Music director, composer and jazz musician Jilly is a multi-instrumentalist who works with schools and youth and adult community groups on songwriting and performance projects. She uses improvisation as a way for the individual voice to be heard and celebrated within a cooperative group setting.

Founder and Creative Director of BlueJam Arts (bluejamarts.org) she enjoys collaborating with other artists and organisations. Currently she is establishing a network of Improv Choirs in England and Scotland, writing an online improvisation resource for teachers and devising gamelan, samba and jazz performances for the summer festivals..

Square Horizon

A video collage of Sarah Reid’s pastel drawings, Geoff Bartholomew trumpet and Jilly Jarman sounds and video.

reason Friday

I mangled a recording of Geoff playing my Reason tune with some sounds and put it to a collage of an outdoor cafe spot and one of my paintings on the go – quite like it

EVAN Art Trail

7th-20th Sept 2-6pm daily.

Paintings by Alice Burford; Jilly Jarman; Bryony Jarman-Pinto

Audio-visual installation: Jilly Jarman

Gamelan Bubble sessions (see bluejamarts.org)

BlueJam Arts Space, Friargate, Penrith CA11 7XR. Ring the BlueJam doorbell at the big red door and I’ll let you in, explain COVID safety procedures and show you around! If you want to let me know in advance that you are coming, email bluejamarts@gmail.com

Corona virus and lockdown

In between trying to work out how to keep BlueJam as a going concern, I am obsessively painting – this is my first abstract attempt

Compositions

Really need to get my compositions more easily available and accessible – I keep getting asked by people if they can use them, which is BRILLIANT!

So going to try to put aside some time to do it (ha ha!)

Anyway – most recently, the amazing classical singer Sarah Wallcook performed Bubbles and Burdens at a concert dinner in Sweden, BJYJE (BlueJam Youth Jazz Ensemble) is going to perform a Fascinating Days/Mountains merge and KSGS will feature Muevete at their festival!

Women Play Jazz, Penrith

Great to host a session at the BlueJam Space in Penrith – with women players from Scotland, Cumbrian and NE Improv Choirs and Jazz Sessions.

HIGHLIGHTING EDEN March 2021

I’m excited to be connecting with so many wordsmiths and singers to create a piece for this project in my home town. If you want to join in the choir and contribute to the video through song, words or artwork please message me on bluejamarts@gmail.com. INFO here

ONE SMALL BIRD

One Small Bird

The Ballad of the Red-Necked Phalarope
by Kate Stilitz and Jilly Jarman
Commissioned by Haringey Music Service for 2000 young singers and instrumentalists, for performance June 27th 2016 Royal Albert Hall

Performed with Cumbria Youth Orchestra, primary school choirs and BlueJam Youth Jazz Ensemble at The Sands, Carlisle, July 10th 2017 and in Kendal with Westmorland Youth Orchestra and Mid-Lakes school choirs July 5th 2019 and Shetland 2019

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LAND OF SHADOWS at Rheged: a new song cycle written with 8 primary schools in October 2017
BACKtoBACK:FACEtoFACE:SIDEbySIDE – the latest song, poetry and soundscape performance is being devised for performance by north Cumbrian schools at Rheged on October 16th 2018
and next up…. TREES – the latest devised show for primary schools at Rheged on October 15th 2019.