Our Trustees
Chair - Aaron Casserly Stewart
Aaron is a jazz vocalist, manager, producer, educator, activist and former singer with the three time Grammy Award winning group The Sounds Of Blackness. He is the founder of Paradise Hill Productions; an artist development business that works with emerging and established artists and the former personal assistant to Morris Hayes (Prince's keyboardist & band leader of the New Power Generation). Winner of a 2012 NAACP Image Award, Aaron is the Chair of Black Lives Matter Leeds; Vice Chair of the Leeds Conservatoire and serves on the boards of the Manchester Jazz Festival, Come Play With Me, Showroom Cinema and the Gilbert Baker Foundation. In addition, he is an advisor for PRS Foundation, Music: Leeds, Launchpad and the former City Commissioner/Mayor of Parsons, Kansas. In his spare time, he enjoys travelling, gardening and spending time with his husband Peter.
Vice-Chair - Jon Beck
Jon Beck is a passionate jazz fan and amateur musician. Before retiring, Jon was founder and Managing Director of Anthemis Consulting Ltd, a healthcare communications consultancy. Before founding Anthemis Consulting, Jon served on several of Unilever’s global brand teams where he worked on product innovation. Prior to moving into industry, Jon held postdoctoral fellowships in the field of physiology in the UK, US, and Canada and was an honorary lecturer at Manchester University (where he continues to supervise MBA students). Jon is an experienced charity trustee and was previously Vice Chair of East Cheshire Hospice and Chair of Bollington Festival, a charitable, volunteer-led festival.
Roger Wilson
Roger Wilson is co-founder of Black Lives in Music, an initiative dedicated to addressing better representation throughout the music industry. His experience is on both sides of the stage as musician, educator, tour manager and administrator. Conservatoire trained, he has worked extensively in the commercial, jazz and classical sector with a wide range of artists including James Brown and Quincy Jones. As an instrumental teacher and lecturer, Roger has worked throughout the UK music education sector at all levels. In recent years his work has focused on the professional development of aspiring young musicians. He is and continues to be a champion of social justice.
Jackie Thompson
Jackie Thompson is a marketing and communications professional with over 11 years of experience working in the cultural sector.
She is Corporate Communications Manager at Sage Gateshead and has held various managerial roles within their marketing team leading campaigns for its Creative Learning and Artist Development programmes, as well as flagship festivals including Gateshead International Jazz Festival. She has experience in digital/traditional marketing, social media marketing, brand management and media relations.
Jackie took part in the inaugural Europe Jazz Network’s staff exchange programme, working as a member of the Marketing team for the Trondheim Jazz Festival and has returned as their guest this year.
Jackie holds a BA (Hons) in Business Studies from Nottingham Trent University and has completed the Marketing Week Mini MBA in Brand Management.
Perri Alleyne-Hughes
Perri Alleyne-Hughes is a singer-songwriter, choral arranger and composer, writer and actor. Perri was the Musical Director for Sense of Sound Singers (Liverpool), for 10 years, leading the choir in collaborations with artists as diverse as Damon Albarn (Blur/Gorillaz), Brian Eno, Massive Attack, Paco Peña, and Neil Campbell, and through major competitions on BBC TV and radio. She is a retired secondary school teacher of Maths, Biology and Performing Arts, and was the only black role model available to her students for the majority of her teaching career. She was keen to give her students lots of extra-curricular opportunities to indulge in drama and a cappella singing. She currently leads an eponymously named jazz ensemble and performs to a wide range of audiences, from small community ventures to those in much larger arenas.
Claire Umney
Claire Umney is an innovative and accomplished radio and event producer currently working full time at Jazz FM. She joined the national radio station after graduating with a first class honours degree in radio production from Bournemouth University, and has thrown open the doors to the best musicians, DJs and selectors from around the world. Working with the likes of Marcus Brigstocke, YolanDa Brown and Marcus Miller, and producing events at some of London’s most prestigious venues, Claire has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience that she loves to share through training and mentoring.
Sonia Mellor
Sonia Mellor is a freelance music education consultant with over 30 years experience working with Music Education hubs, latterly as Head of Rotherham Music in South Yorkshire.
Born in North Wales, her introduction to jazz came playing with Bill Basey’s Big Band before studying Trumpet at Leeds College of Music with jazz legend Dickie Hawdon.
She is passionate about introducing young musicians to jazz from the beginning and encouraging pathways to a life enriched with creative music making. She has worked with The National Youth Jazz Collective and Jazz North’s award winning, Jazz Camp for Girls.