The Isle of Wight Youth Jazz Orchestra
THE ISLE OF WIGHT YOUTH JAZZ ORCHESTRA
The Isle of Wight Youth Jazz Orchestra s a new project which started in November 2017. The debut performance was on 30 March 2018 to a packed house at the Quay Arts Centre.
The Orchestra was joined by special guest Derek Nash (Sax Appeal, Jools Holland R&B Orchestra) when they performed at the renowned Newport IW Jazz Weekend on Sunday 3 June. There are other gigs planned for later in 2018 and IWYJO are always pleased to receive new enquiries for potential performances.
The aim of IWYJO is to provide a safe, structured, educational and enjoyable environment to enable musicians on the Isle of Wight under the age of 25 to partake in big band jazz.
IWYJO seeks to put creativity at the forefront, with members prepared to be hands-on and fully involved in their approach to performing and improvising, and as they develop confidence and skills, some may hopefully take opportunities to arrange and compose for the band and conduct rehearsals.
The other primary objective is to explore the widest possible range of repertoire which is out there, from discovering historical gems and learning in depth about the development of the many forms of jazz through the ages, to exploring exciting contemporary directions, world music and fusion influences. At the heart of all this, we'll be forging a new path and creating a sound and a voice of our own. We also want that to be flexible enough to evolve and change over time as the membership grows, moves on and is replaced by each generation of players.
Mark Nightingale
Mark Nightingale started playing trombone at the age of nine. At 15 he won the Don Lusher Award in the BBC Rehearsal Band Competition and became lead trombone with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra a year later. During six years with NYJO he also graduated from Trinity College of Music and formed the 5-trombone group Bonestructure. He toured and recorded with James Morrison in Europe from 1994 to 1997. He has also composed for trombone; published works include 20 Jazz Études (1995) and Multiplicity (1996).
He has appeared at international festivals alongside Carl Fontana, Jiggs Whigham, Urbie Green, Slide Hampton, Bart van Lier, Bert Boeren, and many others. Mark has been featured with artists as diverse as Frank Sinatra, Cleo Laine, London Brass, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sting and Shakatak. He occasionally directs the BBC Big Band and can often be heard in the band's trombone section.