Robin will receive a commission fee of $1000, as well as having his new composition rehearsed and recorded by WAYJO for inclusion on the 2010 Jazzaziz CD. WAYJO Artistic Director Mace Francis will provide mentoring support throughout the process of composition, rehearsal and recording.

“I am very excited to be given this opportunity,” Robin said. “The award will allow me to take my composing skills to the next level, to learn from Mace and to see how the process of composing moves from initial idea, to development, rehearsal and finally to hear it recorded.”

Jazzaziz is a compilation CD that JAZZ WA has recorded annually since 2001. The project was created as a vehicle to document original contemporary jazz composed and performed by WA jazz musicians. Each year the CD is sent to JAZZ WA’s contacts around the world to promote the quality and diversity of WA contemporary jazz music and musicians.

“We were very impressed with the depth of emerging jazz talent in WA,” says Robert Burartti. “The Jazzaziz Composition Prize will provide Robin with a unique opportunity to create, rehearse and record a new work for big band, all with the support and guidance of experienced industry people. It will put Robin’s work in front of influential jazz people around the world.”

Robin’s composition was selected by a panel made up of three experienced WA jazz composers and artists. Mace Francis was joined byPete Jeavons, JAZZWA’s Treasurer and Jazzaziz Project Manager and Graham Wood, Head of Music at the WA Academy of Performing Arts.

It is hoped that this prize will continue every year, further strengthening the profile of WAYJO and JAZZ WA both nationally and internationally.

WAYJO is one of Australia’s cultural gems, the only youth jazz orchestra of its size in the country. It provides a unique experience for jazz musicians aged 14 to 25 who are the absolute cream of young jazz players in the state. Competition for places is fierce. Those who make it are amongst the best young players in WA and are rewarded with career-defining experiences – touring, training and performing with world-class guest artists.

JAZZWA is a non-profit organisation which was established in 1994 for the purposes of promoting and developing Western Australian jazz and jazz musicians statewide, nationally and internationally. It receives core funding from the Australia Council and WA Department of Culture and the Arts in association with the Lotteries Commission. It is managed by a committee of jazz enthusiasts, musicians, educators, arts managers and promoters.

WAYJO’s 2010 Composer-in-Residence, Alice Humphries, will also feature on the Jazzaziz CD, performing one of her own compositions with her band, Ecila Ensemble.