The 2022 Australia Day Honours have been announced, with keyboardist Geoffrey Lancaster, percussionist Claire Edwardes and violinist Charmian Gadd among the honourees.

This year 732 awards were given out, with the Governor-General, David Hurley, highlighting that the highest ever percentage (47 percent) are for women.

“It has been a challenging couple of years and the recipients announced today are a reminder and reflection of the richness of spirit, selflessness and good in our community,” said Hurley.

“The fact that the list includes the highest ever percentage of women is very encouraging and I look forward to this positive trend continuing. We will continue to increase awareness and encourage nominations for people from parts of our community that have been historically underrepresented.”

“To the individuals being celebrated today; thank you for your contribution to Australia and congratulations on being recognised by your peers and your nation.”

Lancaster was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to the arts, particularly music, through education, performance, research and philanthropy. Lancaster has had a long and distinguished career in music education at the tertiary level, including at the Australian National University (ANU), University of Western Australia and Edith Cowan University. He also has a...