APRIL JAZZ 30th ANNIVERSARY AND NEW JAZZ CLUB!

APRIL JAZZ CELEBRATES 30th ANNIVERSARY AND LAUNCHES A NEW JAZZ CLUB

The biggest jazz festival in the Helsinki metropolitan area, April Jazz, has released its 30th anniversary program. The biggest international names this year include a cappella group Take 6, pianist Robert Glasper with his Experiment band, singer Jose James, Hammond organ master Joey DeFrancesco and saxophonist Chris Potter.

The festival goes on from 20 to 26 April in Espoo, just 15 minutes from Helsinki city centre, but April Jazz doesn’t end there. Every second Friday you can now head to Tapiola Garden for Finnish and international jazz at the new April Jazz Club.

April Jazz is the perfect place for checking out what’s happening in the Finnish jazz scene right now. You can start your tour with four album release concerts – Espoo Big Band & Husband (EMI Blue Note), Aki Rissanen Trio (Edition Records), Kalevi Louhivuori Quintet (CAM Jazz) and Elena Mindru Third Stream Project.

In addition to the concerts there’s a lot happening during the week – clinics, exhibitions, jam sessions and jazz for kids. Clinics are all free of charge for the participants and they are organized in cooperation with local music institutes. The first of two exhibitions features April Jazz posters from the first festival in 1987 to this year. The second one presents Yrjö Award art work, such as paintings and sculptures, that you are not likely to see normally. The Yrjö Award is the most prestigious annual jazz prize in Finland. From Wednesday to Saturday you can join the official after party jam sessions and have a great chance to catch many of the artists jamming until early hours. On Sunday families gather at the cultural centre for music, play and workshops.  

April Jazz Club was opened in January and features both Finnish and international jazz groups every second Friday evening at Tapiola Garden. Opening acts are always young musicians form a local jazz school. In the festival’s early years this hotel was the home of the whole happening. Now the hotel’s restaurant and bar offer a perfect surrounding for wining, dining and enjoying great jazz with friends – or with family since there is no age limit.

As it sounds, it’s probably best to start planning your visit to April Jazz.

Read, listen, watch and follow:
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