Matt Keegan

Saturday 9 July 2011: The Music Council of Australia and Freedman Foundation are delighted to announce Matt Keegan as the winner of the 2011 MCA/Freedman Fellowship for Jazz.

MATT KEEGAN (Saxophone/composer/director, Sydney) plays saxophone in a number of Sydney bands and has also performed and toured with such artists as Guy Sebastian and Jackie Orszaczky. He has performed in festivals both nationally and internationally, most notably the Tokyo Jazz Festival, the Melbourne International Jazz Festival and Womadelaide. Matt currently performs regularly for the Musica Viva in Schools program with The World According to James Matt intends to initiate a creative development project between a select group of his musical peers from India and Australia. His objective is to create new music and cultivate international cross-cultural relationships through artistic collaboration. Matt will seek to develop a blend of music that organically combines the sounds styles and rhythms of Indian folk music with a jazz sense of form, instrumentation, harmonic concepts, and production aesthetic.

Richard Letts, Director of the MCA said, As previously described in the media, the MCA/Freedman is the State of Origin of jazz. We again saw the great invention and diversity of jazz in Australia. All the finalists are reaching into something new, whether in the music or in their penetration internationally. The Australian jazz scene is among the hottest in the world.

The inaugural MCA/Freedman Jazz Fellowship awards the winner with a $15,000 cash prize along with consultations to assist with non-musical aspects of career-building. The winner also receives active support from Music Council personnel for the duration of their Fellowship period.

The purpose of the Fellowship is to assist performers up to 36 years of age to further their careers and enhance their abilities as a jazz artist. Nominees propose a specific project to pursue their career objectives, either overseas or within Australia. Part of the judging process involves a public concert at the Sydney Opera House as well as an assessment of their proposed project.

Established in 1998 by Laurence and Kathy Freedman, The Freedman Foundation also supports visual artists, Australian youth projects, and scientific and medical research. The Music Council of Australia is a national music organisation representing the entire breadth of music in Australia.

Photograph: David Glazebrook