St Andrew's College's Duncan Ferguson won the award at the Artisan Awards, which is part of the Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards.
He was in Wellington last week with a group of students on a field trip and he said it was very special to have the students with him when he collected the award.
Mr Ferguson plans to display it on his desk at school and said he was very humbled to win the award.
“To even be nominated was special. While winning an award is no motivation for what I do, it is gratifying to see that the long hours and hard work I put in has been recognised at a national level," he said.
“My amazing students provide the biggest motivation to do a good job. I am lucky to be their teacher,” he said.
Mr Ferguson was the only South Island finalist, with the others being Jane Egan, of Gisborne, and Auckland’s Sue Banham.
At St Andrew’s, Mr Ferguson manages 30 co-curricular groups across all genres of music, which more than 140 students are involved in. He did not expect to win the award but was quietly confident in his chances.
“If I didn’t win I would naturally have been disappointed, but at the same time still super proud that I was a finalist,” he said.
Mr Ferguson said the award will not change the way he works or how his students and colleagues view him.
“The main reason why I won the award is that I am constantly questioning my practice and figuring out new ways of better serving my students from year to year. That will continue to happen.
“The work I do on a national level training teachers and providing them with resources will [also] continue as I want to see all young musicians and composers in New Zealand empowered by the music education system,” Mr Ferguson said.
