Tom Ollendorff: guitar
Steve Davis: drums
Conor Murray: bass

Born in London in 1992, Tom Ollendorff has emerged as one of jazz’s most acclaimed young guitarists. A Royal Welsh College of Music graduate and 2015 Yamaha Parliamentary Jazz Scholar, he released his debut album A Song for You (2021) to international praise, followed by extensive touring across Europe’s top jazz clubs and festivals. His 2023 album Open House (featuring saxophonist Ben Wendel) further solidified his reputation, blending virtuosic technique and harmonic sophistication. A sought-after sideman (Ari Hoenig, Tim Garland) and educator, Tom has taught at institutions worldwide and published Etudes (2022), a solo guitar book distributed globally. Known for his distinctive sound, he continues to shape the jazz guitar scene.

5pm – 7pm Hawk’s Well Theatre Lobby

Catch some spontaneous performances featuring the 150 or so summer school participants who flock to Sligo each year for the love of jazz! You’d never know who might show up to join in.

Matthew Halpin: saxophone
Pablo Held: piano
Oli Hayhurst: bass
Sun Mi Hong: drums

With special guests;

Veronika Morscher: voice
Sasha Berliner: vibraphone
Joseph Leighton: guitar
Michael Buckley: saxophone
Shannon Barnett: trombone

Young Artist in Residence, Dublin-born saxophonist and composer Matthew Halpin - who first attended Sligo Jazz aged 15 before becoming Ireland’s only Berklee Presidential Scholar - now returns as a Vienna-based saxophone professor and rising European jazz star for a special reunion performance with members of the stellar 2025 faculty. Since 2013, Matthew has been composing on a regular basis for many of his own projects. His composition style is unique, distinctive and often braggadocious. Halpin's debut album "Agreements" was released in 2021 on Frutex Tracks and features the four Kit Downes, Hanno Busch, Sean Carpio and Sergio Martinez. Matthew has performed at the Blue Note and Dizzy ’s Jazz Club in New York, WDR Jazz festival, Stadtgarten Cologne, Porgy & Bess, Vienna, the Panama Jazz Festival, the Monterrey Jazz Festival, the Newport Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz festival, the National Concert Hall of Ireland, the Galway Jazz Festival, Cork Jazz Festival, Katjazz Festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, the Berklee Performance Center and the Kennedy Center. He performs more frequently in bars, pubs and jazz clubs.

10pm (after show) Hawk’s Well Theatre Lobby

Catch some spontaneous performances featuring the 150 or so summer school participants who flock to Sligo each year for the love of jazz! You’d never know who might show up to join in.