The finalists for the 2026 Freedman Jazz Fellowship have been announced. Recognising the outstanding practice of a young jazz musician, the Fellowship awards $30,000 to support the delivery of a major creative project.

Andrew Saragossi (© Celeste Di Clario); Chloe Kim (© Jess Gleeson); Holli Scott (© Kirsty Chisholm) and Theo Carbo (supplied).

This year’s finalists are saxophonist Andrew Saragossi, drummer Chloe Kim, vocalist Holli Scott and guitarist Theo Carbo.

The finalists will perform at a concert on 14 November at ACO on the Pier, Walsh Bay, with the winning Fellow to be announced on the night.

Andrew Saragossi is a Melbourne saxophonist, improviser and composer whose interest lies in experimentation wth the boundaries of his instrument. He performs in band Milton Man Gogh, trio Loose Leaf and duo MEATSHELL, which released its third album The Elevator Child in May.

Chloe Kim. Photo supplied

Chloe Kim is a Korean-born, Sydney-based drummer and composer whose recent large-scale projects include 100 Hours (where she undertook 100 hours of solo improvisation at MONA FOMA) and Music for Six Double Bassists. In August, she released the recording for her SIMA-commissioned work Music for 50 Musicians.

Fusing jazz improvisation with contemporary and avant-garde influences, Holli Scott is a jazz vocalist and composer from Perth. She released her sophomore album Weather and Weeds featuring Tal Cohen and Jamie Oehlers in 2024, and was also a finalist for the 2025 Fellowship.

Theo Carbo. Photo supplied.

Based in Melbourne, Theo Carbo is a guitarist, composer, producer and engineer who works across jazz, improvisation and experimental electronics. He performs with groups including Open Thread, TL;DR,  The Rest is Silence and Dragonfru?t, and was also a finalist for the Fellowship in 2023.

Previous winners of the Freedman Jazz Fellowship include Phil Slater, Andrea Keller, Matt McMahon, Phillippa Murphy-Haste, Sam Gill and Helen Svoboda, who will also perform at the concert.

The 2026 Freedman Jazz Fellowship concert is on 14 November at ACO on the Pier, Sydney.

More about the Freedman Jazz Fellowships can be found here.