Our Trustees

Chairman

Kerry Stevens had a forty-five year career in radio and television as presenter, producer and trainer across a number of New Zealand locations. During three years with Foreign Affairs he was English Programme Advisor to the Fiji Broadcasting Commission and enjoyed a stint at the training school of Radio Deutsche Welle in Cologne. His final posting saw fifteen years as executive producer for Radio New Zealand Concert in Auckland. Kerry studied piano and organ, worked part-time with an organ builder (even building his own organ) and sang in several choirs.  As an advisor to the Auckland Town Hall Organ Trust he devised the Adopt-a-Pipe scheme, produced a documentary on the building of the organ and gave dozens of presentations around the city. He became deputy chairman in 2010 and was elected chairman in 2020 following the departure of Kevin Bishop for Napier.

Deputy Chairman & Treasurer

Matt Pestle is a self-employed IT consultant.  A keen amateur musician, Matt studies piano with Rosemary Barnes, sings occasionally in choirs and enjoys dabbling with software organs.  His latest organ project converted the retired 3-manual console from St Matthew-in-the-City into a software practice organ.

Council Representative on the Trust

Deputy Mayor of Auckland Desley Simpson has a long family association with the Town Hall organ. The first organ installed at the Auckland Town Hall in 1911 was gifted by her great, great, great uncle, Sir Henry Brett – Mayor of Auckland in 1878.  He also secured the appointment of a city organist. Desley is a Justice of the Peace, very active in the local community and an organist.  She is a Councillor for Auckland – Orākei Ward, and is the council representative on the Trust.

A conductor, singer and organist working throughout Auckland, Nicholas is the Director of Music at St Matthew-in-the-City and Organist of King's College, Otahuhu. Originally from Christchurch, he studied at the University of Auckland under Dr. John Wells and Dr. Karen Grylls CNZM, and is currently studying for an honours degree in orchestral conducting at the University of Adelaide under Dr. Luke Dollman. Nicholas is a Conducting Fellow with the Auckland Symphony Orchestra, NZ Opera Chorus and GALS, Auckland's Rainbow Choir.

Soomin Kim is an organist and pianist based in Auckland. She regularly performs at services at All Saints Anglican Church Ponsonby and Pitt St Methodist Church, and has been collaborating with various individual musicians and ensembles, including the Auckland Philharmonia.

Born in Korea, she began learning the piano at the age of six and continued on the instrument after moving to NZ at 15. In 2021 she completed a conjoint degree in Bachelor of Music (Classical Performance) and Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) at the University of Auckland where she was introduced to the organ world. Her achievements include being selected as a Haydn Staples Piano Scholar (2019 & 2020), which involved concerti and chamber ensemble performances with APO and coaching from internationally renowned pianists; obtaining LTCL in Piano Recital (2015); and receiving the Anthony Jennings Memorial Prize (2020) (for her early keyboard studies), the Anna Nathan Early Keyboard Prizes (2018) and the second prize at the Auckland Organ Performance Competition (2020).

Music provides the balance in Soomin’s life, which is otherwise spent as an accountant.

We are pleased to welcome new trustee Matthew Harris.

Matthew is a lawyer holding LLB(Hons) and BA degrees from the University of Auckland and an LLM from New York University, where he studied as a Fullbright Scholar. He practised law overseas for 9 years before returning to Auckland in 2007 where he is currently a barrister specialising in commercial and civil litigation.

Matthew, who comes from a musical family, took an interest in the organ at the age of 12 and studied with Anita Banbury and later with James Tibbles. He became Organ Scholar at Holy Trinity Cathedral in 1990 where he played for weekly services, recorded programmes for RNZ and produced a CD.

In addition to being a trustee for the town hall organ he is chairman of the board of Sacred Heart College.

Lani is an international business consultant and serves as Secretary and Deputy Chair of the Auckland Town Hall Organ Trust, bringing her business and governance experience to the Trust. A lifelong musician, Lani began playing the piano at age four and has also played guitar and saxophone. She took up the organ in 2023.

Having grown up in Auckland, she has many happy memories of both performing and attending concerts at the Town Hall, and is particularly interested in helping ensure the Town Hall organ continues to be appreciated and enjoyed by future generations of musicians and audiences.

Photo of the original Auckland Town Hall Organ Trustees: Doug Astley, Stephen Hamilton QSM (Chairman), Sue Harvey, Patricia Goddard, Paul Harrop ONZM, Donald Trott ONZM JP. Absent: Graham Coxhead. | Photo by Kevin Bishop, 2010.

Foundation Members

Donald Trott ONZM JP and Stephen Hamilton QSM