Jazzlife Alliance was formed initially to serve a small but growing number of young people who are passionate about pursuing jazz performance as a profession. We continue to work with a number of highly dedicated young adults as well as several gifted young artists who crossover into jazz.

Michael Murray, 24

Micheal was our first Young Musician Award recipient, in 2018. In 2019 he was one of the first young musicians on our International Mentor scheme, which allowed him to study with his favourite living saxophonist, Jaleel Shaw. He has since toured with David Lyttle, performing over 50 dates, and founded the Falcarragh Winter Jazz Festival. Micheal received a degree from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, under Tommy Smith, in 2019 and is currently completing a masters at Conservatorium van Amsterdam.

Gemma Bradley, 24

Singer/songwriter and BBC Radio 1 presenter Gemma Bradley, was nominated by Glasgowbury to work with David Lyttle in our RV Retreats. Recognising that musicians outside of jazz can benefit greatly from exposure to it, our Crossover Artists scheme offer three young musicians this mentorship and collaboration experience. Gemma and David wrote and recorded the track ‘Better’ in 2021. It was playlisted by RTÉ 2FM, and they continue to collaborate.

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