Resonate Magazine | Australian Music Centre

Image: Natalie Dietz, Hadley Agrez, Stuart Rogers, Nick Garbett, Taylor Davis, Kristin Berardi  

The Australian Music Centre announces the recipients of its Jazzahead Grants: Hadley Agrez, Kristin Berardi, Taylor Davis, Natalie Dietz, Nick Garbett, and Stuart Rogers.

The six recipients will form the Australian delegation at Jazzahead this year, taking place in Bremen, Germany from Thursday 28 April to Sunday 1 May. They will be joined by Hamed Sadeghi and Reuben Lewis, who were selected as AMC Artistic Associates at Jazzahead in 2020.

Grant recipients have been selected from a competitive pool of applicants, based on a remarkable portfolio of work and the timeliness of the opportunity for their career.

After two years of limited international travel and a dampened live performance sector in Australia, the Jazzahead Grants will offer recipients the opportunity to rekindle or form new connections in the European jazz and experimental music scene. Australian Music Centre's CEO Catherine Haridy says, "The grants were initiated to enable Australian artists to extend their networks to elevate their careers and represent Australian music on a global platform, and we have some of our best homegrown talent to do just that. This opportunity will benefit not only the grant recipients, but also audiences in Australia, as well as the ongoing dialogue between Australian artists and the international music market."

Opportunities are abound for artistic exchange and international trade, including: promoting and recording new work, scoping touring opportunities in Europe, and programming international acts on Australian stages. Award-winning composer and vocalist Natalie Dietz says, "[the] Grant will provide an unique opportunity to network with the European jazz market and promote my new recording to a much wider international audience. It will potentially open doors to future international touring and festival performance opportunities."

Taylor Davis, along with his instrumental jazz trio Brekky Boy, will also be performing a showcase concert at the conference. Handpicked by a jury of international jazz experts, Brekky Boy is the only group to represent Australia in a Jazzahead showcase this year, which will be accessible to public audiences and conference attendees. Presenting their signature blend of cinematic jazz rock to an audience of European industry professionals is a highlight in his Jazzahead itinerary. "We've been working hard on the live show and cannot wait to perform over there. It will also be an incredible experience meeting and watching the other showcasing acts from around the world," Taylor says. "There's an eclectic mix of really epic music that is going to be presented over there and it's going to be very inspiring."

The Jazzahead Grants are offered by the Australian Music Centre as part of our Australian Jazz in Europe Strategy, delivered in partnership with Sounds Australia and supported by the Australia Council for the Arts. Delegates will be supported on the ground by representatives from the Australian Music Centre and Sounds Australia.