James Morrison and his Academy Jazz Orchestra put the razzmatazz into jazz at Her Majesty’s Theatre

Get set for a jazz explosion when the James Morrison Academy Jazz Orchestra, led by Australian musical icon James Morrison, plays Her Majesty’s Theatre for one night only on September 20.

Take a trip down memory lane when this versatile 20-piece big band, led by soloist and director Morrison, plays a host of exciting new arrangements of well-known jazz standards, as well as a raft of new work by young and established Australian jazz artists.

James Morrison says. “I’m thrilled to be returning to Adelaide for the first time in years, with the amazing James Morrison Academy Jazz Orchestra playing in Adelaide for the first time. Adelaide is a hub for music and culture and I can’t wait to be a part of it this September.

“I am extremely proud of the musical talent coming out of the Academy since we opened our doors in 2015. To be able to show off these young artists on the stage at Her Majesty’s Theatre is extraordinary and I can’t wait to share the stage with them in a true jazz extravaganza.”

The James Morrison Academy Jazz Orchestra is the premier performing ensemble of the internationally acclaimed James Morrison Academy, based in Mount Gambier, South Australia. James Morrison himself directs the Jazz Orchestra, ably assisted by the Director of Studies and Australian Jazz Hall of Fame inductee Graeme Lyall and Grammy Award-winning Senior Teaching Fellow Jeff Clayton.

The JMAJO is noted for exceptional individual musicianship and tight ensemble performance. JMAJO Concerts feature standards made famous by international jazz greats, original compositions and arrangements by Australian artists and the wealth of new work written by current and former JMA students.

Although only founded in 2015, the JMAJO tours Australia every year visiting major venues in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast. Outreach is a large part of the JMAJO touring schedule and the group enjoys workshopping and performing with primary and secondary schools all around Australia. In addition, the JMAJO has an active gigging schedule of corporate events, community and university events and performances in their local area of Mount Gambier. To date, the JMAJO has performed alongside Grammy Award winner Wycliffe Gordon, Grammy Award nominees The One O’Clock Lab Band, Aria Award winner Kate Ceberano, and Australian Jazz Award nominee Olivia Chindamo. In 2016, the JMAJO will perform in Melbourne’s Hamer Hall for a live ABC Classics and Jazz recording alongside acclaimed Australian vocalists Sarah McKenzie and Anthony Callea.