Sydney drummer Alex Hirlian wins National Jazz Awards

24-year old Sydney drummer Alex Hirlian won the National Jazz Awards (NJAs), held last night as part of the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz & Blues.

Each year, a different instrument has been featured in the awards since they began in 1990, and in 2018 the spotlight was on drums.

Open to young musicians up to age 35, the awards attract 30-50 entrants each year, depending on the feature instrument.

This year they received 46 applications. Entrants submitted three recorded pieces including one original composition and one with a band to show judges they mastered their craft.

Runner-up was Adelaide’s Angus Mason, 25, with Oli Nelson, 25, from Redfern, Sydney, in third place.

Head judge David Jones praised the outstanding quality of all the entrants, saying, “It was special hearing these great drummers playing so well, with such a supportive band behind them.

“They really are 10 of the most beautiful jazz musicians in this country, and it was such a tough call choosing the winner.”

Other finalists were: Alex Reid, 29 (Perth), Alexander Inman-Hislop, 25 (Petersham, Sydney), Alf Jackson, 27 (Hobart), Damien Ellis, 32 (Thornbury, Melbourne), James McLean, 28 (Preston, Melbourne), Joshua Baldwin, 33 (Adelaide), and Lewis Pierre-Humbert, 27 (Tecoma, Vic).

The finalists compete for a share of $21,000 in prize money ($12K winner, $6K second place, $3K third), as well as performance and recording opportunities, with the winner having the opportunity to perform at the Rabobank Amersfoort Jazz Festival in May 2019.

The awards capped off what organisers called “a stellar weekend” with 4,000 fans coming out in glorious weather to see 300 artists performing 80 concerts in eight venues.

Festival chairman, Mark Bolsius, said. “The international acts, in particular, have been extraordinary.

“They may not have been household names when they arrived, but their names are now on everyone’s lips… audiences have been raving about the variety of acts and the fact that we’ve broken down genre barriers between blues and jazz.

“Several acts performed on both blues and jazz stages, and we’ve had a number of amazing collaborations between local and international artists that wouldn’t normally happen.”

The festival’s main sponsor is The Anthony and Sharon Lee Foundation, with other sponsors including ABC Jazz, Pughouse Studio, Red Rock Drums Australia, APRA AMCOS, AJRB and Amersfoort Jazz Festival.