A musical journey: From Trinidad to Sheffield
From a lush island bathed in the Caribbean sun to Sheffield’s own tranquil Winter Garden oasis, musician Jay Dasent has quickly settled into life in the Steel city. Playing live in the Winter Garden as part of Off the Shelf’s Hidden Figures strand of events, Jay will join a range…

From a lush island bathed in the Caribbean sun to Sheffield’s own tranquil Winter Garden oasis, musician Jay Dasent has quickly settled into life in the Steel city.
Playing live in the Winter Garden as part of Off the Shelf’s Hidden Figures strand of events, Jay will join a range of brilliant live performers in playing daily musical ‘energisers’ to visitors to the popular city centre attraction.
Ranging from gospel and ska to reggae and pop, talented local musicians will showcase the diverse musical heritage of the region and how it traces its roots around the world.
Multi-talented Jay, a producer, sound engineer, keyboardist, lecturer and more, started making music at the tender age of nine in his native Trinidad. Visually impaired from birth, Jay’s mission is to bridge the gap between accessibility and creativity.
He has become a leading advocate for inclusivity in the music industry and since moving to the UK, has become a prominent figure in discussions about accessibility and music technology.
“A lot of my work as an accessibility consultant is around working with manufacturers to make technology talk, so it’s accessible to visually impaired people,” said Jay.
“It’s about integrating accessibility into the hardware and software. It’s important that this is done from the ground up, rather than as an add-on or a retrofit. Ultimately it’s all aimed at breaking down barriers, at fostering collaborations between differently abled people.”

On top of his many roles and talents, Jay and his wife, fine artist Sarah Joseph-Dasen, are helping to unearth the next generation of local musical talent. Through the project ‘Discover Me’, Jay has opened up his studio, equipment and expertise to artists struggling to make a breakthrough in the industry.
“It was an initiative we started in Trinidad in order to highlight emerging talent,” he said.
“We found there was a lot of young talent who we felt were market ready but there might be a financial barrier in being able to afford to take things to the next level.”
Leading to big things for previously unknown artists in Trinidad, the couple have now launched the initiative here in Sheffield – a city they are very happy to now call home.
“I initially came to the UK in 2019 to do a Masters Degree and a PHD and we spent the first couple of years in London. Sarah and I love Trinidad but it’s a small island of around 1.6m people and, in terms of our work, we felt we’d achieved everything we wanted to do there. It was time for a change.
“I have some family in Sheffield and we’ve found it such a warm city with such welcoming people. We really love it here.”
Hidden figures will be Jay’s first foray into the Off the Shelf world, which came about through a chance encounter.
“Ruth (Hidden Figures curator) was actually visiting Sarah to discuss her art, after meeting her at Art in the Gardens. When she was in Sarah’s studio she must have heard my noise and we got talking from there.”
Now, Jay will be playing a selection of popular and classic tunes on the keyboard accompanied by a singer in the Winter Garden on 17 October.
“I’m really looking forward to it. I love experiencing new places and meeting new people. I really want to integrate myself into the Sheffield music scene and I’d love to do more in terms of producing music locally.
“My desire is to meet and work with local artists and make new music. I’m also planning to do some more work with Ruth and the Sheffield Gospel Choir – lots of exciting things to come.”
To find out more and connect with Jay, visit his website here.