He was offered a scholarship to Trinity College at the London School of Music, but World War II prevented him accepting it.
At a concert in Munich, he received a standing ovation after playing the Violin Concerto by Felix Werder; a performance by him of this piece, with the MSO, was released in 1971 on an LP from the now-defunct Festival label.
Later he was music master and conductor at St Margaret's Girls School in Brisbane, where they performed Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and Fauré's Requiem, among several other works, under his direction.
He did a great deal of recording, including 56 concertos, and a disc of Mozart violin sonatas with Max Cooke.
In addition, he conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra in the premiere recording of Malcolm Williamson's Piano Concerto No.
The Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award is given to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to music in Australia.