Since then, he continues to be an enthusiastic supporter of the centre: “I am so excited about it. This is the most wonderful thing for New Zealand.”

James was NZSO Music Director from 1999 to 2007 and for many years has been an advocate for music education. In June and July this year he was back in New Zealand to conduct joint concerts by NZSO National Youth Orchestra and New Zealand Youth Choir, marking their 60^th and 40^th birthdays respectively.

James says having the NZSO and Victoria University of Wellington’s New Zealand School of Music—Te Kōkī based in the same complex will be a “godsend” for both institutions. “The fundamental goal with orchestras all over the world these days is to get involved in education,” he says. “If you have everything under the one roof it will be an absolute dream for both organisations. I can just imagine the collaborations, the opportunities to visit rehearsals. The possibilities are infinite.”

James, Music Director of the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra and Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of Korea’s Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, says prestigious music schools elsewhere in the world have strong links with orchestras. Some of the best known include the Julliard School with the New York Philharmonic and the Curtis Institute of Music with the Philadelphia Orchestra. The national music centre can be the New Zealand equivalent.

He still remembers his days as a music student in London where he spent much of his time seeing orchestras perform at the Royal Festival Hall, or watching them rehearse. “I hope that will be the case for students in the new centre. They will learn so much.”