Former airline boss Tony Davis has been appointed Board Chair of Sinfonia Viva – the Grammy-nominated East Midlands’ professional orchestra to drive forward its ambitious growth plans.

Mr Davis first became involved with Sinfonia Viva almost 15 years ago when he was

The Castle Donington based airline supported Viva’s tour of Ireland in 2005 including a performance in Cork as part of the official European Capital of Culture programme.

In addition to being an aviation consultant and advisor, he has also pursued a lifelong interest in music and the arts with involvement in the Lichfield Festival, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and now Sinfonia Viva.

Sinfonia Viva Chief Executive Peter Helps highlighted the importance of embracing the synergies between the corporate and arts sectors.

“Tony joins us at a pivotal time in our development as a long-established Orchestra with an excellent reputation for taking high quality classical music to a wide range of audiences.

“His extensive business experience and genuine love for orchestra music will be vital to Sinfonia Viva’s vision for growth and diversification so that we can move the Orchestra to another level both here in the East Midlands and further afield.

Mr Davis said “I am looking forward to joining Viva at this exciting moment in its journey and contributing towards the further success of the organisation

 “Viva with its well established mix of both concert performances and nationally acclaimed education and community projects is unique in that it is not a conventional orchestra.

“The breadth of the Orcehestra’s work whether that is in the concert hall, village hall or in local communities and educational settings shares the common denominator of making high quality classical music accessible to all.

“I have been particularly impressed with the Orchestra’s work with older people in care homes and young people with special educational needs and I’m keen that this ground- breaking work is expanded into other areas to enrich even more people’s lives.”

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Media enquiries: Sarah Jenkin-Jones, JJPR, Tel: 01332 515102; 07951 945665; [email protected]

Note to Editors

Sinfonia Viva

Grammy-nominated Sinfonia Viva is a virtuoso ensemble delivering original and extraordinary creative musical experiences. Founded in 1982, Sinfonia Viva has a national reputation as a leader in creative music activity in the UK. Its work offers relevant and enriching possibilities for all.

Sinfonia Viva is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. For more information about all of Viva’s other performances, visit the website, www.vivaorch.co.uk

Tony Davis

Tony Davis was born in London in 1965.  He went to school near to Heathrow Airport and an early interest in aviation has led to an airline career spanning more than 30 years.

During his time in Asia, he served as a non-executive director of the Singapore Tourism Board and served on various boards in Singapore, Australia and South Korea.

Following his return to the UK in 2012, he became a partner in Irelandia Aviation, a leading airline start-up investment fund with interests in a number of Latin America countries, and established his own aviation consultancy firm.

He has had a lifelong interest in music and the arts, having been an enthusiastic schoolboy musician and his partner of more than 20 years being a professional violinist. He previously served on the board of New College Nottingham and the Lichfield Festival and has a keen interest in youth, diversity and education issues.  

He holds a post graduate diploma in business administration from Lancaster University, is a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, a fellow of the Institute of Travel and Tourism, and a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.