biography

Founded in January 2002, Ilmiliekki Quartet won the first prize in the Young Nordic Jazz Comets competition in July 2002 quickly becoming one of the most popular jazz groups in Finland. Around the time of the release of the first recording, in October 2003, Ilmiliekki Quartet collectively was also named the Young Artist of the Year 2004 by Finland Festivals, the umbrella organization for Finland´s most important cultural festivals; in 2004, Verneri Pohjola was named the Musician of the Year by the Pori Jazz Festival and, to top it all, March of the Alpha Males won the annual Teosto Prize awarded by the Finnish Composers´ Copyright Society for the most accomplished musical work recorded during the year 2003.

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