Elly Hoyt - The Composers' Voice: Celebrating Australian Women Composers (2019)

Vocalist-composer Elly Hoyt’s third album The Composers’ Voice: Celebrating Australian Women Composers, out through Earshift Music, is a commissioning project that presents her alongside some of Melbourne’s best jazz artists.

The Composers’ Voice presents a diverse set of compositions from celebrated Australian composers including Andrea Keller, Gian Slater, Georgia Weber, Louise Denson, Sonja Horbelt, Shannon Barnett, Tamara Murphy and Hoyt herself. The music is brought to life by an all-star band including pianist Andrea Keller, trumpeter Mat Jodrell, saxophonist Julien Wilson, trombonist James Macaulay, bassist Sam Anning and drummer James McLean.

Motivated by recent discussions around women representation in the music industry and the experience of women in the arts, Hoyt reflects that she wanted to investigate women’s stories through composition: “I wanted to contribute to the diversity of representation in jazz composition, something I feel passionate about”, says Hoyt. “Women jazz composers in Australia have unique and interesting voices and deserve to be championed and performed by other musicians.”

The pieces explore relevant themes important to Hoyt and the composers including determination, fighting self-doubt, dismantling patriarchal systems, social change, being heard, death, grief, love and following your dreams. Hoyt has been thrilled by the recording, saying “this project has been a dream come true and I’m incredibly grateful to everyone involved.“

Hoyt is a Tasmanian born vocalist-composer currently living in London. Her two albums Elly Hoyt and Oranges and Sunshine have gained her praise from All About Jazz (“soulful and quietly commanding”), Limelight magazine (“taste, sensitivity and swing”), and The Music Trust (“not afraid to take risks”). Hoyt’s accolades include a Bell Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album, the Generations in Jazz Vocal Scholarship and a Marten Bequest Traveling Scholarship to study a Masters of Jazz Performance at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, USA. Career highlights also include supporting US pianist Kenny Barron and performing for Prince Charles and Camilla.