Directed by Masa Ikeda and Mace Francis, the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra and Showa University of Music in Japan are together celebrating culture and their shared love of music in Perth next month – continuing a 10-year relationship, which started in 2014.

This 9-day cultural exchange from 1 November 2023 features 10 members from the Wednesday Night Orchestra (WNO) and six musicians from Showa, as well as the hosting of an Associate Professor and Assistant from the university, which is located in Shin-Yurigaoka just outside of central Tokyo.

WNO members taking part includes Aaron Caldwell (Alto Sax), Oliver Taylor (Tenor Sax), Ethan Nankivell (Tenor Sax), Naoko Uemoto (Baritone sax), Dusan Cuculoski (Trumpet), Ethan Lamb (Trumpet), Matthew Knight (Trumpet), Lindsay Bush (Trombone), Jules Arnold (Trombone) and Fred Hostman (Bass Trombone).

The Showa University of Music, the Showa Graduate School of Music and the Showa College of Music are part of the Tosei Gakuen Educational Foundation, which is renowned for its forward-thinking in music education in the areas of traditional western classical music, musical theatre, ballet, and jazz and popular music.

Thanks to the support of the North West Shelf Gas this cultural exchange includes an all-expenses trip for the travelling musicians, rehearsals, a recording session at Loop Studio, cultural activities and sightseeing as well as private and public performances.

The two groups will also be coming together to form a cross-cultural big band ‘SHOWAYJO’ at the Perth International Jazz Festival’s Jazz Picnic in the Park on Sunday 5 November at 2:15pm.

Playing classic big band repertoire as well as premiering a new work collectively composed by orchestra members, this free concert in Hyde Park also includes a performance by our Northern Corridor Band at 1pm, a jazz parade, WAAPA Mingus Ensemble & Jazz Vocal Ensemble and The Vampires (NSW).

This exchange has been made possible through our Principal Partner, North West Shelf Gas.

Jazz Picnic in the Park
From 12pm, Sunday 5 November
Hyde Park, Perth
For more info

Photos courtesy of Consulate-General of Japan in Perth