UC Alumni Wellington Chapter Event - May 2023

You are invited to a UC Alumni Wellington Chapter event on Thursday 18 May with guest speaker Christopher Blake.

Time: 5.30pm - 7.30pm
When: Thursday 18 May 2013
Where: The Wellington Club, 5th floor, 88 The Terrace, Wellington
Cost: $15-25 per person (drinks and refreshments will be provided)

RSVP by Monday 15 May.

Speaker bio: Christopher Blake

Christopher Blake had no idea where two disparate degrees from the University of Canterbury would lead.  As it turned out they provided an ideal foundation for a forty-year career spanning leadership positions in the professional performing arts, Chief Executive roles in the NZ Public Service and the creation of a body of work as a classically trained composer.

The performing arts have encompassed a theatre company, an opera company, Radio NZ Concert and three orchestras including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra where he was Chief Executive for eight years before his retirement in early 2020.

His role heading the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in the 1980s was the steppingstone to appointment as the Foundation Chief Executive of the then Ministry of Cultural Affairs.  This marked the beginning of the public service dimension of his career and was followed by Chief Executive roles at the National Library (a government department at the time), Department of Internal Affairs and Department of Labour.

Civil engineering and music might seem strange companions, but elements of each discipline have been constantly at play across his roles and responsibilities over the years.  His diverse experiences of New Zealand’s cultural sector and from working at the heart of government have also been germane to his work as a composer.

Christopher Blake had no idea where two disparate degrees from the University of Canterbury would lead.  As it turned out they provided an ideal foundation for a forty-year career spanning leadership positions in the professional performing arts, Chief Executive roles in the NZ Public Service and the creation of a body of work as a classically trained composer.

The performing arts have encompassed a theatre company, an opera company, Radio NZ Concert and three orchestras including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra where he was Chief Executive for eight years before his retirement in early 2020.

His role heading the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in the 1980s was the steppingstone to appointment as the Foundation Chief Executive of the then Ministry of Cultural Affairs.  This marked the beginning of the public service dimension of his career and was followed by Chief Executive roles at the National Library (a government department at the time), Department of Internal Affairs and Department of Labour.

Civil engineering and music might seem strange companions, but elements of each discipline have been constantly at play across his roles and responsibilities over the years.  His diverse experiences of New Zealand’s cultural sector and from working at the heart of government have also been germane to his work as a composer.