YOUNG musicians who experience creativity as an “inherently queer process” may be left feeling stifled at traditional music schools, a rising jazz star has warned.

Luca Manning is an award-winning jazz pianist and vocalist with a debut studio album already under their belt.

Speaking to the New Journal this week, Luca said their “wings were being clipped a little bit” before joining the Roundhouse as a resident artist in October 2021 – a place they credit with allowing them to “break free”.

They said: “It’s a magical space and venue, but also a cultural hub for people of all disciplines and styles. That really appealed to me because I’d been in a vacuum of jazz boys,” they said.

Luca, who studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, said: “Towards the end of my journey at college, I started to question my gender identity and find my queerness a lot more.

It’s a very fruitful part of my life and I thank every day that I have the experience that I do, and the ability to hold the stories and the culture that comes with being queer.

“I guess I found that in a creative context. I felt stifled and didn’t feel particularly myself. I think everyone thinks [music school] is going to be a hotbed of diversity, but they’re certainly not.

“They’re actually enshrined in very British, very post-colonial, white, male pale and stale vibes,” they said, adding: “People are doing incredible work to try and change it.”

Luca, who uses they/them pronouns, said: “I realised I was changing a lot as a human being. We’d had a lockdown, I had a lot of time to reflect on my life.

“I started doing a lot of thinking about myself and realised that I wasn’t happy with the set agenda that we’re given as people in Western society.”

They added: “For a long time I didn’t want my queerness to define what I did, but it’s an inherent part of who I am and it is an absolute waterfall source of creativity for me. I think creativity is an inherently queer process.

“We live in a world where we’re told so much about how we should feel and think and move and exist and I think anyone that challenges that is taking the lead from queer counterculture, queer subculture and queer creativity.

“So for me, the more I’ve got in touch with my queerness, it’s really unfolded my creativity and enhanced it massively and allowed me to take risks.”

According to Luca, their time at the Roundhouse in Chalk Farm Road has been central to their development as a musician. “I have really been able to come into the next phase of my journey,” they said.

Luca will perform their final residency show, Sonder, at the Roundhouse with Trans Voices choir in April.