SOCAN and the Canadian Association of Jazz Educators (CAJE) honoured trumpet player Mike Malone with the Phil Nimmons established jazz composer award for 2009, presented at the Old Mill in Toronto on April 20.

SOCAN general counsel Paul Spurgeon presented the $7,500 award to Malone during a performance by the Dave McMurdo Jazz Orchestra, for which Malone has been one of the composers and trumpeters for the past 20 years. The performance included the world premiere of a new composition by Malone, commissioned as part of the award, which is sponsored by SOCAN and the CAJE.

In addition to this yearly award for an established music creator, there’s also an annual Phil Nimmons emerging jazz composer award of $3,500. The 2009 edition of that honour will be presented this year to composer Darcy James Argue during the National Jazz Awards, which are scheduled to take place May 14 at the Fleck Theatre in Toronto's Harbourfront Centre. Argue – a Canadian-born bandleader currently based in Brooklyn, New York – will similarly headline the world premiere performance of his newly commissioned work during the event.