The COMA COMMITTEE
Sam CAGNEY - Chairperson
Born in Whyalla, Sam moved to Adelaide in 2006 to commence Jazz Guitar studies at the Elder Conservatorium. During his time there he was fortunate enough to perform with Ray Vega (USA), Jon Gordon (USA) and was a member of the Downbeat award winning Big Band One. He graduated from the Conservatorium in 2009 with first class honours. In 2011, with assistance from the Helpmann Academy, he travelled to New York to undertake private study with Kenny Werner, Paul Bollenback, Adam Rogers and John Abercrombie. Sam is a member of the ambient-jazz/rock/etc. trio Yeahyeahabsolutelynoway! They have recorded two albums “Um..” (2014) and ”Ah..” (2017) and in 2014 toured Australia and New Zealand in support of “Um..”. Also In 2014 Sam was commissioned by JazzSA to arrange the music of The Whitlams and as a result he collaborated with members of Zephyr Quartet to form the unconventional string quartet Little Cloud which has since become a vehicle to perform his original compositions.
Alex TAYLOR – General Operations
Alex is a trombonist, sousaphonist, composer/arranger, and educator based in Adelaide, and has worked as the jazz trombone/brass lecturer at the Elder Conservatorium of Music since 2013. In 2017, Alex was a semi-finalist in the Australian National Jazz Awards and released his debut album Sleep Faster in 2019 through Wizard Tone Records. Performance highlights include playing with The Cat Empire, Midnight Oil, and The Australian National Jazz Orchestra.
Maeve McLOUGHLIN – Social Media Coordinator
Originally from the Adelaide Hills, Maeve played trombone in her teens, and her participation in Jazz SA Superbands, Adelaide Youth Orchestra and Generations in Jazz encouraged her love of live music and a passion for fostering a thriving music scene in Adelaide. Over the years, she has worked in a number of jazz venues across both Adelaide and Melbourne, and staffed events for The Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Adelaide Fringe Festival and the Melbourne International Jazz festival. Recently returned to Adelaide, Maeve joined the COMA committee in 2017.
Emily TULLOCH – Funding Director
Emily Tulloch is a South Australian musician currently working as an arts manager, violinist, and composer-arranger in roles with Nexus Arts, Zephyr Quartet, and COMA (Creative Original Music Adelaide). Emily is the Artistic Director of Nexus Arts, where she leads the organisation in promoting an intercultural vision of contemporary arts that more accurately reflects the diversity of our streets. With Zephyr, Emily has created critically acclaimed and award-winning shows, performed internationally and across Australia, and received three APRA/AMCOS Australian Art Music Awards and two Ruby Awards. With COMA, she strives to present and promote creative original music in her hometown of Adelaide.
Jackie WILDE – General Operations
Jackie completed her bachelor of music (jazz performance) in 2015. She continues to play throughout Adelaide in local traditional jazz bands and gypsy jazz ensembles such as The Various Nefarious. As a dedicated music tutor, Jackie also works with secondary students and is passionate about music in schools. She is currently undertaking a Bachelor of Business and Event Management
Bonnie AUE – General Operations & Graphic Design
Bonnie Aue is a local Adelaide bass player who loves original music and the pursuit of creative endeavors. Bonnie began playing the double bass at age 12 and recently completed her honours year of Jazz performance at the Elder Conservatorium. Bonnie plays regularly in the Adelaide Jazz scene and has performed at events such as the International Jazz day concert in 2018 and 2019, Hobart’s Festival of Voices, and the Adelaide Cabaret Festival. During 2019 Bonnie toured with the Hot Sardines, playing at the Blue Note in Tokyo, Beijing and Honolulu. She has also performed with artists including Jo Lawry, Wil Vinson, Anita Wardell, Emma Pask, Ross Irwin, Vardan Ovsepian, James Muller, Mark Ferguson, Helena Kay, and Adam Page. Bonnie is involved with a wide variety of local bands such as the Max Grynchuk big band, Thomas Voss Big Band, The Boy’s Club, Mark Curtis and the Flannelettes, and the Radial Quartet.
Max GRYNCHUK – General Operations
Max is a trumpeter, composer, and arranger based in Adelaide, Australia. He completed his Bachelor of Music with First Class Honours specialising in Jazz Performance at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in 2018. During his time at university Max was the recipient of several awards including the Howell Ross Award for Top Trumpet Undergraduate (2017), the Keith & Susie Langley Memorial Award for Best Overall Honours Graduate (2019), and the Mike Stewart Award (2019) presented by the Helpmann Academy and JazzSA. Max has recorded three albums as leader of his own big band; As For Now (2021), Plays Eraser Description (2021), and Plays Eraser Description Vol. II (2022).
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Keira SIMMONS – Secretary
Keira Simmons is a sound designer, acoustic ecology enthusiast, and sound artist. Raised in the South Australian music and performance scenes, she moved to the United Arab Emirates to pursue her BA at NYU Abu Dhabi. As a sound designer she works with artists in a variety of disciplines locally and remotely, and her collaborative work has been exhibited at Burning Man, shown in five countries, and won a Jury award in a Tokyo-based competition. Her recent senior thesis project, Listening to Abu Dhabi, is an urban audio walk exploring climate change through a timeline of soundscapes. She is excited to be back in SA and becoming more involved with creative original music and art in Adelaide.
Bailey Hall – General Operations
Bailey Hall is a drummer, composer-arranger, and educator based in Adelaide, Australia. He recently completed his Bachelor of Music (Jazz Performance) at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in 2022. He is currently performing original compositions with his band Autumn District, who featured as a COMA Emerging Artist in 2022. Bailey also performs in the indie-rock band Overdue Fiction as well as the Adelaide Fringe show ‘The 60 Four’, touring rural South Australia. He is a dedicated instrumental teacher teaching the saxophone and drums/percussion at multiple schools around Adelaide.