Special matchmaking sessions, 10-12 March, before the official start of jazzahead! digital 2021

Inspiring conversations, targeted one-on-one meetings, valuable opportunities to network: Can they still happen at a digital trade fair? Yes, they can! In cooperation with a specialist partner, Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), jazzahead!, the world’s largest international jazz trade fair, is organising online matchmaking sessions over three days from Wednesday 10 March until Friday 12 March 2021. Producers, concert and festival organisers, bookers, artist management agencies, media representatives or musicians: all will be able to avail themselves of the chance to make valuable new connections: under the rubric „transatlantic relations“, potential business partners from the global jazz scene will have the opportunity to make targeted contacts and enter into conversations. And it will all happen before the fair itself starts.

For registered participants

There is just one prerequisite for participation in this special matchmaking programme: interested parties will need to have registered already for jazzahead! digital 2021. Access to all these virtual sessions is included in the registration fee. „Those registered can take part in the digital concert and trade programme at the trade fair from 29 April to 2 May and also take advantage of the extensive networking opportunities before, during and after jazzahead!“, says Sybille Kornitschky, who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. Whether it’s Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia or America, this special networking event is a great opportunity to build and expand connections overseas, say the organisers. „The networking sessions will take place in the afternoon to allow people from other time zones to participate“, explains Julia Feddersen from EEN. The online registration link for jazzahead! digital 2021 is: www.jazzahead.de/en/tradefair/

Networking: before, during and after the trade fair

After these first matchmaking sessions in March, jazzahead! and EEN will invite participants to further sessions throughout the year to offer better follow-up and valuable connections way beyond the dates of the jazzahead! trade fair. „We have been the organisers of the ’speed dating’ sessions in partnership with jazzahead! since 2011. These have taken place as part of the trade fair in Bremen, with the objective of people getting to know each other and networking“, Feddersen tells us. „Within the framework of the Enterprise Europe Network, we have already built a successful track record in digital matchmaking. Geographically, barriers can be broken down and especially with a global target group this is of great added value. We are very happy that we are also jointly overseeing this new series.“ If there are any questions or uncertainties, EEN will be there to assist all participants. „On Monday and Tuesday, 8-9 March, we will be offering online assistance“, says Feddersen.

Participants who have registered for the digital edition of jazzahead! also have access to the virtual sessions that Kornitschky and her team have been offering since September 2020. For example, in keeping with the matchmaking theme on Thursday, 25 February 2021, the session will cover „Overseas Relations: The exchange between the European and the American markets“. All registered participants will be sent an exclusive access link for this session via email. To make good use of the remaining time until the start of the virtual jazz trade fair, it is also worth checking out the new jazzahead! blog, which offers a wealth of industry-relevant content which is being added to regularly.

Due to the pandemic, jazzahead! 2021 will be held virtually for the first time under the motto „Close together from afar“ from Thursday 29 April to Sunday 2 May 2021.

www.jazzahead.de

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NOTE: About jazzahead!

Launched in 2006, jazzahead! is the largest jazz trade fair in the world. Having grown steadily, the industry gathering is also known as the place where the jazz family gets together – the event has never lost its family character. The 40 showcase concerts during the fair and the jazzahead! Festival are also aimed at the general public. Since 2011, this festival, together with around 60 cooperation partners, has presented the cultural scene of a different partner country each year, plus bands from all over the world as part of the CLUBNIGHT, in which around 30 venues in Bremen participate. Since 2015, jazzahead! has been funded by the German Federal Government‘s Commissioner for Culture and the Media. In 2019 it was awarded the title of European Cultural Brand of the Year.

Matchmaking: special "Overseas Relations" networking opportunity on the lead to the digital jazz trade fair

And we’re on: jazzahead!, the world’s largest international jazz trade fair, was obliged to take a break in 2020 because of the Corona pandemic, but preparations for the 15th edition are now gathering pace. Under the slogan „Close together from afar“, the organisers are in the process of putting together the main elements of the trade fair which will take place in virtual form. The dates are Thursday 29 April to Sunday, 2 May 2021. „As we do this, we are assembling exciting content that is important and topical for the jazz scene. We’ll also be facilitating both one-on-one discussions and meetings in larger groups,“ says Sybille Kornitschky who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. Exhibitors and trade participants can register for „jazzahead! digital 2021“ now by paying the registration fee at www.jazzahead.de. Pricing options, general information and conditions can be found on the website: https://jazzahead.de/en/tradefair/#optprices.

Conferences and panels, networking, 32 showcasing bands: Full program available in early March

What is already clear is that the program of the virtual edition will be very similar to what visitors are familiar with from the face-to-face events in Bremen. „Registered participants will be able to take part interactively in panel sessions online, discuss and network with new and old acquaintances in various settings, and also see performances and interviews featuring the 32 showcase bands,“ says Kornitschky. In order to take into account time zone differences, the short concerts and the industry specialist program will be offered both live-streamed and on-demand. As usual, the conference program consists of jazzahead! panels – this time especially focusing on promoters and music export – as well as sessions from the exhibitors. The complete program will be available from the beginning of March at www.jazzahead.de.

Package deal for trade participants and exhibitors

Via our online platform, all exhibitors and trade participants who have registered and paid the fee will have access to the digital trade fair – including the networking tool-kit, the 32 showcase concerts and all events in the conference program. In addition, they will be able to participate in the monthly Virtual Sessions featuring a succession of teams of experts on relevant topics. For the next session, experts and industry insiders will be discussing the implications of Brexit on Thursday, 28 January, at 3 pm (CET) under the title „What’s jazz got to do with it?“. Links are on jazzahead!’s social media channels and also at: https://bit.ly/2NlZSNM.

And there’s more: registered participants will have exclusive access to the first special edition of a digital matchmaking session, „Overseas Relations“, the chance to network with industry contacts matching their own profile. This event, which is jointly organised by MESSE BREMEN and the Enterprise European Network (EEN), will take place in the run-up to the trade fair – from Wednesday 10 to Friday 12 March 2021. And there’s another way to put the remaining time before „jazzahead! digital 2021“ starts to good use: take a look at the new jazzahead! blog, which offers all kinds of fascinating and varied content.

For more information on the various packages that can be booked, go to www.jazzahead.de.

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Further information for editorial offices:

MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH

Canan Sevil, Phone +49 421 / 35 05 – 323

E-Mail: sevil@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

 

 

Showcase Festival concerts will take place - Canada confirmed as partner country for 2022

Under the motto „Close together from afar“, the organisers announce that they intend to implement large parts of the 15th jazz trade fair virtually. The dates will be Thursday 29 April to Sunday, 2 May 2021. These changes primarily affect the trade fair and the programme for industry participants. „Our goal is to facilitate and to foster exchange within the international jazz scene, so we will ensure that this can take place online under the best possible professional conditions, despite the pandemic,“ says Sybille Kornitschky who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. „This includes digital networking opportunities as well as panels and workshops with exciting content that is topical and important for the international scene.“ In addition, exhibitors will be given the opportunity to offer their own digital sessions.

Showcase festival concerts will take place in 2021 – partner country Canada participation postponed into 2022

Kornitschky and her team have transferred the bands selected for the Showcases in 2020 into the programme for 2021. The partner country, Canada, on the other hand, has had to postpone its participation until 2022. „After careful consideration, we have decided jointly to move our cooperation forwards into the following year,“ says Kornitschky. One of the reasons for this was the Canadian government’s travel ban for its citizens to European countries. The withdrawal of the partner country for 2021 means that the opening of the festival in Theater Bremen, the Gala Concert at the Glocke concert hall, and the cultural programme involving Canada will also be cancelled. As a result, the selection of bands which would have made up the Canadian Night of jazzahead! will also be postponed to 2022. Nevertheless, jazz fans can look forward to a few surprises from Canada at 2021‘s digital jazzahead! edition. Also the CLUBNIGHT is being reconfigured, the new look will be announced soon.

Showcase festival to be produced live in Bremen

As far as it is possible, the Showcase concerts in April will be produced live in Bremen for digital streaming. And where this is not possible, jazzahead! will look for alternatives, in partnership and collaboration with the 32 bands from Germany, Europe and overseas. „We are planning to have maximum flexibility, and even leaving a window open for ‚analogue‘ events!“ Kornitschky explains: „If access for the public is allowed again in April, we will allow access to the concerts for audiences at short notice and we will be offering tickets.“ The livestreams will initially only be available to registered trade participants. For the general public, the showcase concerts will then be available online after a delay.

Interested parties can register for the digital event from mid-January via the homepage www.jazzahead.de. Prices, terms and conditions are now also available on the website. In the interim before this, the jazzahead! team invites you to visit the new jazzahead! Blog, and also their live sessions via the jazzahead! Facebook page.

The 15th jazzahead!, the anniversary edition of the world’s largest jazz trade fair, was originally scheduled to take place from Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 April 2020, in Halls 6 and 7 of MESSE BREMEN, with the accompanying festival from Friday 17 to Sunday 26 April 2020. Unfortunately, the entire event had to be cancelled at relatively short notice because of the Corona pandemic.

More information: www.jazzahead.de

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 NOTE: About jazzahead!

Launched in 2006, jazzahead! is the largest jazz trade fair in the world. Having grown steadily, the industry gathering is also known as the place where the jazz family gets together – the event has never lost its family character. The 40 showcase concerts during the fair and the jazzahead! Festival are also aimed at the general public. Since 2011, this festival, together with around 60 cooperation partners, has presented the cultural scene of a different partner country each year, plus bands from all over the world as part of the CLUBNIGHT, in which around 30 venues in Bremen participate. Since 2015, jazzahead! has been funded by the German Federal Government‘s Commissioner for Culture and the Media. In 2019 it was awarded the title of European Cultural Brand of the Year.

 

Further information for editorial offices:

MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH

Canan Sevil, Phone +49 421 / 35 05 – 323

E-Mail: sevil@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

“Virtual Sessions” with Experts, Multimedia Blog and Live Panels via Facebook

 jazzahead! 2020 and the cultural festival which accompany it were due to be held in April, and would have marked a double anniversary. Both events, however, fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic, and the postponement was a huge disappointment to all those who had been looking forward to attending. Now the organisers have news to report: „We will be catching up with the celebrations from 29 April to 2 May 2021,” says Sybille Kornitschky who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. “And in the interim we are launching an exciting online programme. As an important networking platform for the global industry, we wish to promote and support the scene in these difficult times“. To ensure that the programme can reach as many people as possible, the sessions and the content will be in English.

„Virtual sessions“ on industry topics
“Virtual sessions“ on specialist topics are aimed specifically at participants who have already registered for 2021 – registration starts on Tuesday, 1 September. In these 45-minute discussions, experts from the respective fields will discuss, for example, best-practice examples of export strategies of different countries or social media for organisers. For example, the first event on Monday, 28 September, will look at the question: How do you successfully organize an online festival and earn money from it? For the livestream of Bel Jazz Festival at the end of May, the Belgian organizers managed to do just that, with around 3,000 fans buying tickets.
A wide-ranging blog
The digital programme will be launched on Friday, 21 August, with a blog at www.jazzahead.de. Texts, videos and podcasts will present people, topics and regions from the international jazz scene. The blog is also intended to prepare the industry for the next jazzahead! And the content will be available without restriction. For example, Peter Schulze, Artistic Director of jazzahead!, talks to musician Pablo Held. He is known for his work as a pianist but he also regularly interviews major figures in jazz from all over the world for his own blog. From his collection of interviews, he will contribute the podcast of his conversation with Norma Winstone, who was a recipient of the jazzahead! Škoda Award.
Two other initiatives: the jazzahead! team will be asking people from the jazz scene in Germany and abroad to write short texts in which they describe their view of German jazz and present which jazz from Germany they currently recommend. This will be an occasional series. Furthermore, Canadian festival director Rainbow Robert will be reporting on the effects of the Corona pandemic on the Canadian jazz scene. Canada was the partner country of the postponed jazzahead! and has accepted the renewed invitation to be partner country in 2021.
Live panels on current topics
Also free of charge and available to all people interested in jazz: Monthly live panels on Facebook start on Thursday, September 3. These 15-minute sessions will focus on preparations for jazzahead! 2021, but also on general current topics such as the work of the Europe Jazz Network or the situation and perspectives of the live sector against the background of the Corona pandemic.
More information: www.jazzahead.de
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Further information for editorial offices:
MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH
Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 (0)4 21 / 35 05 – 445
E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de – Website http://www.messe-bremen.de

 

Partner country and showcases to remain the same, but postponed until 2021

Hans Peter Schneider, Managing Director of M3B GmbH, the parent company of MESSE BREMEN, explains why it has unfortunately proved necessary to make this decision: „jazzahead! exists in order to promote international meetings and the exchange of ideas, but this is unfortunately not possible during the coronavirus pandemic, and that includes the end of April. We very much regret being obliged to cancel, but the preservation of health is the over-riding priority.“ The largest jazz trade fair in the world, originally planned to take place from Thursday 23 April to Sunday 26 April 2020, in halls 6 and 7 of MESSE BREMEN, as well as all the events of the accompanying festival from Friday 17 April until Sunday 26 April 2020, are therefore being postponed to 2021, from Thursday to Sunday, 29 April to 2 May for the trade fair.

The organizers had first tried to ascertain whether it might be possible to move the jazz trade fair and the accompanying culture festival into the summer months. „But together with our partners, we have now decided to postpone jazzahead! until next year,“ says Sybille Kornitschky, who runs jazzahead! on behalf of MESSE BREMEN. Canada as partner country has already committed for 2021. The bands selected for this year’s showcase concerts will also be maintained for the showcases in 2021.

Rochelle Hum of the Canada Council for the Arts, speaking on behalf of all the Canadian partners commented: “While we are saddened by the cancellation of the 2020 edition of jazzahead!, we understand the importance of this change in plans for the health of artists, delegates and audiences. In the months ahead, we believe that music—and the arts more broadly—will have an integral role to play in our shared healing. For this reason, we have committed to supporting a Canada focus at the 2021 edition of jazzahead! Our ongoing collaboration with jazzahead! marks an important example of how countries can come together in these challenging times to foster our collective wellbeing.”

Double anniversary missed

In 2020 jazzahead! would have marked its fifteenth anniversary, and this would also be the tenth time that a festival dedicated to the culture of the partner country accompanied the trade fair. Canada is the first country from overseas to be chosen as a partner. The organizers had been expecting over 3,000 industry participants plus exhibitors from 64 nations for the trade fair, with the accompanying festival, including the CLUBNIGHT, attracting an additional audience of around 15,000 people.

More information: www.jazzahead.de

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Further information for editors:

MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH
Canan Sevil, Telephone +49 (0) 4 21 / 35 05 – 323
E-Mail: sevil@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

jazzahead!: German jazz legend Eberhard Weber speaks – new network starts

Eberhard Weber’s sound is unmistakable, he has made a unique and revolutionary contribution to the evolution of the bass in jazz, and just a few months ago he turned 80. This living legend has been unable to play since suffering a stroke thirteen years ago, but he says with typical directness: „I still listen to things that are worth listening to.“ On the 15th anniversary of jazzahead!, he will be guest of honour at the official opening of the trade fair and showcase festival at MESSE BREMEN. Weber will speak at Thursday 23 April 2020. jazzahead! continues until Sunday 26 April.

While this event will be one of the highlights of the programme for industry people, it is far from being the only one. One of the priorities of jazzahead! – probably the most important gathering of the jazz industry anywhere in the world – is to ensure a sustainable future for this industry. One new development at this year’s jazzahead! fits well into this context: „The fair is offering the platform for the launch of a new network for ‚young professionals‘, i.e. for the next generation of talents,“ explains Sybille Kornitschky, who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. „We are organizing an umbrella stand. People or organisations with an interest in being part of this new venture from the start can register at reduced cost.”

The instigator of the Young Professionals Network is Norwegian music promoter and agent Kine Lundervold. She is planning „a unique training program“, she says. Together with the management of jazzahead!, the aim is to bring young jazz professionals from all over Europe together, and to forge connections with experienced practitioners, for example for mentoring and recruitment for jobs in jazz. The aim is to nurture more viable career paths – for example in the festival business, with labels, in club management etc. The network will have the role of providing advice and exchanging expertise.

Jazz export and marketing via social media

jazzahead! is also concerned to foster discussions and professional development, and that part of the programme will get under way from 10 a.m. on the opening day, Thursday. The fact that there is an extra half-day provides the opportunity to have sessions on specialist topics: specialists will discuss regional and national strategies for exporting their respective jazz scenes to other countries and regions. The focus will be on approaches that have proved successful as well as areas where people wish that more could be done.

Finland is an example of best-practice. For three years, Finland has consistently focused on the marketing of Finnish jazz into the German-speaking world. This will be the topic addressed by Niko Kangas, Export Manager at Music Finland. Yavier Cester Vidal from the Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals, will talk about the efforts in Spain to network the regionally dominated music marketing much more strongly in order to ultimately bring a national structure into being.

The jazzahead! team is also working on further panels for the Saturday of the trade fair, expecially for promoters. A session is planned for marketing festival and club programmes via social media. The whole programme will be published on www.jazzahead.de/en/ on the beginning of march.

Interested parties can register online as specialist participants until Wednesday, 1 April 2020, after which they can only register on-site and with an additional charge.

More infos: www.jazzahead.de/en/

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About jazzahead!

jazzahead!, launched in 2006, is the largest jazz trade fair in the world. And whereas it has been growing in size every year, this meeting place for the worldwide jazz industry is also the ”family gathering” for jazz; it has never lost its original spirit of fellowship and fun. The 40 showcase concerts during the trade fair, and the jazzahead! Cultural Festival are also aimed at the wider public. Since 2011, this festival, co-created with some 60 cooperation partners, presents the cultural scene of a partner country – there is a different one every year – plus bands from all over the world. These bands perform at the CLUBNIGHT in 30 venues in Bremen. Since 2015, jazzahead! has been funded by the Federal Government’s Commissioner for Culture and the Media. In 2019, jazzahead! was awarded European Culture Brand of the Year.

 

Further information for editorial offices:

MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH

Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 421 / 35 05 – 4 45

E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

 

 

 

 

Global stars will shine and exciting new talents will emerge

Every year in April, Bremen becomes a jazz metropolis, with the international jazz scene convening for the jazzahead! trade fair at MESSE BREMEN. This year, 2020, marks a double anniversary: it is the fifteenth anniversary of the world’s largest gathering of the jazz industry, while the accompanying festival – with its partner country programme and a CLUBNIGHT spread across a host of different venues in Bremen – has its tenth edition.

The trade fair takes place from Thursday 23 April to Sunday 26 April. The festival starts earlier, on Friday 17 April.

“jazzahead! has come on by leaps and bounds since it started,” says Sybille Kornitschky who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. “It is now not just a major player in the jazz business, it has also proved that it can serve as a launchpad for artist’s careers. And it has become a magnet for audiences too. We were determined to do something special this year to mark our double anniversary – which is why we are so pleased that Canada is our partner country. For the first time, a jazz nation from across the ocean is in the limelight. Visitors will see jazz from Canada in all its diversity. And there is another remarkable feature too: a very substantial proportion of female artists and bandleaders.“

The festival starts with a major highlight. The opening evening at Theater Bremen presents a double bill: singer-songwriter Laila Biali, recent winner of a Juno Award, will perform the first half. After the interval, Tanya Tagaq, who is one of the most high-profile representatives of the Inuit, will perform. Tagaq has developed her own competely individual and successful way of bringing the traditional throat-singing of this Canadian indigenous people closer to jazz.

In the two weeks following the opening of the culture festival, further aspects of Canadian culture can be enjoyed, in addition to music. For example, Tanya Tagaq will do a reading from her first novel “Split Tooth“ (2018). The Museum Weserburg is exhibiting works by the artist Kapwani Kiwanga. Her sculptures of black marble and lamps, for example, are a reference to the New York “lantern law“ of 1713, according to which slaves were only allowed to be out at night-time either if they carried a lantern or were chaperoned.

On the opening night of the trade fair, eight Canadian groups – some established, others up-and-coming – will perform for an audience consisting of industry people such as bookers, festival directors and programmers, representatives of labels and the public at the Canadian Night. The programme includes a range of very different artists: trombonist Audrey Ochoa and her band, the quartet of classically trained guitarist Itamar Erez and a joint project from pianist Marianne Trudel and drummer John Hollenbeck, “Dédé Java Espiritu“.

Jazzahead! also facilitates “bilateral speed meetings“, where business proposals can be advanced. These meetings bring together industry specialists capable of opening doors for Canadian artists in Germany, or for German artists in Canada.

Rufus Wainwright, an established and award-winning artist will be be giving the jazzahead! gala concert on the Friday evening of the trade fair at the Glocke concert hall in Bremen’s city centre. This concert will mark the German premiere of the material from his new album, which is currently in the process of being released worldwide.

For the Saturday, the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT will bring jazz to some 30 venues in Bremen. Canadian juries have selected numerous other bands to perform at this event. For example, there will be performances by the Josh Zubot String Quintet with the brothers Josh and Jesse Zubot and also CODE Quartet led by multi-award winning saxophonist and composer Christine Jensen, winner of two Canadian Juno Awards. Also there is the pianist and composer John Kameel Farah, who mixes for instance elements from Baroque music, Middle Eastern music and contemporary music with improvisation and electronics.

Last year there were 3,408 registered participants from 64 nations attending the jazzahead! trade fair. The combined audience for the trade fair and the 100 weekend concerts was around 18,000 people.

Further information for editorial offices:

MESSE BREMEN/M3B GmbH

Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 421 / 35 05 – 4 45

E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

 

Showcase applications for Bremen’s 2020 jazz trade fair reach new record level

Thursday, 9 January 2020. The two main themes which emerge from the application round for the 40 showcase slots at jazzahead! 2020, which will run from Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 April at MESSE BREMEN are: an impressive selection of large ensembles and for the very first time, a very substantial number of bands led by women. In the 40 short showcase concerts, the artists selected will be performing for an audience largely consisting of festival programmers, bookers and record label representatives. So the trade fair is not just an important platform for networking, it is also an event where bands are booked on the spot, and contracts are agreed.

„jazzahead! has repeatedly proved that it can be the launchpad both for up-and-coming and for established artists from all over the world into the markets of Germany and Europe, and also for bands from our continent into the wider world,“ says Sybille Kornitschky who runs jazzahead! for MESSE BREMEN. This is the reason why there has been such a rush to apply for slots in the showcases. This year, the four international juries have had a heavier workload than ever: their task has been to listen to, rank and discuss a total of 816 applications from 50 countries (2019: 764). „jazzahead!, the world’s largest jazz trade fair has, in its 15 years of existence, become the most important gathering of the entire worldwide jazz industry,“ says Kornitschky.

21 of 40 bands dominated by women

Eight showcase slots are reserved for musicians from the 2020 partner country, Canada. A further eight ensembles will be be performing at the German Jazz Expo, another eight at the Overseas Night. And 16 bands will participate in the European Jazz Meeting. Of this entire complement of 40 groups, 21 are led an dominated by women. „This shows with absolute clarity that jazz music is no longer exclusively dominated by men,“ emphasizes Ulrich Beckerhoff, one of the two artistic directors of jazzahead! alongside Peter Schulze.

At the European Jazz Meeting, women play an important role in no fewer than eleven out of the sixteen bands. Among these, Peter Schulze singles out the ten-piece ensemble led by pianist and composer Luzia von Wyl from Switzerland. „Among the others, I am also looking forward to hearing the charismatic voices of Torun Eriksen from Norway, Julia Biel from the UK and Macha Gharibian from France,“ he adds.

In the other showcase sections, listeners can also expect a highly contrasted offering. Beckerhoff refers for example to the Canadian duo Silvervest. With their chamber music ethos, they create music of quite astonishing variety. And with the combination of pianist Marianne Trudel and drummer John Hollenbeck, Bremen audiences will be hearing two of the most important musicians from today’s international jazz scene.

Among the German groups, Beckerhoff highlights bassist, composer and arranger Hendrika Entzian’s Big Band which received the WDR Jazz Prize. The pianist Johanna Summer impresses “as a soloist with great emotionality and immense ingenuity”.

The Brazilian guitarist and singer Badi Assad, who can be heard at Overseas Night, has a worldwide following; her music always has tremendous vitality, instrumental virtuosity and emotional range, comments Beckerhoff. As a further example of the wide-ranging showcase programme, he mentions Nigerian trumpeter Etuk Ubong. Beckerhoff was impressed with Ubong’s way of embodying the tradition of African rhythms, a vital element in the emergence of jazz in America.

Audio samples on www.jazzahead.de/en

Links to all of the bands can be found in the showcase overview (see further press release). From the end of January, more details and audio samples from all the bands will be available on the jazzahead! website. For industry participants, attendance at the showcase concerts is included in the registration fee. For visitors, concert tickets and tickets for the other events at jazzahead! are available at www.jazzahead.de/en and at Nordwest-Ticket.

More information: www.jazzahead.de/en

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About jazzahead!

jazzahead!, launched in 2006, is the largest jazz trade fair in the world. And whereas it has been growing in size every year, this meeting place for the worldwide jazz industry is also the ”family gathering” for jazz; it has never lost its original spirit of fellowship and fun. The 40 showcase concerts during the trade fair, and the jazzahead! Cultural Festival are also aimed at the wider public. Since 2011, this festival, co-created with some 60 cooperation partners, presents the cultural scene of a partner country – there is a different one every year – plus bands from all over the world.These bands perform at the CLUBNIGHT in 30 venues in Bremen. Since 2015, jazzahead! has been funded by the Federal Government’s Commissioner for Culture and the Media. In 2019, jazzahead! was awarded European Culture Brand of the Year. The next jazzahead! takes place from April 23-25, 2020.

 

Further information for editors:

MESSE BREMEN & ÖVB-Arena / M3B GmbH
Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 (0)4 21 / 35 05 – 445
E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

List of the 40 bands who will give concerts during the trade fair

Attention: From 10th of Jan 2020 onwards all changes, for instance in line-ups, are only to be found in the list published online, not in the pdf.

 

Dear colleagues,

Below you will find an overview of the bands which have been selected for the short concerts, i.e. this is the list of the showcase bands for jazzahead! 2020 at MESSE BREMEN, together with thumbnail descriptions of each group, taken from their press packs.

jazzahead! 2020 takes place from Thursday 23 April until Sunday 26 April, with the showcases from the Thursday to the Saturday.

Canadian Night

Audrey Ochoa

Audrey Ochoa (tb), Sandro Dominelli (dr), Mike Lent (db)

Trombonist Audrey Ochoa is a rising star on the Canadian jazz scene. (…) mentor and trombone master Hugh Fraser describes her as “an inspired emerging artist that embodies the talent, inspiration and focus to make a major contribution at the highest level.”

http://www.audreyochoa.com
https://www.facebook.com/audrey.ochoa.908

 

Carrier, Lambert, Edwards

François Carrier (as), Michel Lambert (dr), John Edwards (db)

“In sum this is world-class free jazz. You probably owe it to yourself to check it out closely. It is a real kicker!“ (gapplegatemusic)

https://www.francoiscarrier.com
https://francoiscarrier.bandcamp.com

 

François Bourassa Quartet

François Bourassa (p), Eric Hove (sax), Guy Boisvert (db), Guillaume Pilote (dr)

A real ,choc’ surprises you as you didn’t expect it … the feeling of amazement does not fade with repeated listening … when the music possesses so many qualities. Crazy energy, dense and nourishing writing, high-level soloists.“ (Jazzmag)

https://www.facebook.com/officiel.francois.bourassa/

 

Itamar Erez quartet

Itamar Erez (p, g), Francois Houle (cl), James Meger (db), Kevin Romain (dr)

Itamar’s music holds a depth and sensitivity that touches listeners deeply. It blends the delicateness of Middle Eastern music, the freedom found in jazz and the passion of flamenco, creating a unique sound all his own.

www.itamarerez.com
https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/itamarerez/?hl=en
https://www.facebook.com/itamarerezpage/

 

Larnell Lewis

Larnell Lewis (dr), Elmer Ferrer (g), Andrew Stewart (b-g), Rob Christian (ww), William Sperandei (tpt), Jeremy Ledbetter (p)

Larnell Lewis is a Grammy Award winning musician, composer, producer, and educator. A Toronto native, Larnell has quickly established himself as one of the most diverse and in-demand drummers currently on the music scene. (…) Larnell’s talents can be seen worldwide via his various social media platforms, which have a combined total of over 100,000 followers.

www.larnelllewismusic.com
https://www.instagram.com/larnelllewismusic/?hl=en
https://www.facebook.com/LarnellLewisMusic/

 

Marianne Trudel + John Hollenbeck: Dédé Java Espiritu

Marianne Trudel (p), John Hollenbeck (dr)

“An extraordinary pianist and composer, Marianne Trudel is one of the most respected jazz musicians in Canada. She has made her way on our jazz scene so as to become an authentic and indispensable part of it …” (CBC Radio)

http://www.mariannetrudel.com
https://www.facebook.com/mariannetrudelmusique/
http://www.johnhollenbeck.com

 

Silvervest – Zombik & Caloia

Kim Zombik (voc), Nicolas Caloia (db)

Playing in the field of storytelling, pop, soundscapes, jazz and jangling, Silvervest offers fresh music that is intuitive and unique. (The duo places) primary importance on creation that has structure yet allows following their ears into wider spaces.

https://musiquerayonnante.org/silvervest.html
https://www.facebook.com/silvervestmusic/
https://silvervest.bandcamp.com/album/soft-shine-galaxy-demo

 

Steph Richards

Stephanie Richards (tpt), Andrew Munsey (dr), Joshua White (p), Zach Lober (db)

Her second release Take The Neon Lights also received high praise from critics, Downbeat calling Steph “a virtuoso of nonlinear trumpet playing“ and NextBop calling the record “mesmerising … fans of avant-garde jazz should definitely give this one a listen“.

www.stephrichards.com

 

German Jazz Expo 

Heidi Bayer’s “Virtual Leak”

Heidi Bayer (tpt, flgn), Johannes Ludwig (as), Leif Berger (dr), Calvin Lennig (db)

(…) the quartet has no harmony instrument. Therefore, harmony in the classical sense may not exist in Virtual Leak’s music, but it still feels present. Sometimes it’s dynamic, other times subtle. Stunning and contrasting passages with surprising twists are what make Virtual Leak an exciting listening experience.

www.heidi-bayer.de
https://www.instagram.com/heidibayermusic/

 

Hendrika Entzian+

Max Seibert (tpt), Felix Meyer (tpt), Bastian Stein (tpt), Menzel Mutzke (tpt), Janning Trumann (tb), Shannon Barnett (tb), Lisa Stick (tb), Jan Schreiner (btb), Malte Dürrschnabel  (as), Theresia Philipp (as), Matthew Halpin (ts), Niels Klein (ts), Ole Sinell (bar), Simon Seidl (p), Sandra Hempel  (g), David Helm (db), Fabian Arends (dr), Hendrika Entzian (cond)

(…) she has now assembled her own 17-piece orchestra of Cologne musicians, with She transfers the dynamically differentiated Modern Jazz of her quartet to a large cast: as a linear network of voices, which condense as if by chance into clusters of sounds.

http://www.hendrika-entzian.de

 

Johanna Summer (DE)

Johanna Summer (p)

Johanna Summer, german jazz pianist and composer living in Dresden and Berlin, started her piano career at age seven. She took lessons in classical music and was awarded several times at the german federal competition “Jugend musiziert“. (…) Johanna’s work focuses on the encounter of classical music’s fidelity and the spontaneity of jazz.

http://www.johannasummer.de
https://www.facebook.com/johannasummer.piano/
http://www.youtube.com/johannasummer

 

Nau Trio (DE)

Henrique Gomide (p), Jean Cammas (db), Antoine Duijkers (dr, perc)

“Nau Trio is definitely a jazz trio and not just a world-music band. The rhythmic variety meets Western jazz harmonies. This creates a rhythm-driven jazz with great melodic ideas.“ (nrwjazz.net)

www.facebook.com/nautriomusic

 

NIAQUE (DE)

Stefan Karl Schmid (sax), Philipp Brämswig (g), David Helm (db), Fabian Arends (dr)

The clear, vocal themes of her compositions are counteracted by rhythmically always surprising movements and naturally flow into extensive improvisations. “Everything about this music appears to be well-dosed, skillful, balanced. And yet never lifeless, but lovingly elaborated, filed, sanded and colored. “(Jazzthetik)

http://www.stefankarlschmid.net/
http://www.philippbraemswig.com/projects
https://www.facebook.com/Philipp-Br%C3%A4mswig-204140293270659/
https://www.facebook.com/stefankarl.schmid  

 

The True Harry Nulz

Nils Fischer (bcl), Siegmar Brecher (bcl), David Koch (g), Julian Adam Pajzs (g), Samuel Huwyler (b-g), Dominik Mahnig (dr), Valentin Schuster (dr)

„The true Harry Nulz“ merges „Edi Nulz“ and „The great Harry Hillman“. Both bands are very active working bands since many years. (…) The thrill of the line-up is resulting out of a doubling-effect: two bass clarinets, two guitars, two drum sets and an electric bass as the basis provide clever arrangements, unison-stereo effects and improvisational outbursts.

http://www.thegreatharryhillman.ch/
http://www.edi-nulz.com/

 

Tilo Weber Quartet „Four Fauns”

Tilo Weber (dr); Richard Koch (tpt), Claudio Puntin (cl), James Banner (db)

Jazz standards are played backwards and preludes for fugue-like ballads are improvised. The quartet (…) thus presents contemporary jazz that is not avant-garde at the price of emotional coldness and does without clichés.

https://www.facebook.com/tiloweberofficial
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQYWFcB5jT02K7zD0ptb-5Q

 

Tobias Meinhart – BERLIN PEOPLE (DE)

Tobias Meinhart (ts, EWI), Ludwig Hornung (p), Tom Berkmann (db), Mathias Ruppnig (dr)

„Germany’s biggest talent on the saxophone.” (JazzThing) – „Bursting with power and full of nuances.” (Jazzthetik)

www.tobiasmeinhart.com
www.facebook.com/tobiasmeinhartmusic
www.instagram.com/toby_mh

 

Overseas Night

Badi Assad (BR)

Badi Assad (g, voc)

 “She skilfully mixes Musica Popular Brasileira with jazz, electronics and pop. The result is exciting, original and up to date. A direct hit.” (Nürnberger Nachrichten)

http://badiassad.com/en/
https://www.facebook.com/badiassad

 

Connie Han Trio (US)

Connie Han (p), Ivan Taylor (db),Bill Wysaske (dr)

Jazziz Magazine claims, „Han has been labeled a rising star and rightfully so ­– she’s an intriguing artist with mastery over her instrument as well as a deft bandleader. Given the maturity and brilliance she demonstrates on ,CRIME ZONE‘, perhaps ‘rising’ could be dropped from that designation.”

http://www.conniehan.com/
https://www.facebook.com/conniehanjazz
https://www.instagram.com/conniehanjazz/?hl=en

 

ESCALANDRUM (AR)

Daniel Piazzolla (dr, direc), Nicolas Guerschberg (p), Mariano Sivori (db), Damian Fogiel (ts),

Gustavo Musso (ss, as), Martin Pantyrer (bcl)

Daniel „Pipi“ Piazzolla started ESCALANDRUM (Jazz – ARG) in 1999. The group’s name is a portmanteau of „Escalandrún“ (a species of shark which „Pipi“ fishes with his father Daniel – hobby started by his grandfather Astor Piazzolla) and „drum“.

www.escalandrum.com
https://www.facebook.com/escalandrum/
https://www.instagram.com/escalandrum/

 

Etuk Ubong + The Etuk’s Philosophy (NG)

Etuk Ubong (tpt), tba

Drawing inspiration from the jazz greats, afrobeat, highlife and ekombi, he adds that the sounds of the elements water, wind and fire inspire him, which is why he calls his music ‘Earth Music’. His compositions reflect his heritage and life philosophy of goodwill, peace and love to humanity. “A fresh new voice in the international jazz scene” (London Jazz News)

https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Musician-Band/Etuk-ubong-555804934555097/
https://earth-agency.com/artists/etuk-ubong/

 

Faraj Suleiman Trio (PSE/FR)

Faraj Suleiman (p), Côme Aguiar (b), Baptiste de Chabaneix (dr)

Faraj Suleiman is a Palestinian a composer and pianist. His music is strongly influenced by Arabic/Eastern melodies and rhythms. He often incorporates those scales and modalities in his compositions. In addition to being inspired by his Arabic culture, he is also influenced by Jazz traditions.

https://www.farajsuleiman.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Faraj.Suleiman.music/

 

Melissa Aldana (US/CL)

Melissa Aldana (ts), Pablo Menares (db), Kush Abadey (dr), Sam Harris (p)

In 2013, aged 24, (Aldana) was the first female musician and the first South American musician to win the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition, in which her father had been a semi-finalist in 1991. (…) Reporting her win, the Washington Post described Aldana as representing “a new sense of possibility and direction in jazz“.

https://www.melissaaldana.net/
https://www.facebook.com/melissa.aldana.3958/
https://www.instagram.com/melissaaldanasax/

 

Ron Minis Trio (IL)

Ron Minis (p), Bar Filipowicz (b), Tom Bollig (dr)

(On YouTube) he demonstrated how a piano can be used as a guitar and become a new playground

for musical adventures, combining state of the art technology and sound effects. (…) Now, for

the first time, Ron is delivering this wild spectacle to the live stage.

https://www.youtube.com/ronminis
https://www.facebook.com/ronminisproject
https://epk.ronminis.com

 

SooJin Suh Chordless Quartet (KR)

Daniel Ko (as), Sunjae Lee (ts), Younghoo Kim (db), Soojin Suh (dr)

Chordless quartet is (SooJin Suhs) 2nd group as a leader. The whole theme of this project is about freedom and space. For this purpose, she put a band without harmonic instruments like piano and guitar so that she can explore the harmony, space, and range more freely.

http://soojinsuhmusic.com/
https://www.instagram.com/soodrums/

 

European Jazz Meeting

Camilla George (GB)

Camilla George (sax), Daniel Casimir (db), Sarah Tandy (p), Rod Youngs (dr)

(Camilla’s) music is a hypnotizing blend of Afrofuturism, hip hop and jazz. Camilla’s music is politically minded and heavily linked with African history and slavery in particular.

https://twitter.com/Camilla_sax
http://www.camillageorge.com/
https://www.facebook.com/camillageorgeband/

 

Guy Salamon Group (NL)

Guy Salamon (dr), Alistair Payne (tpt), Ian Cleaver (tpt), José Soares (as), Hristo Goleminov (ts), Teis Semey (g), Youngwoo Lee (p), Brodie Jarvie (db)

The award winning Guy Salamon Group is one of the most notable emerging bands in the new Dutch jazz scene. (…) Ever since their first performances in early 2018, the (band) has made a strong impression on both the national and international scenes, rapidly becoming an integral part of major jazz events.

https://www.guysalamon.com
https://www.facebook.com/GuySalamonMusic/

 

JULIA BIEL (GB)

Julia Biel (p, voc)

“The best British vocalist to emerge in an age“. (The Independent) “Her awe-inspiring voice and melancholic sensuality captivated the audience right from her very first note and did not let go over the full one and a half hours of an impressively spell-binding performance.“ (Süddeutsche Zeitung)

http://www.handshake-booking.com/de/artists/julia-biel/
http://www.juliabiel.com
https://www.facebook.com/juliabielmusic/?ref=page internal

 

KAMA Kollektiv (NL)

Kirsi-Marja Harju (tpt, voc, mbira), Jetse de Jong (p), Jonathan Nagel (db), Joe Korach (dr)

(Kirsi-Marja “Kiki“ Harju) tells stories – some in Finnish, some in English – about love and transformation, forests and animals, small everyday pleasures, and a mystical, romantic view of nature. The music is a mesmerizing mixture of jazz, Scandinavian folk and indie pop.

https://kamakollektiv.com
https://www.facebook.com/kamakollektiv/
https://www.instagram.com/kamakollektiv/

 

Kasia Pietrzko Trio (PL)

Kasia Pietrzko (p), Andrzej Święs (db), Piotr Budniak (dr)

 The artist has been nominated for a Fryderyk Award in 2018, in the Debut of The Year category, and is ranked as the second New Hope in the monthly Jazz Forum. (…) In the opinion of distinguished Polish jazz musicians, she is characterized by her improviser’s instinct, harmonic imagination and tonal creativity.

https://www.facebook.com/KasiaPietrzkoMusic/
http://kasiapietrzko.com/en/main/
https://www.instagram.com/kasiapietrzko/?hl=pl

 

Kristina Barta Event Horizon

Kristina Barta (p), Jan Feco (db), Marek Urbanek (dr), Nela Dusova (sax), Krystof Tomecek (g)

(The) Project Event Horizon is an original trio enriched with guitar and saxophone. This band plays original contemporary creative jazz, reflecting on Kristina’s earlier classical music studies with an emphasis on melodies, modern rhythms and electronic elements.

https://kristinabarta.com/project-event-horizon
https://www.facebook.com/kristinabarta/

 

LRK Trio (RU)

Evgeny Lebedev (p), Anton Revnyuk (b), Ignat Kravtsov (dr)

LRK Trio are very modern in their sound – the way they play and sound is unmistakably 21st century; but they never let their listener forget that they come from a distinctive, globally influential musical culture of their native country, incorporated in the global music scene and yet distinctly original and recognizable.

https://www.lrktrio.com/
https://www.facebook.com/LRKtrio/
https://www.instagram.com/lrktrio/

 

Luzia von Wyl Ensemble (CH)

Luzia von Wyl (p),  Amin Mokdad (fl), Nicola Katz (cl), Marcel Lüscher (bcl), Maurus Conte (bsn), Vincent Millioud (vl), Jonas Iten (clo), André Pousza (db), Cédric Gyger (mba), Lionel Friedli (dr)

 “As a composer, the Swiss woman has her very own Handwriting – so convincing, stirring and delightful, that comparisons are superfluous.” (Jazzthethik)

http://luziavonwyl.com
http://luziavonwylensemble.com/
http://www.facebook.com/luziavonwylensemble/

 

Macha Gharibian (FR)

Macha Gharibian (p, voc), Chris Jennings (db), Dré Pallemaerts (dr)

Classically trained on the piano from an early age, singer, songwriter, performer, and a bold composer for the theater and cinema, Macha Gharibian has achieved a natural blend of all (…) influences mixing jazz, Armenian folk songs and other non-Western traditions in which she has forged her own style that is urban, crossover and modern.

https://www.instagram.com/machagharibian/
https://www.facebook.com/gharibian.macha/

 

Nefertiti Quartet (FR)

Delphine Deau (p). Camille Maussion (saxs), Pedro Ferreira (db), Pierre Demange (dr)

With a common instrumental form, the quartet manages to find its originality through its compositions that combine polyrhythm and groove. All written by the pianist Delphine Deau, the tunes are mainly influenced by North American Jazz, with a large space for improvisation and interaction between the musicians.

https://www.facebook.com/nefertitiquartet/
https://www.instagram.com/nefertitiquartet/?fbclid=IwAR0-ZwD80OJX6ONnp93JvYCB3UzwH3 vTVCCQf4EIuUQjRPX4KVtzfGz7AU
https://nefertitiquartet.com/

 

Red Kite (DK/GB)

Antoine Berjeaut (tpt), Ross Hughes (bcl), Hannes Riepler (g), Esben Tjalve (p, key), Adrian Christensen (db), Tim Giles (dr)

From cinematic meditative soundscapes to groovy noir tunes the structure of the music allows for the improvised parts to interact and co-exist with the written (…). The music cannot really be defined by genre. “Pleasingly melodic but also deeply rhythmic, easily digestible yet subtly challenging, and just full of good ideas allied to exemplary playing.” (The Jazz Mann)

http://esbentjalve.com

 

Rembrandt Frerichs Trio (NL)

Rembrandt Frerichs (p), Tony Overwater (ac-bg), Vinsent Planjer (dr)

Rembrandt Frerichs Trio is internationally known for its high profile collaborations that have given jazz new directions. Labeled groundbreaking by the press is the album with Kayhan Kalhor “It’s still autumn“. “One of the highlights of the North Sea Jazz Festival” (Jazzism).

http://www.rembrandtfrerichs.nl
https://www.facebook.com/Rembrandt.Jazzpianist
https://www.instagram.com/rembrandt_pianist_composer/

 

Sun-Mi Hong Quintet (NL)

Nicolo Ricci (ts), Alistair Payne (tpt), Young-Woo Lee (p), Alessandro Fongaro (db), Sun-Mi Hong (dr)

 With a keen interest in Korean Traditional Music, she is influenced by the percussions of her country. Alongside this, her compositional style is influenced by Impressionistic Classical Music. In short, Sun-Mi offers up an entirely original and extremely relevant artistic output.

http://www.sunmihong.com/
https://www.facebook.com/drummersunmihong/
https://www.instagram.com/_sun_music/

Synesthetic 4 (AT)

Vincent Pongrácz (cl), Peter Rom (g), Manuel Mayr (b), Andreas Lettner (dr)

An important part of their music are complex but catchy rhythms that originate from hip hop, contemporary groove and electronic music (…) “Dada-Rap“ and abstractly folkloristic melodies that are sometimes inspired by Olivier Messiaen harmonies are meant to leave a humoristic or even bizarre impression on the listener. “Less well known but more groundbreaking … pushed the boundary between Rap and Scat” (Jazzjournal)

https://www.synesthetic4.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Synesthetic-Octet-Synesthetic-4-266797033481999/

 

Théo Ceccaldi Trio (FR)

Theo Ceccaldi (vln), Valentin Ceccaldi (cl), Guillaume Aknine (g)

The trio works with original compositions “under the influence” and revisited big classics associated with the great gipsy guitarist. With ist unorthodox orchestration (amplified guitar, cello …), the ensemble shifted towards a new form of “chamber jazz“ (…) while using all the expected attributes of gypsy jazz (rhythmic energy, melodic grandiosity) amplifying its virtue and modernizing its codes.

https://www.instagram.com/theoceccaldi/?hl=fr
https://www.facebook.com/theoceccaldimusique/
http://www.theoceccaldi.com/projets/theo-ceccaldi-trio/

 

Torun Eriksen (NO)

Torun Eriksen (voc, p), Kjetil Dalland (el-b), Eivind Fossnes Dahl (sound)

Torun (…) has since (her debut) made her mark as a unique voice, with an ever-growing audience on the Norwegian and international music stages. Fall 2018, Torun released her sixth solo album (which) received accolades in the Norwegian and German press, with critics describing it (…) “A Musical gem“ (Jazz Podium).

https://www.toruneriksen.no/
https://www.facebook.com/torunsongs/
https://www.instagram.com/Toruneriksen/

 

More Information: www.jazzahead.de

 

 

 

 

Further information for editors:

MESSE BREMEN / M3B GmbH
Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 (0)4 21 / 35 05 – 445
Email: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

 

Award citation calls trade fair/festival “the must-go event for the jazz sector”

jazzahead!’s innovative combination of an annual trade fair with a culture festival makes it unique in the world. On Thursday, 7 November 2019, it received the award as European Kulturmarke (cultural brand) of the Year 2019 at  the award ceremony at the Zollverein in Essen. The European Kulturmarke is one of the highest-profile cultural awards in Europe.

“We were already very pleased just to be shortlisted for the 14th European Kulturmarken Award, ” commented Messe Bremen’s Managing Director and the founder of jazzahead!, Hans Peter Schneider. “But  actually to receive the award constitutes a massive validation of our work.” Sybille Kornitschky who manages jazzahead! says: “This award is a remarkable tribute to jazzahead!, which 15 years ago took the bold decision to make jazz the central focus of a music fair for the first time, and since then has developed into a leading global cultural brand. ”Messe Bremen is now hoping to keep building jazzahead!’s profile further within the European cultural sphere, and also to put in place more international cooperations and partnerships.

Alongside jazzahead!, the State Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg and the bauhaus 100 anniversary programme also had been nominated for the award. The Bremen event, among other things, impressed the jury with its “innovative strength and willingness to take risks”, according to the award citation. “That’s why people say ,Jazz we can‘, remarked Rolf Rische, head of the Culture/Living section of broadcaster Deutsche Welle DW, in his speech at the event. jazzahead!, he said, is “the must-go event for the jazz industry” and once a year turns Bremen into “the jazz metropolis of the world. ”

The 42 members of the jury from the culture, business and media worlds praised jazzahead! for the way it has managed and developed its cultural profile through consistent and sustainable brand management. Since 2006, the event has gathered together the international jazz scene in Bremen every year for four days in April. Initially it established itself as a trade fair and industry gathering for the national and international jazz scene, including 40 showcase concerts. A festival with a partner country programme and CLUBNIGHT were then added in 2011. The brand has also built a solid foundation and recognition in its region, its latest offspring being “jazzahead! feat. ”, which involves promoting concerts throughout the year.

2020 will mark jazzahead!’s 15th anniversary, with the culture festival marking its tenth birthday. In recognition of this double anniversary, the event focuses for the first time on a partner country from overseas: Canada. The fair will take place from Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 April, and the festival will begin on Friday, 17 April.

The Kulturmarken Award was launched in 2006 by the Berlin-based cultural brands and sponsorship company Causales. For this year’s edition, the specialist jury received a total of 105 applications from Germany, France, the Netherlands, Croatia, Lithuania, Austria, the Czech Republic and Switzerland. Awards were made in a total of eight different categories.

More information: www.jazzahead.de/en

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Further information for editors:

MESSE BREMEN & ÖVB-Arena / M3B GmbH
Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 (0)4 21 / 35 05 – 445, Fax + 49 (0)421 / 35 05 – 340

E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de; Internet: www.messe-bremen.de

 

Gala with Rufus Wainwright; festival opening features Laila Biali and Tanya Tagaq

In April 2020 Bremen’s jazzahead! trade fair will be 15 years old – and the annual festival which happens alongside it will have its tenth edition. This double anniversary is a cause for celebration: two Canadian singers, both with major international profiles, Laila Biali and Tanya Tagaq will give the opening concert of the culture festival on Friday, 17 April, at the Theater am Goetheplatz. Canadian artist Rufus Wainwright will perform at the jazzahead! gala concert at Bremen’s concert hall Die Glocke on Friday, 24 April.

Laila Biali, an award-winning singer/songwriter and pianist, will be performing in Bremen. As recently as this spring she received a Juno Award for her latest album ‟Laila Biali”. The Junos are the Canadian equivalent of the US Grammys. The Washington Times has described the singer/pianist’s musical cosmos as “masterfully mix[ing] jazz and pop, bringing virtuosity and unpredictability to songs that are concise and catchy.”

In the second part of the concert evening, the singer will be Tanya Tagaq. She is one of the most important representatives of the Inuit, an original people of Canada, and is also one of Canada’s most original and celebrated artists. “She has practically rediscovered the long-lost throat-singing of the Inuit, and has developed her completely independent form of it, with wide-ranging influences from pop music, traditional singing, rap and beatboxing,” says Peter Schulze, one of the artistic directors of jazzahead! “She is a performer of tremendous urgency and intensity and always sings with full physical commitment.” Tanya Tagaq toured the world with Björk in 2001 and received the Polaris Music Prize for her album “Animism” in 2014.

jazzahead!’s gala  concert has singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright as its star. Rufus Wainwright is highly esteemed and acclaimed by critics and audiences alike, and will be celebrating the German premiere of his new album, being released worldwide in 2020. Wainwright has released numerous pop albums, set sonnets by William Shakespeare to music for a play by playwright Robert Wilson, and has also completed two operas. The award-winning musician also contributed music to various blockbuster movies such as “Brokeback Mountain” and “Shrek”. Elton John once described Wainwright as “the greatest songwriter on the planet.”

Since 2006, jazzahead!  has gathered the international jazz scene together annually at Messe Bremen for the trade fair and festival, and since 2011 has put a particular focus each year on a new partner country. Next year, the trade fair will take place from Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 April. The Festival begins earlier, on Friday 17 April. In this year of anniversaries, Canada will become the first jazzahead! partner country from beyond the borders of Europe.

Tickets for all jazzahead! and festival events are available at nordwest-ticket.de/ or online at www.jazzahead.de

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Trade fair with double anniversary – first ever partner country from outside Europe

The organizers of  jazzahead!, the world‘s largest jazz trade fair, announce today that they are breaking new ground in the choice of next year’s partner country. The focus will be on Canada, which becomes the first partner country from outside Europe.

„jazzahead! will be celebrating two anniversaries next year,“ says Sybille Kornitschky, jazzahead! project manager at Messe Bremen. „That’s why we are determined to offer something very special, and at the same time further expand our function as a valued intermediary for the creation and maintaining of business contacts between Germany, Europe and the rest of the world.“

„jazzahead! has always had a strong European focus,“ comments Hans Peter Schneider, Managing Director of Messe Bremen. „But with more and more participants coming from countries outside Europe, we introduced the Overseas Night ten years ago. And it is logical that we should now be choosing a non-European partner country for the first time.“ The Artistic Directors of jazzahead!, Ulrich Beckerhoff and Peter Schulze remark: „For jazzahead! it is very obvious for us to want to choose Canada for this new departure. There is a very strong, impressive and self-confident jazz scene there. Canadian jazz is a unique and diverse expression of different influences.“

„The Canada Council for the Arts is thrilled that jazzahead! will feature Canada as the country of focus during the Frankfurt 2020 Guest of Honour year“, says Simon Brault, Director and CEO. „Canada has a long-history of excellence in jazz – and its contemporary musicians are taking the language of jazz to new heights. jazzahead! attendees should prepare to be inspired by Canada’s jazz talent.“

Since 2006, jazzahead! has been gathering the global jazz scene together at Messe Bremen. In 2019 there were 3,408 registered trade participants, a new record. In 2020 jazzahead! will be 15 years old, and for the tenth time the event will be accompanied by a festival focused on the culture of the partner country. The dates for jazzahead! 2020 will be 23 to 26 April.

More information: www.jazzahead.de

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Visitors from 64 countries took part in the four-days event in Bremen

 

The 2019 jazzahead! trade fair at Messe Bremen has come to its close, and there has been another year-on-year increase in the number of professionals attending. No fewer than 64 different countries were represented at this year’s event. From Thursday 25 until Sunday 28 April, the organisers’ statistics show 3,408 participants (2018: 3,282) trade participants. In total, 18,114 visitors (2018: 17,362) were present at the trade fair and the 100 concerts over the weekend.

„jazzahead! is the largest gathering of the industry anywhere in the world,” says Hans Peter Schneider, Managing Director of Messe Bremen and founder of jazzahead! „For people who want to make and expand their international contacts, this is the right place. And the buzz about jazzahead! keeps reaching more new places and attracting more new people.”

The organizers are not just looking back, because there will be good reasons to celebrate in 2020: jazzahead! itself will be 15 years old, and there will also be the tenth festival based around the culture of a partner country. And who is it going to be next year? „Because of the double anniversary we have something very special in preparation,” says jazzahead! Project Manager, Sybille Kornitschky of Messe Bremen. „However, since we are just dotting the final i‘s and crossing the t‘s on the contract, it is going to take a few more days before we can make an announcement.”

Meanwhile, plans for jazzahead‘s anniversary year are already taking shape. „One focus will be a further expansion and development of our role as an intermediary in fostering international business contacts,“ says Sybille Kornitschky. „Musicians and other professional from overseas come here to gain a foothold in the European market, and those from Europe are also attracted to develop activity in other international markets. To coordinate these interests even better will be a guiding principle in our programme development.“

Another plan for 2020: jazzahead!’s management team aims at bringing a clearer alignment with the priorities of international promoters and programme makers. It also wants to support an initiative by this year’s partner country Norway, to bring into existence an international network of young professionals5 working in the industry.

Since 2006, jazzahead! has enabled the worldwide jazz scene to gather at Messe Bremen every year. Among the specialist participants this year there were 1,419 exhibiting companies, at 121 main and joint stands, (2018: 1,319). In 2020, jazzahead! will take place from 23 to 26 April.

More information: www.jazzahead.de/en

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Further information for editors:

MESSE BREMEN & ÖVB-Arena / M3B GmbH
Imke Zimmermann, Phone +49 (0)4 21 / 35 05 – 445, Fax + 49 (0)421 / 35 05 – 340
E-Mail: zimmermann@messe-bremen.de