Jazz Finland Live

Liberty Ship, an avant-garde jazz quartet with saxophonist Esa Pietilä at the helm, goes on a five-concert tour around Finland. The anchor is dropped at Tampere Jazz Happening on November 1st.

Liberty Ship, founded in 2012, explores the deep waters of free jazz and improvised music. This group, led by veteran sax player and composer Esa Pietilä represents contemporary Finnish jazz at its most creative. The debut album Approaching came out on Eclipse Music in November 2013, and it was selected as one of the releases of the year by the New York Jazz Record Magazine.

Esa Pietilä (b. 1964), the captain of this fearless vessel, is known for his highly original style, with roots deep in the nutritious soil of free jazz and avant-garde. His experience as both saxophonist and composer ranges from solo concerts to big band line-ups, encompassing everything in between. During his career, he has also collaborated with some of the biggest names of improvised music, both Finnish and international.

Liberty Ship

Esa Pietilä – tenor saxophone
Aki Rissanen – piano
Antti Lötjönen - bass
Olavi Louhivuori – drums

Tour dates:
28 Oct Kajaani, Kouta-Sali at 7:00PM
29 Oct Joensuu, Konservatorio at 7:00PM
30 Oct Helsinki, Lavaklubi at 7:00PM
31 Oct Turku, Turun seudun musiikkiopisto at 7:00PM
1 Nov Tampere Jazz Happening, at Telakka at 9:00PM

The twelfth DIG. Festival will fill up the Helsinki Music Centre between 28 and 30 October. The festival is organised by the Jazz Department of the University of the Arts Helsinki’s Sibelius Academy.

Schedule

7.00 PM, Black Box:
UMO Meets Sibis

8.30 PM, Camerata:
Teemu Viinikainen solo

9.30–11.30 PM, Black Box:
Jazz Jam

***

7.00 PM, Black Box: UMO Meets Sibis

The UMO Jazz Band’s concert at the DIG. Festival will feature Sibelius Academy alumni Aili Ikonen, Joonatan Rautio, and Jukka Eskola. The programme will mainly include pieces composed and arranged for this particular concert, most of them premieres. The compositions and arrangements are by former and current Sibelius Academy students and teachers, including Teemu Takanen, Artturi Rönkä, Sampo Kasurinen, and Jarno Kukkonen.

8.30 PM, Camerata: Teemu Viinikainen solo

While Teemu Viinikainen's guitar playing is expressive, groovy, and virtuosic, what the audience hears in his music is powerful presence and heartfelt emotions. This and his incomparable ability to make different lineups thrive have made Viinikainen the hottest jazz guitarist in Finland. An instrumentalist with a clear sound all his own, he has played with several renowned international musicians over the years, including Joe Lovano, Randy Brecker, and Vince Mendoza.

Viinikainen’s strength lies in focusing on the quintessence of music and knowing his own limits. He captures the moment, goes with the flow, and could not care less about an occasional maelstrom or two.

9.30–11.30 PM, Black Box: Jazz Jam

Tickets incl. service fees: 27,50/17,50/11,50 € (Lippupalvelu and online store), 25/15/10 € (Music Centre box office). Tickets are valid for shows in the Black Box and Camerata halls.

Further information:
Ulla Havulehto
050 3843451
ulla.havulehto@uniarts.fi

Open event