Young Nordic Jazz Comets is an annual showcase for the most talented, young jazz acts of the Nordic countries. Finland selects their national representative at a band competition in April.
Young Nordic Jazz Comets started in 2000 and has since been a recurring event on the Nordic jazz scene. The main purpose is to create attention to new jazz talents, giving them the opportunity to meet their future audience and to play at professional venues. Until 2012, this event has been organised as an annual competition. Starting in 2012, the countries involved in YNJC, wanted to focus more on the aspect of promotion, and not the competitive elements.
The idea is to create a club night/venue event for young aspiring jazz talents at one of the key jazz venues in one of the Nordic countries each year. The goal will be to attract as much attention as possible from key people within the jazz community in the Nordic countries/the rest of the world, be it jazz clubs, festivals and the music press. The procedures for selecting the bands for the Nordic showcase vary from nation to nation. In Finland, the process is based on applications according to which four bands compete in the national finals in April.
The national Finnish winner represents the country in the YNJC main event, this year in Umeå Jazz Festival in Sweden. In addition to a showcase trip, the winner gets a grant and a concert at the Jazz-Espa festival. All the participating bands get professional feedback on their performance by the jury.
Apply with an electronic form here.