Jason Isaac
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Jason Isaac has been conducting orchestras, symphonic bands, and Jazz ensembles for the past 25 years. Currently Lecturer at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Head of Jazz Studies at Sydney Grammar School and Conductor at Newtown High School of the Performing Arts and Ashbury Public School; Jason also works at The NSW Department of Education Arts Unit as conductor of the NSW Public Schools’ Symphonic Wind Ensemble. He is currently Program Leader for the Sydney Conservatorium of Music Rising Stars Jazz Program. He has taught and conducted at Pan Pacific Jazz Camps, State Music Camps, IAJE Jazz Camps, and for the Sydney Youth Orchestras.
In 2008 he travelled to the US to study with Victor Lewis, Jeff Hirschfield, Gregory Hutchinson and Carl Allen (Julliard). He is in demand as an adjudicator and clinician, and sits on the City of Sydney Eisteddfod Advisory Panel.
In 2009 Jason was accepted into the Symphony Services International Conductor Development Program; conducting Orchestra Victoria, The Auckland Philharmonic, Adelaide Symphony and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras. As part of this program, Jason studied with Lutz Koehler (Berlin), Arvo Volmer (Estonia) Marko Letonja (Slovenia) and Christopher Seaman (London). In 2014, Jason made made his conference conducting debut to acclaim at Chicago’s Midwest Clinic; the world’s largest music education conference; and has worked as the Assistant Musical Director of the Schools’ Spectacular.
Jason has presented NESA accredited professional development sessions for the NSW Department of Education , Australian Band & Orchestra Directors’ Association and the Australian School Band & Orchestral Festival; and has published articles in the areas of Jazz Pedagogy, Developing Co-Curricular Instrumental Music Programs and Repertoire Selection. In 2015, 2016 and 2018 he was the proud recipient of both the Secondary and Primary Schools’ ABODA Conductor Awards at the Australian School Band & Orchestra Festival. Since 2017 he has been on the faculty of the Australian International Music Festival; working as a clinician and adjudicator for ensembles from around the world; and in January 2018 was engaged as a Course Associate Teacher for the ABODA Conducting Summer School; assisting Dr John Lynch.
In 2022 Jason created the Tuesday NightJazz Education concerts for school and community ensembles who are invited to perform at public live music venues alongside the Tuesday Night Jazz Orchestra; a professional ensemble of musicians spanning emerging tertiary Jazz Performance graduates right through to players with established careers into their third decade. His other current creative project is The Tundra Ensemble; an 11-piece cross-genre ensemble performing Jason’s compositions for brass quintet, saxophones and rhythm section.
Jason has toured extensively, both regionally and internationally and has performed in over 20 countries. In 1999 he travelled to Russia, Finland and Estonia as soloist with the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra, and has been broadcast on ABC ClassicFM, Finnish National Radio, Chinese National Television, Channels 10, 9 & 7, the ABC and the SBS television networks in Australia. He holds a BMus(Perf), and a DipMus(JazzPerf) from the Sydney Conservatorium, and a Masters of Teaching from the University of Sydney.