn and Dame Malvina Major at the funeral of their close friend, Sir Howard Morrison, in late September 2009. Both wanted to honour Sir Howard in an appropriate way, to celebrate his musical career.

The scholarship is administered by The Dame Malvina Major Foundation and is awarded annually to a New Zealand performer of exceptional potential aged between 16 and 32 years of age. Dame Malvina conducts the auditions with a panel of judges. She also provides private tuition to the recipient, plus assists with some travel and accommodation costs, if required. Dame Malvina said she wanted to help choose talented people who had the ability to make a career out of singing and performance, as Sir Howard Morrison and she, herself, had been able to do.

2010 Scholar

The the first Scholarship recipient was Te Waikamihi Korohina-Ormsby, a 16 year old student at Rotorua Girls’ High School, who is also a member of the New Zealand Secondary Schools Choir. Dame Malvina said that Te Wai had a lovely, natural, voice and had performed really well and very sincerely. She was happy to have Te Wai as her student and would look to take her as far as possible for her future development.
Of Ngati Porou and Te Arawa descent, Te Waikamihi travelled to Christchurch each month during 2010 for private singing lessons with Dame Malvina and also had piano and music theory lessons as part of the scholarship.

2011 Scholar

Twenty year-old Amina Edris was the Sir Howard Morrison Vocal Scholarship winner in 2011. Born in Egypt, Amina immigrated to Christchurch with her family at the age of 10. By the end of 2011, the soprano will have completed her Bachelor of Music in Performance Voice at the University of Canterbury and hopes to continue her studies at a postgraduate level. Like her predecessor Te Waikamihi, she is receiving a year of tutoring from Dame Malvina Major. Amina is a member of the Southern Opera chorus and also part of their Artist Development Programme in which she receives vocal coaching from renowned Australian repetiteour Sharolyn Kimmorley. Amina made her operatic debut as Serpina in Pergolesi's "La Serva Padrona" in the 2010 University of Canterbury Platform Arts Festival and now sings regularly at the Christchurch Cathedral as a featured soloist and with the Cantores chamber choir conducted by Brian Law.

The Manaakitanga Aotearoa Trust and Owen Glenn Scholarships

In 2004 the GFF donated $100,000 to the Rotorua-based Manaakitanga Aotearoa Trust, run by Sir Howard Morrison’s family. This was to provide scholarships for promising young Maori students who show leadership and academic potential, to help them through their high school and/or tertiary education.

Since then, 24 students have received grants to help them through the latter stages of secondary school, while a further six have received financial support for their university or other tertiary-level studies. Go to web site for more information.