He is a conductor born in Sydney,
Australia, and his
surname is pronounced "Bonning".He studied piano at the Royal College of Music in London
but gave up his scholarship, choosing to continue private tuition in the
piano and as a singing coach.One of his pupils was the soprano
Joan
Sutherland , and after
accompanying her on tour they married and worked together on recitals until
1962 and since then he has been her conductor on most of her
appearances.He is also
passionate about ballet and he has recorded many of the well-known ones
alongside the ones that have been neglected over the years.His service to music was
recognized in 1977 when he was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the
British Empire).
