Jazz Finland Festival took place in Helsinki 18 – 21 September 2014. The aim was to create the largest-scale showcase event of Finnish jazz to date, and this aim was also fulfilled.
Other key objectives were to offer Finnish players opportunities for networking with their international colleagues, share and acquire ideas and know-how and further awareness of Finnish jazz in both Finland and internationally. In many ways the event was a combined effort of the Finnish jazz field, and it was perceived by partners and players involved as a successful and important investment in the future of Finnish jazz. That the event met a demand was also clear from the influx of applications for the showcase concerts: as many as 74 applications were received from top Finnish jazz groups and artists, willing to display their talent in the showcase event.
But of what is an international export event made? As every event organiser knows, somewhat more than a handful of casual emails and the cheapest accommodation deal made by a random hostel on the outskirts of the city are required. Below is a brief anatomy of the expenses of the Jazz Finland Festival.
The starting point was to have as many partners committed to the project and as early as possible, already during the summer of 2013. Having Music Finland, the jazz department of the Sibelius Academy and the Europe Jazz Network with its Finnish member organisations to take part in the carrying out of the Jazz Finland Festival meant that an exceptionally wide front of the Finnish jazz field was represented by – and responsible for would gain from– the festival. Due to this fact Jazz Finland Festival received as the first jazz event in history a special cultural export grant from the Ministry of Education and Culture. In addition, Jazz Finland Festival was supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Finnish Music Foundation. It was the Finnish Jazz Federation that was responsible for applying and channelling the grants, and it also covered the remainder of the expenses from its own budget. A small but significant slice of the budget came from the ticket proceeds and the registration fees of the professionals. Profits of this sort are vital for the day-to-day operation of the Jazz Finland Federation, including its concert and tour production activities. Also, Music Finland and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs participated in the costs by hosting altogether 19 international jazz journalists from i.e. Germany, Japan, Norway, the United States, Australia, Belgium, Ireland, the UK, South Korea, Poland, Sweden, Denmark and Russia.
With this income structure the budget administered by the Finnish Jazz Federation reached the total of 101 800 € (3 Oct 2014):
Ministry of Education and Culture 50 000 €
Finnish Cultural Foundation 13 000 €
Finnish Music Foundation 5 000 €
Ticket proceeds 7 300 €
Registration proceeds 9 800 € (including marketing and partnership costs)
Finnish Jazz Federation 16 700 €
Expenses can be divided into three main categories: seminar, showcase and networking expenses. The seminar facilities and services, including catering, for 200 people alone cost 41 945 €. As incredible as the sum sounds, all arrangements relating to the seminar were carried out as cost-efficiently as possible. Accommodation costs totalled 16 838 €, the rate for one room per night being 99 euros. In order to stay for the whole four-day programme, participants paid for 156 additional nights at their own expense. 38 % percent had been negotiated off the regular rates of the hotel rooms.
The production budget of the showcase concerts corresponds to that of any festival of the same scale. However, due to the number of partners, costs did not fall on one producer alone, but were shared by several bodies. Renting of the concert halls cost 4 871 €, but if the partners’ contribution is taken into account, the sum mounts substantially higher. However, without various equipment, backline and capable sound engineers no concert would be possible. These expenses totalled 8145 €. A primary concern was to offer a high-quality concert experience to the audience, but of even greater importance – since we are talking about a showcase event – was to ensure optimal performing conditions for the musicians. This was a guiding factor in the planning of the showcase concerts. 9 785 € were spent on marketing and publicity. The total includes all expenses relating to the production and distribution of materials and goods. For instance, printing accounted for 2 127 € and the festival tote bags, manufactured by Globe Hope, for approximately 1 400 €. All these were required to keep more than 300 people (including artists, staff and volunteers) informed for three days.
Networking was promoted by bringing Finnish and international jazz professionals under the same roof. Finnish players took international guests to dinners and brunches and guided guests from one event locale to another. These “hospitality expenses” account for 9 177 euros of the total budget, but in actuality the sum is larger and covered from several organisers’ budgets.
It has to be pointed out that the Europe Jazz Network supported Jazz Finland Festival substantially, with a compensation of 38 000 € for covering the travelling expenses of its members. Also worth mentioning is that Music Finland organised gratis mentoring sessions and speed meetings for Finnish showcase artists and their representatives. Artists’ representatives could participate in the event without a registration fee or any other fees.
This is only a rough description of the expense structure of a multi-faceted cultural event. On the Finnish Jazz Federation’s part the realisation of the event, when completed, will be open data for those interested in it. The remainder of the expenses are formed by Teosto royalties, costs of different services provided for artists, producers’ fees, and the upkeep of 20 volunteers during the festival. It may be challenging to conceive of all that the production of a like event involves, but from a producer’s point of view Jazz Finland Festival was carried out efficiently and in an economically sustainable way. Main goals were achieved and feedback has been positive from both guests and artists. The most concrete aim, that of aiding Finnish artists with international contracts and working opportunities, appears to be bearing fruit as well.
These kinds of investments are never made without some certainty of returns – here these returns mean bookings and contracts for Finnish artists. However, marketing always involves an element of risk. On the other hand, it is clear that without a network of contacts the road to international arenas will be a rocky one for any Finnish artist. Artists benefit from of a showcase event through their personal strategy for pursuing an international career, but they can rely also on organisers who have the responsibility to create as propitious conditions for the realisation of this strategy as possible. Jazz Finland Festival was co-organised by non-profit organisations, with the furtherance of Finnish jazz music as their sole aim.
The Young Nordic Jazz Comets showcase, which took place on Thursday 18 September, was co-produced by national jazz organisations of the Nordic countries and the costs of the concert were covered from their annual budgets. In total the YNJC showcase and a jointly organised education event for the young musicians with production, marketing, travel, accommodation and upkeep costs totalled 26 000 €, including the costs of the exclusive guest event of the showcase night and small fees paid by the producing organisations to the artists.
The remuneration practices of showcase events became a topic of debate during the Jazz Finland Festival. This, however, was only welcome. In Finland there are a number of restrictions that affect the financing of events that are targeted at promoting and marketing music. These restrictions often tie organisers’ hands when it comes to artists’ fees. For this reason everything was done to prevent any costs from falling upon the artists in the planning of the showcase concerts.
This financing structure and the question about compensation for artists have their origins in the sphere of commercial music business, but today both are encountered in the production of music events regardless of genre. Finnish Musicians’ Union and Music Finland, the latter of being the foremost organisation in supporting Finnish music export, are currently looking for a solution to this issue – and in this process feedback on Jazz Finland Festival will no doubt be taken into consideration.
Maati Rehor,
Executive Manager
Finnish Jazz Federation