Edition Records and The Royal Academy of Music have just announced that the third winner of the Kenny Wheeler Jazz Prize is Irish vocalist/composer Lauren Kinsella. Josh Arcoleo won it in 2011 and Reuben Fowler in 2012. The prize is awarded annually to a graduating student of the Royal Academy of Music and consists of the release of an album on the Edition record label, in Lauren’s case in 2014.

One of the judges, Evan Parker said: ‘Lauren’s concert impressed with both its range and depth of expression. In a year of many strong contenders her approach stood out for its committed approach to both the freely improvised and the notation based material, for the clear group empathy and the ingenious exploitation of the group’s instrumental and creative resources.’

Laurenkinsella.com