Richard Bonsall, born in New Zealand in 1955, began his training as a soloist with the New Zealand Boys Choir and continued with the Belmont Singers of Auckland. Richard won the Junior Vocal Championships at the Auckland Competitions three times and in 1969 also won the Children's Vocal Championships at the North Shore Competitions. In 1970 he won the North Shore Mardi Gras Junior Talent Quest. Radio broadcasts and two appearances on television's "On Camera" added to Richard's experience, culminating in his success on Chris Bourn's national television programme, "Studio One: 1970." For his years, Richard has also had considerable stage experience, having taken the lead roled in a number of productions: Amahl and the Night Visitors, The Emporer and his Nightengale, The Bride of Seville (adapted from Rossini's Barber), Pinocchio and the Children's Crusade. Richard's interest in music is very wide in scope and will be perpetuated beyond his soprano years in his playing of piano, oboe and clarinet. He recorded extensively during his career as a treble soloist, including four full-length LPs released between 1970-74, and is featured on "The Better Land" compilation. A selection of his recorded work was re-released in 1999 on the "Encore" CD. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.