Congratulations to King Edward VI Aston School Year 13 student, Jai Patel, who has secured a scholarship to study Jazz trombone at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and just this week has gained a place to study Jazz Performance at Trinity Laban Conservatoire in London.
Jai started taking his trombone playing seriously in Year 10 and it wasn't until the summer of this academic year that he discovered a love for Jazz music. In that same year, Aston School took 25 students to perform in New York as part of the KEAston Music Tour. It was an incredible week, including performances around New York with the school Big Band and Jazz Improvisation Ensemble. It was during the rehearsals for the tour when Jai joined the 'Jazz Improv Group' where he really enjoyed improvising for the first time.
Since then, Jai has worked incredibly hard at developing his Jazz trombone skills, immersing himself in the genre and performing outside school with the Birmingham Schools' Concert Band, Birmingham Schools' Concert Orchestra, Vic Evans & The Bluenotes, THSH Jazzlines and the renowned Midland Youth Jazz Orchestra. His passion for Jazz resulted in Jai making the decision to pursue a career in music and auditioning for Music College.
Jai comments: "In the last 2 years I have felt I have made the most progress out of all my time playing the trombone and it’s because I genuinely became obsessed. Obsessed with the history, obsessed with the culture and obsessed with the art of jazz. It stands for so much more than simply music; it represents power in unity, equality and love. The greats like Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk and John Coltrane were able to connect with their audiences by putting so much heart into every note, telling a story when they played and it’s what left me in such awe at their music.
"I worked hard, studying the musicians of the Golden Age of Jazz, contemporary greats and most importantly, finding my own unique sound along the way. I would like to thank the late Mr Parker, who always put faith and placed huge value in the Arts, attending our performances and giving us all the support we needed as musicians. It saddens me that I couldn’t say thank you one last time for everything he did for us, but his heart warming character, kindness and drive to do what is right will never be forgotten."
Mrs Parrans-Smith, Director of Music at Aston School comments: "It is an amazing achievement for Jai, in such challenging circumstances, to be awarded a scholarship to the Royal Welsh College of Music, and Trinity College of Music where competition for a place is fierce being one of the top Music Colleges for Jazz studies. I am very proud of all Jai has achieved and demonstrates again how music is alive and flourishing at King Edward VI Aston School." Our latest news
November 2020
King Edward VI Aston student secures Jazz scholarship
Congratulations to King Edward VI Aston School Year 13 student, Jai Patel, who has secured a scholarship to study Jazz trombone at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and just this week has gained a place to study Jazz Performance at Trinity Laban Conservatoire in London.
Jai started taking his trombone playing seriously in Year 10 and it wasn't until the summer of this academic year that he discovered a love for Jazz music. In that same year, Aston School took 25 students to perform in New York as part of the KEAston Music Tour. It was an incredible week, including performances around New York with the school Big Band and Jazz Improvisation Ensemble. It was during the rehearsals for the tour when Jai joined the 'Jazz Improv Group' where he really enjoyed improvising for the first time.
Since then, Jai has worked incredibly hard at developing his Jazz trombone skills, immersing himself in the genre and performing outside school with the Birmingham Schools' Concert Band, Birmingham Schools' Concert Orchestra, Vic Evans & The Bluenotes, THSH Jazzlines and the renowned Midland Youth Jazz Orchestra. His passion for Jazz resulted in Jai making the decision to pursue a career in music and auditioning for Music College.
Jai comments: "In the last 2 years I have felt I have made the most progress out of all my time playing the trombone and it’s because I genuinely became obsessed. Obsessed with the history, obsessed with the culture and obsessed with the art of jazz. It stands for so much more than simply music; it represents power in unity, equality and love. The greats like Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk and John Coltrane were able to connect with their audiences by putting so much heart into every note, telling a story when they played and it’s what left me in such awe at their music.
"I worked hard, studying the musicians of the Golden Age of Jazz, contemporary greats and most importantly, finding my own unique sound along the way. I would like to thank the late Mr Parker, who always put faith and placed huge value in the Arts, attending our performances and giving us all the support we needed as musicians. It saddens me that I couldn’t say thank you one last time for everything he did for us, but his heart warming character, kindness and drive to do what is right will never be forgotten."
Mrs Parrans-Smith, Director of Music at Aston School comments: "It is an amazing achievement for Jai, in such challenging circumstances, to be awarded a scholarship to the Royal Welsh College of Music, and Trinity College of Music where competition for a place is fierce being one of the top Music Colleges for Jazz studies. I am very proud of all Jai has achieved and demonstrates again how music is alive and flourishing at King Edward VI Aston School." - Back to news
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