Jayden’s Jive: the DYJO and the Djangopalypse Trio

The October edition of the Dunedin Jazz Club features the luscious sounds of the Dunedin Jazz Orchestra and the technical virtuosity of the Djangocalypse Trio to get you over your post lockdown blues!

Jayden Jesudhass is an exciting young player on the local music scene. He is the lead alto saxophone for the DYJO, a classical pianist and flautist, as well as being a singer who placed third in Vietnam Idol Kids in 2016. Jayden’s searing and incisive lines sit atop the luscious textures of the Dunedin Youth Jazz Orchestra, who will present a full set of modern jazz compositions focused around the work of Florian Ross, a German composer who combines elements of jazz and modern Western art music.

Born in Baden-Württemberg in 1972, Florian Ross chose to study composition in England in 1995 and took on the influence of Britten, Warlock and Elgar, which combined with this jazz piano chops, led to him creating a style of modern jazz composition that draws on both the idioms of traditional big band swing and classical counterpoint. For this concert, the Dunedin Youth Jazz Orchestra will perform original Ross compositions such as “Funf Freunde” and “Cycling”, as well as Ross’ arrangements of the Coltrane classics, “Moment’s Notice” and “Naima”. The set will be rounded off with some original compositions by band director, Bill Martin, as well as some funky and swinging tunes by Steely Dan.

The second act on this double bill is the Djangocalpyse trio which features Andy Parsons and Simon Christie on acoustic guitars with Daniel Potter on the double bass. As the name suggests, this all-acoustic trio is heavily influenced by gypsy jazz guitarist Django Rheinhardt, and these three Dunedin musicians take Django as their inspiration for interpreting a range of jazz hits from the 1920s and beyond.

The Dunedin Jazz Club is a licensed venue that creates the atmosphere of a jazz club in a concert setting. Tickets will be limited to 100 in accordance with the guidelines for entertainment venues under the alert level 2 setting. If there is a change of alert levels prior to the date of the concert, an additional 60 tickets will be made available. Patrons should wear face coverings in accordance with healthy and safety guidelines, but will be able to remove their masks during the concert should they purchase drinks from the bar.

Tickets from Eventfinda
$20 General Admission
$15 University / Polytech Students
$10 Children

7:15 Doors Open
7:45 The Dunedin Youth Jazz Orchestra
8:45 Interval
9:00 The Djangopalyse Trio
9:45 Bar Open
10:00 Finish

Biographical Notes

Andy Parsons is a well-known guitarist on the Dunedin music scene, having performed as a leader of his own group in a variety of genres, including rock, blues, country; however, he discovered gypsy jazz during his recent stint in New York, where he received tuition from gypsy jazz guitar guru, Alex Simon. Parsons played regularly with Bob Franceschini (Victor Wooten) and Richie Canata (Billy Joel) during his time at the Big Apple and was lucky enough to play at the legendary Birdland jazz club three times! Back in Dunedin due to the pandemic, Parsons is joined by multi-instrumental Simon Christie, who is a bandleader of his own jazz ensembles in Dunedin, and a very competent jazz guitarist. Christie curated the “Jazz in Pocket” night at Dog with Two Tails for many years and has encouraged many other musicians to explore jazz in this city. Daniel Potter plays electric bass for the Dunedin City Jazz Orchestra but will be well known to musical theatre audiences for his regular work on the double bass.