On October 1, some 230 high school musicians from all around the country descended upon the NZ School of Music – Te Kōkī in Te Whanganui-A-Tara, for the inaugural Young Jazz Band-it competition 2022.

Ten high school big bands contested the Essential NZ Jazz Band competition finals, with Christchurch’s Burnside High School Big Band winning first place, second place went to Palmerston North Boys’ High School Big Band,  and third place to Tauranga Boys’ College Big Band.

The NZ Drum Improvisation competition was won by Sho Woodhouse, again from Burnside High School.

William Kao, from Burnside High School, took out first place in the NZ Jazz Improvisation competition, Monet Schutte from Burnside High School was second, and Jack Ta from Dunedin’s Logan Park High School was third.

First place in the NZ Jazz Composition competition (combo section), a competition for the best jazz piece composed by a NZ school student or students and performed by a school jazz band, went to Chicks from Corea, from Burnside High School, while Fruju Peak from Auckland’s Northcote College were placed second.