The Athol Mann Award for Classical Voice was established in 2018 with a generous bequest from Athol Mann in acknowledgment of his passion for Opera and commitment to students of classical voice.
The late Emeritus Professor Athol Mann, a former Dean of what is now known as Wellington School of Business and Government and a prominent Wellington figure, has left a long legacy at Victoria University of Wellington.
While his career was in accountancy, Athol originally planned to study history and had a lifelong interest in the arts. He grew up in a musical family and developed a passion for opera after seeing an internationally acclaimed cast perform Verdi’s Rigoletto in his home city of Christchurch as a teenager. He once said that he had an “addiction for music the way some others have an addiction for golf”.
Founded in 1897, Victoria University of Wellington is a non-profit public higher education institution located in the urban setting of the large town of Wellington (population range of 50,000-249,999 inhabitants). Officially accredited and/or recognized by the Ministry for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, New Zealand, Victoria University of Wellington is a large (uniRank enrollment range: 15,000-19,999 students) coeducational higher education institution. Victoria University of Wellington offers courses and programs leading to officially recognized higher education degrees such as bachelor degrees in several areas of study. See the uniRank degree levels and areas of study matrix below for further details. This 122 years old higher-education institution has a selective admission policy based on entrance examinations.