WAYJO’s Season Celebration: Hyde Park

Join the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra on the lawns of Hyde Park for a Sunday afternoon of jazz and the first concert of 2024!

This free, family-friendly event features music from all three big bands: Monday Night Orchestra, St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, and Wednesday Night Orchestra.

You’ll also be the first to hear about WAYJO’s upcoming events, tours, the special international guest artists joining the orchestras this year, and what’s in store for the programs supporting emerging musicians.

Pack a picnic and come listen to the swingin’ sounds of jazz from your favourite youth jazz orchestra in the lush green surrounds of Hyde Park, this year introducing some of the youngest performers yet!

WAYJO’s Season Celebration: Hyde Park
3-5pm, Sun 24 March 2024
Free event – all invited!

WAYJO thanks Government Partner the Department of Local Government, Sport, and Cultural Industries, Principal Partner North West Shelf Gas, Major Programs Partner Minderoo Foundation, MinterEllison, and St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra Naming Rights Partner for their continued support.


Welcome to our 2024 orchestra members

WAYJO’s Pathways Education Program was developed to engage with young and emerging jazz artists.
 
An integral part of the annual program, WAYJO is proud to facilitate the Northern Corridor Training Band for high school-aged students (which is currently accepting enrolments), and the Progressions Program for individuals on the outskirts of jazz.
 
The programs are designed to enhance and develop the skills of aspiring musicians through artistic mentorship, guided workshops and rehearsals, and quality performance experiences in a big band setting. In addition, participants connect with peers as well as professionals in the music industry, bringing concepts from the classroom to life.
 
WAYJO is thrilled to announce, therefore, that six of the newest band members in the three main orchestras have come through the Pathways Programs.

They are:
Aavi Barker | MNO | Trumpet
Dexter Bell | MNO | Alto Saxophone
Jaeden Carlyon | TNO | Baritone Saxophone

Isabelle Cranley Dixon | MNO | Tenor Saxophone
Ella Dias | TNO | Bass

Ryley Ford | MNO | Trombone

WAYJO’s 2024 Orchestra Members

WAYJO is delighted to have so many returning members in the three big bands: WAYJO’s MinterEllison Monday Night Orchestra (MNO), led by Ricki Malet; St John of God Healthcare Tuesday Night Orchestra (TNO) with Musical Director Marty Pervan; and, directed by Mace Francis, the WAYJO Wednesday Night Orchestra (WNO).
 
A huge welcome, as well, to the thirteen newest band members, for whom this will be their first year with WAYJO.

See the full list of orchestra members and their instruments.


WAYJO’s Best of 2023

WAYJO’s Best of 2023 is the final performance of WAYJO’s 40th year and an opportunity to showcase all three orchestras and their favourite repertoire of the year set at the beautiful the Quarry Amphitheatre on Saturday 18 November.

WAYJO’s Best of 2023
7:30pm – 10pm, Saturday 18 November
Quarry Amphitheatre
BOOK TICKETS


WAYJO NC plays The Ellington

The WA Youth Jazz Orchestra Northern Corridor Band assists in the development of young musicians who have an interest in playing big band jazz. This ensemble focuses on the growth of its members through developing deeper musical understanding, leadership, and camaraderie.

The band is currently comprised of students from 12 different schools across Perth and the Peel region, with students travelling from Mandurah to Duncraig for the weekly rehearsals.

These young musicians are driven by a love of jazz that is palpable in their on-stage presence and commitment to their craft. They’ll be showcasing a myriad of big band tunes from iconic bands like Count Basie and Duke Ellington, right through to modern compositions by Perth’s own, Gemma Farrell.

Come and experience the next generation of Australian jazz legends before they become famous!

Music Director: Jess Herbert

WAYJO NC PLAYS THE ELLINGTON
Sunday 29 October 2023
Doors: 3pm
Show: 3:30pm to 4:30pm
The Ellington Jazz Club
Book Tickets


Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente

The WA Youth Orchestra (WAYJO) presents Mambolicious – a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tito Puente, one of the most influential Latin big band leaders of all time. Featuring one of Australia’s greatest trumpet players, Mat Jodrell, with the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, these shows will have your feet tapping and hips shaking to the sounds of Latin jazz and mambo.

Mat Jodrell recently returned to Australia after eight years living and performing in New York City and teaching at Juilliard School of Music. He’s performed with the likes of Benny Golson, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, and the Mingus Big Band to name a few, and has toured throughout Europe, Russia, Asia, South America, and the Middle East, performing at festivals and world-famous jazz clubs.

Paying homage to Tito Puente’s seminal big band recordings, Jodrell’s screaming trumpet licks accompanied by the infectious swing of the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra (directed by Marty Pervan) is a night you’re not going to want to miss.

Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente
7:30pm – 9:30pm, Saturday 1 July
The Milk Bar, Inglewood
BOOK TICKETS


Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente

The WA Youth Orchestra (WAYJO) presents Mambolicious – a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tito Puente, one of the most influential Latin big band leaders of all time. Featuring one of Australia’s greatest trumpet players, Mat Jodrell, with the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, these shows will have your feet tapping and hips shaking to the sounds of Latin jazz and mambo.

Mat Jodrell recently returned to Australia after eight years living and performing in New York City and teaching at Juilliard School of Music. He’s performed with the likes of Benny Golson, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, and the Mingus Big Band to name a few, and has toured throughout Europe, Russia, Asia, South America, and the Middle East, performing at festivals and world-famous jazz clubs.

Paying homage to Tito Puente’s seminal big band recordings, Jodrell’s screaming trumpet licks accompanied by the infectious swing of the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra (directed by Marty Pervan) is a night you’re not going to want to miss.

Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente
7:30pm – 9:30pm, Friday 30 June
Margaret River HEART
BOOK TICKETS


Marty Pervan on Mambolicious

We sat down with Musical Director of the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, Marty Pervan, to find out a little more about the Mambolicious Program.

‘Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente’ features one of Australia’s greatest trumpet players, Mat Jodrell, and pays homage to influential Latin jazz pioneer, Tito Puente. Performing in Margaret River on 30 June at Margaret River HEART, and then in Perth at Milk Bar on 1 July, these concerts are guaranteed to have your feet tapping and hips shaking.


Marty Pervan with the St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra by Josh Wells

Why are you excited to collaborate with Mat Jodrell and what are you hoping he’ll bring to the St John of God Tuesday Night Orchestra?

Given that Mat is a WAYJO alumnus, this collaboration is an opportunity to reconnect on both a personal and musical level. The wealth of knowledge and experience that comes with a musician that has lived and worked professionally as a first-call jazz and session trumpet player in places like New York is informative and inspirational for the band members. After leaving Perth, Mat attended the Julliard School of Music, and this also brings a unique set of experiences that bend members who are also tertiary music students will find enlightening. I am confident the anecdotal element of Mat’s communication and engagement with the band will be just as invaluable as his musical contribution.

What are you looking forward to on the regional tour to Margaret River?

There are no amount of rehearsals that can simulate the positive musical effect of a tour. The shared experiences and time spent together allow the musicians to connect in a way that is impossible to imitate. The shows, workshops and rehearsals will all be great musical experiences that will create lifelong memories for the band members (and probably the staff too).

What do you love about Tito Puente’s works?

Tito Puente was my first introduction to Son/montuno (Salsa), Mambo, Guaguanco and Cha Cha – it is something for which I have had a lifelong passion. I enjoy educating the band members about this genre of music and the various musical elements that make it unique. It is consistently exciting to play and listen to. This is always evident in the expressions of awe and joy on the faces of the band as they are performing.

Is there anything else you can tell us about the Mambolicious program?

We will be performing some of Tito Puente’s most popular tunes that most audiences have heard of as well as a selection of other music from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Columbia, and New York.

“I will be immensely surprised if any of the audience isn’t up and dancing early in the performance.”

Other artists that we will be performing the music of include Cubanismo, the Afro-Cuban All Stars, the Buena Vista Social Club, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Poncho Sanchez, Matt Harris, and Mike Tomaro.


Experience Mambolicious: Jodrell Screams Puente
7:30pm, Friday 30 June | Margaret River HEART | TICKETS
7:30pm, Saturday 1 July | Milk Bar, Inglewood | TICKETS


WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Weekend

Celebrating 40 years of the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra

You’re invited to the jazz party of the year as the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra (WAYJO) turns 40!

With thousands of events under its belt and a special place in many a WA musician’s hearts and memories, WAYJO is marking the occasion in style – bringing together Perth’s biggest jazz names alongside future stars of the Australian jazz scene for one special weekend at the State Theatre Centre’s Studio Underground and Foyer.

The celebrations begin with a Gala performance on Friday evening featuring WAYJO big bands alongside special guest alumni including Perth’s premier jazz vocalist, Libby Hammer, the versatile trombonist Catherine Noblet, the accomplished saxophonist Gemma Farrell, and the elegant vocalist Lucy Iffla.

On the big night, all three bands – MinterEllison Monday Night Orchestra, St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, and Wednesday Night Orchestra – will take to the stage to perform commissioned works, band and fan favourites, and classic big band jazz repertoire.

Then on Saturday, take a trip down memory lane and immerse yourself in our mini festival hub of in-conversations, small group jazz ensembles, historic photo displays, alumni appearances, and big band performances.

Be transported through time as all three big bands celebrate the greats playing classic big band jazz, music from the depths of the WAYJO library, and a line-up that traces jazz through to contemporary, translating be-bop to hip-hop.

With guest artists Jamie Oehlers, Libby Hammer, and Zero Emcee, this is an event not to be missed.

Join us as we celebrate WAYJO’s 40-year history and look towards the future of jazz!

WAYJO’s 40th Festival Weekend

WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Concert
7:30pm, Friday 26 May
Studio Underground
SOLD OUT

WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Festival
4pm – 10pm, Saturday 27 May
Studio Underground
BOOK TICKETS

40th Anniversary Program

Friday Program

The guest alumni are some of the most accomplished jazz musicians in WA. Libby Hammer, recipient of the Perth Jazz Society’s Award for Most Outstanding Individual Contribution To Jazz in 2005, spent two years as resident vocalist for WAYJO and now returns to grace the stage in celebration of WAYJO’s four-decade history.

Catherine Noblet, who played for over 10 years in WAYJO in the late 1990s to mid 2000s, studied at WAAPA and undertook a master’s in jazz studies at the University of Illinois, studying with legendary trombonist Jim Pugh, and receiving a fellowship and teaching assistant position.

Saxophonist Gemma Farrell, leader of WAYJO’s Progressions program and winner of WAM’s Best Brass, String or Woodwind Instrumentalist in 2020, is the founder and musical director of the Artemis Orchestra, a predominately female big band which performs the original music of Australian women, non-binary, and transgender people.

And recent WAYJO alumni, vocalist Lucy Iffla, who is already carving a successful career and following achieving a Top 10 Nominee for the Wangaratta 2020 National Jazz Awards, showcases an elegant and timeless voice beyond her years.

Rapper Zero Emcee – who joined WAYJO last year in a collaboration called Beats & Pieces and was a highlight of last year’s program – will join the Wednesday Night Orchestra to add some hip hop flavour to the big band repertoire.

Saturday Program


WAYJO's 40th Anniversary Concert & Festival

You’re invited to the jazz party of the year as WAYJO turns 40!

With thousands of events under its belt and a special place in many a WA musician’s hearts and memories, WAYJO is marking the occasion in style – bringing together Perth’s biggest jazz names alongside future stars of the Australian jazz scene for one special weekend at the State Theatre Centre’s Studio Underground and Foyer.

Join us as we celebrate WAYJO’s 40-year history and look towards the future of jazz!


40th Anniversary Concert

The celebrations begin with a Gala performance on Friday evening featuring WAYJO big bands alongside special guest alumni including Perth’s premier jazz vocalist, Libby Hammer, the versatile trombonist Catherine Noblet, the accomplished saxophonist Gemma Farrell, and the elegant vocalist Lucy Iffla.

On the big night, all three bands – MinterEllison Monday Night Orchestra, St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, and Wednesday Night Orchestra – will take to the stage to perform commissioned works, band and fan favourites, and classic big band jazz repertoire.

WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Concert
7:30pm, Friday 26 May
Studio Underground

BOOK TICKETS

40th Anniversary Festival

Then on Saturday, take a trip down memory lane and immerse yourself in our mini festival hub of in-conversations, small group jazz ensembles, historic photo displays, alumni appearances, and big band performances.

Be transported through time as all three big bands celebrate the greats playing classic big band jazz, music from the depths of the WAYJO library, and a line-up that traces jazz through to contemporary, translating be-bop to hip-hop.

With guest artists Jamie Oehlers, Libby Hammer, and Zero Emcee, this is an event not to be missed.

WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Festival
4pm – 10pm, Saturday 27 May
Studio Underground

BOOK TICKETS


WAYJO's 40th Anniversary Season Launch Block Party

WAYJO is celebrating our 40th anniversary this year, and we’re throwing a free Season Launch Block Party to get the festivities started!

Join us at Lyric Lane in Maylands for performances from all three big bands; MinterEllison Monday Night Orchestra, St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra, and Wednesday Night Orchestra.

As well as their swinging sounds, you’ll hear all about our 2023 program, learn about our guest artist touring program, and be the first to know about our upcoming 40th year two-day festival.

We can’t wait to welcome you to the launch of our fourth decade as Australia’s leading youth jazz orchestra!

WAYJO’s 40th Anniversary Season Launch Block Party 2023
3 – 5pm, Sun 5 March 2023
Free event – all invited!

WAYJO thanks Government Partner the Department of Local Government, Sport, and Cultural Industries, Principal Partner North West Shelf Gas, Major Programs Partner Minderoo Foundation, MinterEllison Monday Night Orchestra Naming Rights Partner, St John of God Health Care Tuesday Night Orchestra Naming Rights Partner, and Healthway Act Belong Commit for their continued support.