AUSTRALIAN WORLD ORCHESTRA - Key Persons
Alex is a disputes, litigation and insolvency lawyer. He is a Principal at King and Collins specialising in complex private wealth disputes and litigation.
Alex was educated at Sydney and Monash Universities, completing his articles with Arnold Bloch Leibler in 1997. He was appointed a senior associate of the firm in 2000 and became a partner in 2004. Alex is also a regular presenter of papers to lawyers and non-lawyers regarding the practical application of the law in business contexts, in Australia and overseas.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer / ALEXANDER BRIGER AO / Chief Conductor and Artistic Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Marketing and Social Media Coordinator
Andrew McEvoy, currently the Head of the Tourism sector at NEOM, is at the forefront of shaping the world's most ambitious destination development, seamlessly integrating diverse natural habitats with an untold heritage story to redefine the future of tourism. With a distinguished career, he previously served as the Managing Director and CEO of Tourism Australia, achieving the remarkable feat of doubling national tourism receipts in less than a decade through the successful Tourism 2020 Strategy. McEvoy, a seasoned company director, has chaired notable entities such as Sealink Travel Group and the Tourism and Transport Forum. Holding extensive C-suite roles, he also served as the Managing Director of Fairfax Media's lifestyle and events business and CEO of the South Australian Tourism Commission. Currently, McEvoy remains the Chairman of the Lux Group and serves as a Director of Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, overseeing the iconic Ayers Rock Resort. An investor in various technology startups, he holds a Master of Arts in International Communications and a Bachelor of Arts degree, reflecting his dedication to advancing the tourism industry's technological landscape.
The AWO brings together Australia's finest musicians from home and overseas with the greatest international conductors of our time.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Chairman, BComm, BApp Fin, CA
- Managing Partner and Founder of Quintet Partners
Douglas is the Managing Partner and Founder of Quintet Partners, a private equity and real estate investment management firm based in Sydney. Prior to establishing the firm, he was a Managing Director and Head of Mergers & Acquisitions and Real Estate for Citigroup Australia. Douglas has 20 years of investment and advisory experience on over $100 billion of completed M&A transactions in Australia and abroad. Before joining Citigroup's Hong Kong office in 2010, he worked at Lehman Brothers and Deutsche Bank. Douglas is a Chartered Accountant, received B Commerce and Finance degrees from Macquarie University and attended Sydney Grammar School. He developed a passion for classical music in his youth, playing the piano and violin (although any talent has long since faded).
Douglas was appointed Chair of the AWO in December 2022.
"I am thrilled to be involved in this amazing project. AWO is a wonderful venture, not only connecting both national and international musicians, but also supporting the development of many up and coming young Australian musicians who will benefit enormously from the education program."
Job Titles:
- Director of Friends of the Mater Foundation
- Member of the Sydney Lawyers Orchestra
Felicity, a lawyer, is a Partner of law firm Allens.
Her legal practice specialises in planning and environmental law, acting for Australia's leading institutional and private investors and developers across all real estate sectors. Felicity is acknowledged as a pre-eminent practitioner in a number of leading legal directories.
Felicity is also a director of Friends of the Mater Foundation, which supports the operations of the Mater Hospital in Sydney.
A keen musician, since 2015 Felicity has been a member of the Sydney Lawyers Orchestra.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Member of the Board
- Principal
- Associate Principal Clarinet
- Founding Member of One of Sydney
Frank graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1987. He then studied in Amsterdam and in 1991 he returned to Australia, where he was appointed Principal Clarinet with the then Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra.
Frank joined the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in 1993 as Associate Principal Clarinet. He has appeared with them as a soloist as well as with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, and Guest Principal Clarinet at the Philharmonia Orchestra London and London Symphony Orchestra.
Frank is a founding member of one of Sydney's leading chamber ensembles, the Sydney Soloists, and the New Sydney Wind Quintet. He is also a dedicated teacher and since 1994 has taught clarinet at the Sydney Conservatorium where he is a Lecturer in Clarinet. He has conducted masterclasses at the Shanghai Conservatorium, Trinity College, London and for the AWO. In 2013 Frank was appointed Artistic Director of the Australian International Symphony Orchestra Institute (AISOI) - until its closure in 2017. Simultaneously, he joined the staff of the Conservatorium of Music, Hobart as Lecturer in Orchestral and Chamber Music until 2017.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Chief Executive Officer / ALEXANDER BRIGER AO / Chief Conductor and Artistic Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Executive Manager, Corporate Partnerships
Harish grew up in Melbourne, where he attended Melbourne Grammar School before completing higher studies at the Australian National University and Monash University. He has an MBA (Finance) and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Professionally, Harish is the face of the Sundaram Finance Group, a US$5billion financial services conglomerate, based in Chennai, India. In Australia, the group is involved with Financial and Business Process Outsourcing through its subsidiary, Sundaram Business Services Limited.
Harish currently also sits on the Board of Guide Dogs Victoria, the Australian Friends of ASHA and the Australia India Institute. He is also on the Advisory Board of the World Mosquito Program.
Harish has been a Patron of the AWO since 2012 and was Chair of the AWO from November 2018 to December 2022.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Orchestral Operations Manager
Karen is a management consultant with over 25 years executive leadership and business experience, principally in the financial services industry. She specialises in business strategy, governance, coaching, high-stakes facilitation, complex negotiations, compliance, risk and project execution.
Prior to consulting, Karen was General Counsel at QBE Mercantile Mutual. Before that, she was a Senior Associate at Phillips Fox and a solicitor at Mallesons Stephen Jaques.
Karen is most at home in complex and uncertain environments, start-ups and organisations facing unprecedented change. Through these testing environments, she has earned a reputation for decisive and empowering leadership, ‘straight talk' and exemplary commonsense problem solving.
Job Titles:
- Librarian
- Member of the Management Team
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Project Manager and Artist Liaison
"I am proud to be a patron of the AWO. It is an incredible thing to bring together Australia's finest musicians to perform under the great conductors of the world but it is a greater vision to use their unique collectiveness to inspire and empower young musicians through the AWO's extensive education programme. Engaging with students at crucial stages in their development is one of the most valuable investments into the arts we can make."
Miles is Chief Financial Officer of Plenti, a technology-led financial services firm listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. Prior to joining Plenti, Miles was Chief Financial Officer of Caltex's Retail business and before that General Manager - Strategy for Caltex. Miles commenced his career with UBS where he spent 14 years working in investment banking.
Miles has always been significantly better at listening to and appreciating music than performing it, having peaked as a very average Euphonium player in his youth.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Finance Manager
- Member of the Management Team
Job Titles:
- Founding Director
- Member of the Management Team
- Chief Financial Officer ( Finance Director ), Honorary
Neil is a founding director of the Australian World Orchestra and served as its Chairman from 2011- 2015.
In 2013-2016, Neil served in an executive capacity as Finance Director. Prior to 2013 and since 2016 he served as Finance Director in an honorary capacity.
Neil has had a 40 year career serving as a director and executive in senior corporate and finance roles with a number of public and private companies. Most recently Neil was the Chief Financial Officer of the Ascender group from 2016 to 2021. Neil is currently a Non-Executive director of City Chic Collective Limited (ASX: CCX) and a Finance Operating Partner with Potentia Capital, an Australian based private equity firm.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Executive and Philanthropy Assistant
Job Titles:
- Member of the Management Team
- Executive Manager, Marketing and Communications