Biography
Job title: Senior Lecturer: Jazz
Courses taught: Foundation Year, BA (Hons) Music (Jazz)
Specialisms: jazz saxophone
Simon Kaylor (BA, PGDip, MMus) has played saxophone professionally since 1999 and is based in Leeds, UK. He moved to Leeds to study Jazz at Leeds Conservatoire in 1999 and after completing his B.A.(Hons) Degree, he went on to gain a Masters Degree, (also from Leeds Conservatoire) and received the Leeds Conservatoire Award for Outstanding Performance, the Leeds Conservatoire Award for Postgraduate Studies and the 'Spud Murphy' Saxophone Prize. In Dec 2005, Simon went to Boston, USA to study intensively for two months with saxophone Colossus, Jerry Bergonzi.
He has been involved in numerous mainstream and contemporary, experimental jazz projects such as ‘Abstract Orchestra’, 'IDST', Dave Kane's Rabbit Project, The Jamil Sheriff Big Band, YJO and Tommy Evans' 'The Green Seagull', as well as being an in demand session player, regularly performing all over the world. The contemporary jazz group, 'IDST' won the 2009 Jazz Services Promoters' Choice Award and as a result appeared at London, Manchester and Scarborough Jazz Festivals. They were also awarded the 'Jazz Yorkshire - Band of the Year 2010' award.
Simon has also worked on many national touring shows including The Rat Pack Las Vegas Spectacular, Karpenters 'Top of The World', Blues Brothers, The Magic of Motown, Soul Legends and Big Girl’s Don’t Cry and has performed with popular artists such as Alfie Boe, Imelda May, Billy Paul, Dorothy Moore, Freda Payne, Ben E King, Jean Knight, Percy Sledge, Jimmy Ruffin, The Temptations Review, Candi Staton, David Gest, Connie Lush, Mo Pleasure (Ray Charles, Michael Jackson), Jeff Pevar (James Taylor, Ray Charles), Stanley Banks (George Benson, David Sanborn), Buddy Williams, Roy Wood (E.L.O, The Move, Wizard), Martha Reeves and The Vandellas, Sam Bailey, Eliot Kennedy (Spice Girls, Westlife, Bryan Adams), Marissa Turner (Prince, Chaka Khan), Deneice Williams, The Stylistics, SClub, 5ive, Peter Kay, Kavanna, Kenny Thomas, Bob Mintzer, Iain Ballamy, Thomas Stronen, Ken Vandermark, Joanna McGreggor, Polish Pop Star, Tatiana Okupnik and many more.
Simon holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Performing Arts Education from RNCM and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
