Rick Wakeman CBE performed what he called the 'most extraordinary' concert of his life on 24 September 2026, playing two brand new pieces on a grand piano in the open air to an audience of more than 150 rescued bears at Tam Dao National Park in Vietnam.
The bears seemed fascinated by Rick and the music, and as he played, they became more inquisitive and ventured nearer. Rick's delight was clear as 11 moon bears came to sit in the lush grass to watch, coming right up to the piano to listen while lazing in the sun for their private concert. One bear, Georges, even stood up near the piano to get a closer look. The curious bears included Hector, Cintron, Xin Xin, Taz and Nora Jamjack.
Free the Final Bears Concert
The legendary keyboardist and composer performed his Free the Final Bears Concert at Animals Asia's bear sanctuary between 10.15-11.00am Vietnam time (4.15-5.00am in the UK). The concert included two brand new pieces - Dawn Reborn and Moon - which Rick wrote especially for the event in honour of bears rescued from bile farms by the charity.
The track Moon was written for Rick's own bear, Moon, who is cared for at Animals Asia's sanctuary in China, and the track Dawn Reborn was written for a bear called Dawn who attended the concert as she now lives in the safety of the Tam Dao sanctuary.
'The most extraordinary concert of my life'
Rick said: "I feel immensely honoured to have played here in this beautiful setting to these incredible bears today. It is honestly the most extraordinary concert of my life. I was looking at the bears the whole time, I almost forgot what I was playing. It was like I was in a bubble - just me and the bears. I mean I'll never in my life get to play a concert to such a well-behaved audience! They were brilliant.
"There were two bears in particular who came right up to the edge and I deliberately played around with the music a little bit as there were definitely certain things that they reacted to more than others. Obviously, we know music affects humans so I now know it affects bears too!
"I hope this will bring awareness of how important it is to free the final bears. I believe about four a month are dying in captivity. You've got to look around at these wonderful, wonderful bears – and I defy anybody to not want to save them."
Dr Jill Robinson MBE, Founder and CEO of Animals Asia, said: "Today has been the most magical day. I've never seen anything like it. To see these beautiful bears, who've known such pain and suffering, experience music played for them in the most special of settings, was such a privilege. This has been a wonderful celebration of hope and of gratitude to all the bears. But it's also a heartfelt promise to help the remaining bears who are left behind.
"It's especially fitting that Rick has chosen to dedicate a piece of music to Dawn, who heard Rick playing today, as music was a valuable part of her recovery. She was one of the most broken bears we have ever seen, but thanks to a carefully designed programme of care, including calm, low level music, she is now a beautiful, carefree bear enjoying the safety and peace of our sanctuary. Dawn reminds me every day why we must never give up on any bear."
Ambassadors and guardians
Rick played some music for Vietnamese dignitaries and, on their departure, settled at the piano in the surroundings of the lush Tam Dao national park to play the private concert to 150 rescued bears.
The concert was also enjoyed by fellow Animals Asia ambassadors Peter Egan and Lesley Nicol. Peter Egan was guardian to Peter Bear before his death earlier this year and is now guardian to another new young bear at Tam Dao Sanctuary, who he called Gus. Lesley is guardian to KING DARBS, who she named after her late husband, and Pickle Nicol.
A long-term ambassador for Animals Asia, Rick became a bear guardian to Cyril Wolverine in 2016 and wrote a piece of music especially for the bear, which appeared on Piano Odyssey, his 2018 album which reached number 7 in the UK album charts. This album also included a piece titled Rocky, for another rescued moon bear. Rick performed both these pieces at the concert.
Call to free the final bears
Rick Wakeman is one of 33 celebrities who signed an open letter to the Prime Minister of Vietnam calling for the final 125 bears still trapped on bear bile farms to be freed. He is urging the public to also sign the letter at animalsasia.org/free.
Extracting bile from bears is now banned in Vietnam. But around 125 bears - the last survivors of this devastating trade - are still trapped on the bile farms in tiny metal cages, sick, suffering and alone. With around four dying in their cages every month they urgently need saving.
Animals Asia has space in its sanctuaries and stand by ready to rescue them with the urgency they deserve. The charity is now calling on the Vietnamese government to mandate their release.
This rather unique concert took place at the same time as the Fat Bear Week contest in Alaska. The brown bears of Alaska's Katmai National Park & Preserve are pitted against each other over who gains the most weight ahead of their winter hibernation.
Bears can lose up to a third of their body mass during hibernation, in a bid to promote bear conservation, the public are invited to judge which bear they believe had got the chubbiest. The winner is then crowned Fat Bear Week champion and then gets to have a long sleep after all that eating.
