News -page consists of current topics and interesting articles about jazz in Finland.
Saxophonist Mikko Innanen, the Flame Jazz Artist of 2017, blows his horn for the conservation of the Baltic Sea, floating amid the eider statues by artist Reima Nurmikko on Turku’s Aura River on 20 - 22 July. The same weekend will see PLOP, composed of Innanen, bassist Ville Herrala and drummer Joonas Riippa, take the stage at the nearby Bar Ö.
The autumn programme 2017 sees more music shows than ever before on the Tampere Työväen Teatteri stage. We will also be in for several album launch concerts.
Funky Elephant will see Omar, the father of British neo soul and Hugo Mendez, the frontman of the collective Sofrito hit the stage at Helsinki’s Suvilahti in September. Soul star Nicole Willis will also present her new outfit.
Pianist Joonas Haavisto has been selected among the artists to represent the world-famous piano brand Steinway. The title aims at acknowledging high-class pianists and improving their working conditions and giving boost to their careers. Haavisto is the first Finnish jazz pianist to receive the title, joining such celebrated colleagues as Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Lang Lang, Keith Jarrett, Ahmad Jamal, Brad Mehldau sekä Robert Glasper.
This jazz quartet led by saxophonist Pauli Lyytinen and starring the internationally acclaimed trumpeter Verneri Pohjola will celebrate its debut album at one of the main concerts of the Pori Jazz Festival 2017 on 14 July.
Finnish trombonist Kasper Sarikoski (B. 1988) starts his studies in the Artist Diploma in Jazz Studies program at the world famous Juilliard School in New York City.
This month, the Tampere-based concert series Eclipse Music Club focusses on prog rock and modern big band jazz. Also, Tapio Ylinen, the host of the club and the manager of the record label Eclipse Jazz, will take to the stage.
The second day of jazzahead! 2017 was yet another success for the Finnish delegates. The opening Thursday was reported to have drawn the biggest audiences ever, and last night’s gala concert starring Iiro Rantala with Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen showed what can be accomplished when jazz, improvisation and classical music shake hands. The Tampere-hosted jam afterparty in the Schlachthof basement really hit the chord after the long showcase day. Both, the musicians and the listeners seemed to enjoy a little break from the business buzz.
What do you call a cultural worker who wears many hats? In Finland we call them "moniottelija", a multi-athlete of culture, in lack of a better word. What is the weekly routine of such a culti-athlete?
The first day at jazzahead! 2017 saw eight beautiful perfomances in fully packed halls.
