Divergence, September 2020, photo by Mike Cave

Divergence, September 2020, photo by Mike Cave

After releasing three albums of original music, the 19-piece Divergence Jazz Orchestra have established a unique and inspired artistic voice. Directed by Jenna Cave (composer/conductor) and co-led by Paul Weber (trombone), Divergence boasts a powerful and beautifully balanced orchestral sound anchored in groove, exhibiting immense sensitivity and subtlety and breaking from the big band tradition of old.

  • CONDUCTOR AND RESIDENT COMPOSER
    Jenna Cave

    TROMBONES
    Paul Weber (co-bandleader, lead), Alex Silver, Rose Foster, Luke Davis (bass)

    TRUMPETS AND FLUGELHORNS
    Harrisson Ball, James Power, Paul Murchison, Will Endicott, Tom Avgenicos

    SAXOPHONES AND WOODWINDS
    Loretta Palmiero (lead alto, soprano, clarinet, flute), Abi McCunn (alto, flute), Dave Reglar (tenor, alto, clarinet), Jayden Clarke (tenor, clarinet), Laura Power (baritone, clarinets)

    RHYTHM
    Yutaro Okuda (guitar), Adrian Keevill (piano), Hannah James (bass), Mike Quigley (drums)

    VOICE
    Marie Le Brun

Photo by Paul Szilard

Photo by Paul Szilard

Made up of an array of exceptional soloists and ensemble players from Sydney, Divergence celebrates outstanding Australian composers and improvisers who diverge from the status quo, performing music by Jenna Cave and many others.

Featuring music by over 30 composers to date, Divergence have performed at major Australian jazz festivals (Capital Jazz Project Canberra, twice at the Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival), at jazz clubs such as Foundry616, Petersham Bowling Club, in numerous concert series with SIMA, and at smaller and underground venues. They have collaborated with Australian jazz luminaries Judy Bailey, Miroslav Bukovsky and Paul Cutlan; NYC based Australian Nadje Noordhuis, Canadian rising star Chelsea McBride, and showcased many other Australian composers/performers.

Divergence Jazz Orchestra released their debut album The Opening Statement in October 2013, comprising of music by Jenna Cave. The album has been featured on ABC Classic FM, Radio National, ABC Jazz, Chicago’s Jazz Radio and BBC amongst others. It received critical acclaim and was highly praised by the Australian jazz community and abroad.

Their second album, Fake it Until You Make It , was released in October 2016. The 11 track-album features original music composed by Jenna Cave, Brendan Champion, Luke Davis, Paul Murchison and Miroslav Bukovsky . It was featured on ABC Radio National and ABC Jazz, among others, and was reviewed with four stars in the Weekend Australian Newspaper and on All About Jazz.

Their third studio album, Shadows and Light was released in June 2023, comprised of works by Cave, Paul Cutlan, Miroslav Bukovsky and Andrew Scott. The 8 track album was featured as ‘Album of the week’ on ABC Jazz in July 2023, was reviewed with 4 stars in Australian publications Dingo Jazz and Fine Music FM Magazine, and received high-praise in feature articles in AJazz Magazine, Loudmouth Magazine and on myjazzreview.com.

  • Four stars…A highly listenable album…Cave has established herself as a top-level composer, arranger and conductor in Australian jazz
    - John McBeath, The Australian

    Four stars…Divergence Jazz Orchestra is remarkably strong and consistently pleasing… Cave writes with depth and maturity well beyond her years, a virtue not lost on the DJO, which carries out her wishes to the letter.
    – Jack Bowers, All About Jazz (USA)

    Divergence Jazz Orchestra is one of Australia’s keepers of the big band flame…An astonishing array of Australia’s best and brightest
    – John Hardaker, AustralianJazz.net

    What remains to be said about Divergence is that it enjoys an obvious advantage over most other contemporary jazz groups: like its very name it diverges from the crowd, it has its own rules and doesn’t follow trends. And so what we have is a group of young, fresh and exuberant composers and musicians who have joined forces to create their own exciting take on the world of jazz
    – Samuel Cottell, Fine Music Magazine

    The band navigates this new set of often technically-challenging compositions with an impressive level of musicality and precision…Jenna Cave and Divergence Jazz Orchestra’s third impressive recording project in a decade is a tremendous accomplishment of ability and fortitude
    - Dave Lisik, MyJazzReview.com

  • 2023 show at Foundry616 featuring vocalist Marie Le Brun

    2022 performing in the SIMA Summer jazz fest with guest soloist/composer Miroslav Bukovsky

    2022 10th anniversary gig at Petersham Bowling Club

    2021 with Nadje Noordhuis (NYC/Aus) as guest soloist at Petersham Bowling Club

    2019 with Chelsea McBride (Canada) at Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival

    2019 three-date residency at Foundry616

    2018 show at Sydney's Foundry616 featuring two sets of music by bandleader Jenna Cave

    2017 5th Birthday gig at Sydney's Foundry616

    2017 SIMA Summer Jazz concert series with guest soloist/composer Miroslav Bukovsky at The Seymour Centre

    2016 Fake it Until You Make It album launch concert at Sydney’s Foundry616

    2015 Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival

    2015 Capital Jazz Project (Canberra) with guest soloist/composer Miroslav Bukovsky

    2014 concert at Sydney’s Foundry616 with guest composer Rafael Karlen recorded by ABC Radio National and broadcast Nationally on ABC Jazz

    2014 a concert co-presented by Sydney Improvised Music Association at the Seymour Centre

    2013 Wangaratta Jazz Festival

    2013 concert in the Jazzgroove Association performance series