16 Facts About Richard Nunns

Richard Anthony Nunns was a Maori traditional instrumentalist of Pakeha heritage.

Richard Nunns was particularly known for playing taonga puoro and his collaboration with fellow Maori instrumentalist Hirini Melbourne.

Richard Nunns was a Pakeha of Scandinavian descent and was born into a musical family.

For many years, Richard Nunns performed with Hirini Melbourne, playing traditional Maori instruments.

Richard Nunns co-led the musicians at a dawn ceremony on opening day of Te Papa in 1998.

Richard Nunns made recordings with musicians covering a wide variety of styles, including Moana and the Moahunters, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the New Zealand String Quartet, King Kapisi, and Salmonella Dub.

Richard Nunns worked with composers Gareth Farr, Gillian Whitehead, and John Purser, and contributed to the soundtracks for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and Whale Rider.

In 2001, Richard Nunns achieved the position of research associate in the music department of the University of Waikato.

Richard Nunns was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2005, after which he rarely appeared in public.

In 2009, Richard Nunns was given the Arts Laureate award by the Arts Foundation of New Zealand.

Richard Nunns was the subject of a tribute concert in his honour held at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa in 2013.

Richard Nunns amassed over 70 traditional wind and percussion instruments within his collection throughout his long career.

Richard Nunns held an honorary life membership of the New Zealand Flute Association.

In 2001, Richard Nunns received a citation for services to music from the Composers Association of New Zealand.

Richard Nunns was a category winner twice in the New Zealand Music Awards.

Richard Nunns was bestowed an honorary doctorate by Victoria University of Wellington in 2008 for his contributions to Taonga Puoro.