The Midlands Youth Jazz Orchestra

The award-winning

MIDLAND YOUTH JAZZ ORCHESTRA

One of Britain’s finest big bands

Directed by

John Ruddick MBE

MYJO has been described as one of the world’s top young big bands. It was unbeaten  in the BBC National Big Band Competition for twenty years,  including the final year of the competition.  It has received international awards in the USA and Canada, and has worked with many of the finest jazz musicians in the world. It has also performed extensively in Europe, including a TV performance in Moscow ( now on You Tube).

In the last couple of years  it has performed in a “double-header” with the BBC Big Band,  broadcast on Radio 2, and appeared on BBC2 with members of the Royal Ballet, celebrating the 400th. Anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth.  MYJO has also performed with Grammy award-winner Gordon Goodwin, and members of his Big Phat Band, Eric Marienthal and trumpet superstar Wayne Bergereon,  and  with trumpeters John Faddis and the great Bobby Shew, It has recently appeared in Birmingham with  Australian trumpet star James Morrison.

MYJO plays the whole range of big band jazz, but in particular the music of Bob Florence, Rob McConnell, Frank Mantooth and Marie Schneider, as well as compositins by current members of the band. One of the band’s recent members is tenor saxophonist Xsosa Cole, the recent winner of the 2018 BBC National Young Jazz award.