Our immensely talented and passionate Artistic Team are the foundation of our educational program.
They provide the knowledge, musicianship and inspiration for our orchestras, ensuring that each musician develops and improves their skills throughout the year.
Artistic Director; Musical Director, Resonance Jazz Orchestra
Gemma Farrell
Gemma Farrell is a jazz saxophonist, composer, educator. She holds a Master of Music degree from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, a Bachelor of Music with Honours from the Queensland Conservatorium, and is currently a PhD candidate and lecturer in jazz studies at WAAPA.
Gemma was a member of the WAYJO band from 2003 to 2007 and has been a staff member for more than a decade, leading the WAYJO Pathways Program and Progressions since 2014. Under her leadership, this program was nominated for the APRA AMCOS Art Music Award for Excellence in Music Education in both 2023 and 2024 alongside WAYJO NC.
In 2024, Gemma was awarded the APRA AMCOS Art Music Award for WA State Luminary and the Australian Women in Music Award for Humanitarian Advocacy. That same year, she conducted our Resonance Jazz Orchestra (previously known as Wednesday Night Orchestra) in a collaboration with Grammy-winning bassist Linda May Han Oh at the State Theatre Centre.
Gemma is the founder and musical director of the Artemis Orchestra, whose acclaimed recording ‘The Elephant in the Room’ won the 2022 WAM Song of the Year in the Jazz Category. She was awarded Best Brass, String or Woodwind Instrumentalist at the 2020 WAM Awards and has received 13 further WAM nominations across categories including Best Jazz Act and Best Funk Act.
In 2022, she founded the Femme Composers Ensemble at WAAPA, which became the New Standards ensemble in 2024, continuing its mission of promoting diversity in jazz. To date, Gemma has released nine albums as a leader, showcasing her work as both a performer and composer.
Musical Director, Dynamic Jazz Orchestra
Marty Pervan
For over 20 years Marty has performed as a musician on trumpet, trombone, sousaphone and alto, tenor and baritone saxophones; taught brass, theory, composition and improvisation in several primary and secondary schools; and has directed large and small school and community ensembles – including for WAYJO. Marty’s musical versatility has enabled him to engage in a diverse range of genres from New Orleans style brass, Latin, jazz (small to large groups), reggae, ska, dub, funk/soul, as well as his own original music for quartet, sextet, and big band.
He often plays with his own Latin group, Nueva Salsa Orchestra; local symphony orchestras; and is in high demand as a session musician appearing on over 50 recordings as a performer, and or composer and arranger. He is a regular part of the pool of pit musicians hired for professional touring musical productions – most recently the Perth season of “Hair”, Tim Minchin’s “Matilda” and the Disney touring production of “Aladdin”.
Musical Director, Catalyst Jazz Orchestra [On parental leave in 2026]
Ricki Malet
Ricki Malet has been performing all over Perth for the last 20 years, including a residency with quartet, The Fix, at the Moon Café for 15 years with various bands covering lots of different styles and touring extensively. With tours to Europe with original band, Prawns with Horns (2002); New York with WAYJO (2006), and Australian tours with funk outfit, The Roast (2007); Mace Francis Orchestra (2006, 2008, 2010, 2011 & 2013), Daniel Susnjar Afro-Peruvian Jazz Group (2017 & 2018), and the Jamie Oehlers Quintet (2019). Ricki has also played and recorded with the Australian National Jazz Orchestra at the Sydney Con Jazz Festival (2017 & 2019) and been invited to perform and workshop students at The Brubeck Institute (2014, 2016 & 2017), SHOWA University in Tokyo, Japan (2018); and Kunstuniversität Graz (2019).
He has recorded seven albums with MFO, two albums with trad jazz group, The Hounds; and albums with Daniel Susnjar’s Afro-Peruvian Jazz Group, the Australian National Jazz Orchestra, Jamie Oehlers, Kate Pass Kohesia Ensemble, and an album and EP with his electric band, Fat Sparrow. He also features on tracks with many other groups including Descarga, Prawns with Horns, Drapht, Optamus, Odette Mercy and her Soul Atomics, Saritah and more. When not performing, Ricki teaches at the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts.
Musical Director, Catalyst Jazz Orchestra [for 2026]
Tom Salleo
Tom Salleo is a director, composer and performer who brings energy and excellence to the big band tradition. He encourages musicians to approach ensemble playing with curiosity, discipline and joy, while fostering a strong appreciation of jazz repertoire and history.
A First Class Honours graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Tom specialised in jazz composition and arranging under Vanessa Perica. His development has included programs at Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York University, the Brubeck Institute and SHOWA University. A former WAYJO member (2012–2019), he has directed the Hills Big Band since 2020 and leads his own contemporary project, the Tom Salleo Orchestra.
An active performer and educator in Perth, Tom creates environments where young musicians feel supported, challenged and empowered to develop their musical identity. At WAYJO, he aims to build cohesive ensembles and deliver dynamic performances grounded in jazz tradition and informed by a contemporary big band approach.
Music Director, Northern Corridor Training Band
Jess Herbert
Jess Herbert is a musician, band leader, arts worker, events producer, and a graduate of WAAPA with over 15 years experience in the music and arts scene in WA. She is the Founder and Creative Director of Perth Cabaret Collective and The Amnesiacs Big Band, and is Musical Director of the UWA Jazz Ensemble. Jess is a local Maylands resident and the recipient of the 2023 City of Bayswater’s Women in Leadership Award. She is also the Founder and Co-Artistic Director of the Lyric Lane Jazz Festival. A strong champion for gender diversity in the music scene, Jess has inspired many young female musicians to pursue a career in music and the arts and works tirelessly to represent peoples of marginalised genders in all aspects of her work.
Artistic Team
Catalyst Jazz Orchestra Musical Director
Tom Salleo (while Ricki Malet is on paternity leave for 2026)
Dynamic Jazz Orchestra Musical Director
Marty Pervan
Resonance Jazz Orchestra Musical Director
Gemma Farrell
2026 Assistant Musical Director
Sarah Bugeja
Progressions Program Coordinator
Gemma Farrell – gemma.farrell@wayjo.com