Internationally acclaimed violinist Peter Tanfield returns to the Art Gallery at Royal Park for an intimate performance held amongst QVMAG’s latest collection exhibition.
The program features works by composers central to Tanfield’s musical life, including Niccolò Paganini, Eugène Ysaÿe and Johann Sebastian Bach.
Set within the new QVMAG exhibition Out of the Vault, this performance offers a quiet, reflective encounter between sound, memory, and collection, where selected works on display meet a selection of music chosen and performed by the artist.
About the artist
Peter Tanfield is an internationally acclaimed violinist whose career spans continents and decades. Born in England in 1961, he began playing the violin at the age of four and went on to study with some of the world’s most revered teachers, including Yehudi Menuhin, Igor Ozim, and Herman Krebbers. He is a prize-winner at prestigious competitions such as the Carl Flesch, Mozart, and Bach International Competitions.
Peter has performed as a soloist and chamber musician across Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the Middle East, appearing with major orchestras including the Philharmonia, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and West German Radio Orchestra. His collaborations include work with musical legends such as Astor Piazzolla, Itzhak Perlman, and Arvo Pärt, and he has recorded extensively for radio, television, and CD.
In addition to his performance career, Peter has held significant teaching and leadership roles in the UK, Europe, and Australia. He has served as Head of Strings at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Artistic Director of the Adelaide Chamber Orchestra, and led the Australian String Quartet.
Peter has a deep and on going connection to Tasmania. He has taught at the University of Tasmania’s Conservatorium of Music, served as Artistic Director of the Tasmanian Senior Youth Orchestra and the Derwent Symphony Orchestra, and continues to contribute as Artistic Advisor to the Hobart Chamber Orchestra. His work in Tasmania reflects his commitment to nurturing musical excellence and community engagement through performance and education. He now dedicates himself to performance and professional development projects at institutions in Australia and overseas, most recently in 2023 at Bard College, New York State, USA.
About the exhibition
QVMAG's latest collection exhibition Out of the Vault provides a unique opportunity to bring unexpected objects, hidden favourites, and overlooked curiosities back into public view.
Selected by members of the QVMAG team, Out of the Vault is designed for audiences to encounter the remarkable breadth of the QVMAG collection as a world shaped by innumerable people, perspectives, and personalities over time.
The chosen objects and artworks move between the historical, humorous, beautiful and the bizarre. Out of the Vault reminds us that museums are living collections – constantly changing, growing, and revealing new stories depending on who is looking, and why.
Out of the Vault
Art Gallery at Royal Park | 2 Wellington St, Launceston
13 June – 23 August 2026
Free entry | Open daily, 10am to 4pm
Privacy Statement
As required under the Personal Information Protection Act 2004:
1. Personal information is managed in accordance with the Personal Information Protection Act 2004 (the Act) and may be accessed by the individual to whom it relates, on request to City of Launceston.
2. Your personal information is collected by the City of Launceston for the purpose of operating the program including issuing tickets and contacting you regarding your booking. If you consent, photos and videos may also be captured of you for the purpose of marketing and promotions ("the Purpose").
3. Information may be used and disclosed for other purposes permitted by the Act. Personal information may be disclosed to third parties, including other public sector bodies, agents or contractors of the City of Launceston, in accordance with our Personal Information Protection (Privacy) Policy (17-Plx-005) and the Act.
4. City of Launceston will take all reasonable steps to ensure that the use or disclosure of your information to a third party is consistent with the Purpose.
5. With the exception of consenting to the collection of photos and videos, failure to provide this information may result in your ticket purchase request not being able to be accepted or processed.
To read more about the City of Launceston Privacy Statement, head to: https://www.launceston.tas.gov.au/Council-Region/Privacy-Statement.