Fri 2/2/2024 at 6pm
Exhibition Centre WeeGee, EMMA 2nd floor
Free entry!

Pauli Lyytinen is a versatile musician and composer, operating especially in the realms of jazz, experimental, electroacoustic, and contemporary music.

Saxophonist Pauli Lyytinen will release his second solo album, "Lehto | Korpi," on We Jazz Records in the fall of 2024. In his solo project (2012-), the saxophonist pushes his instrument to the extremes. In his hands, the saxophone serves as a bass, harmony instrument, a solo instrument as well as often functioning as a rhythmic element. Lyytinen creates entire musical worlds, sometimes colored with effects, sometimes entirely acoustically.

Pauli Lyytinen: tenor, alto, and soprano saxophones, live electronics, mellotron.

The April Jazz Club + WeeGee concert series is organized in collaboration with the Exhibition Centre WeeGee and EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art on the first Friday evening of the month at 6 pm in EMMA's 2nd floor. Free admission on Friday evenings to April Jazz Club + WeeGee concerts and WeeGee museums.

Fri 16/2/2024 at 6pm
Original Sokos Hotel Tapiola Garden, Espoo
Tickets €20/15 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

The new Finnish jazz ensemble Salesvuo Syncopation arrives at Tapiola Garden as part of the Complete Loft Sessions vinyl release tour! The band relies on the traditional expressive power of acoustic jazz and is known for its strong groove. The lineup, featuring Tomi Salesvuo's new compositions and fresh jazz arrangements of Finnish music classics, is assembled from musician friends with backgrounds from various contexts over the years. The joyful collective musical experiences of the musicians trace back to their studies at the Sibelius Academy.

The ensemble includes the cream of the Finnish jazz scene: Petri Puolitaival, Mikko Helevä, and Tomi Salesvuo. The debut album "Complete Loft Sessions" (Eclipse Music) was released in May of 2023.

Petri "Pope" Puolitaival, tenor saxophone
Mikko Helevä, Hammond organ
Tomi Salesvuo, drums

5.30PM doors
6PM Ebeli Show
7PM Salesvuo Syncopation

April Jazz Club + WeeGee
Fri 1/3/2024 at 6PM
Exhibition Centre WeeGee, EMMA 2nd floor
Free entry!

Artturi Rönkä is a Helsinki-based pianist and composer whose repertoire encompasses both jazz and contemporary music. As a pianist, Rönkä has been heard in various ensembles, including AR Quartet, Kasperi Sarikoski & Nuance, Jere Haakana Varjosto, and Selma Juudit Alessandra. Rönkä is also a sought-after arranger, and his arrangements are regularly performed by UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra and several Finnish city orchestras.

Pianist-composer Artturi Rönkä's solo concert consists of improvisation around emotionally varied pieces. The program of the concert includes Rönkä's new, sketch-like compositions, interspersed with modern interpretations of Gabriel Fauré's songs.

Artturi Rönkä, piano

The April Jazz Club + WeeGee concert series is organized in collaboration with the Exhibition Centre WeeGee and EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art on the first Friday evening of the month at 6 pm in EMMA's 2nd floor. Free admission on Friday evenings to April Jazz Club + WeeGee concerts and WeeGee museums.

Fri 15/3/2023 at 6PM
Original Sokos Hotel Tapiola Garden, Espoo
Tickets €20/15 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

Tuomo Uusitalo is an internationally acclaimed jazz pianist who has been based in New York since 2012. After years abroad, his life path has brought him back to Helsinki. Uusitalo's career includes performances and tours with several legendary bands and musicians such as the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Jimmy Cobb, Billy Hart, Chris Cheek, Seamus Blake, Justin Brown, Dayna Stephens, Peter Slavov, Ulysses Owens Jr., David Schnitter, Rich Perry, Joe Farnsworth, and Elliott Mason. In 2023, Uusitalo was selected as the Pori Jazz Artist of the Year.

After Uusitalo's return to Finland, he formed a trio that performs original compositions and jazz standards. The group's music is based on musical freedom while rooted in the jazz tradition. Tuomo Uusitalo Trio released its first album, Homecoming, in October 2023 under the legendary Fresh Sound record label. Alongside Uusitalo, the other band members, bassist Juuso Rinta and drummer Roope Kantonen also contribute to the compositions on the album.

Juuso Rinta is an active double bassist and composer in the Finnish jazz scene. Besides his own ensemble, he can be heard in groups like Hector Lepe Quartet, Markus Holkko Quartet, Anabasis, Ilmari Rönkä Textures, Linear John and Silva Kallionpää Quartet. In recent years, Rinta has performed with most of Finland's leading jazz musicians, not only in domestic club and festival gigs but also internationally.

Roope Kantonen, selected as the Jazz Musicians Association's Jazz Musician of the Year 2022, is a jazz drummer, composer and teacher. He graduated with a master's degree in jazz music from the Amsterdam Conservatory. Having moved from the Netherlands to Finland in 2021, Kantonen has played on twelve albums and performed with various ensembles not only in Finland but also across Europe.

Tuomo Uusitalo – piano
Juuso Rinta – bass
Roope Kantonen – drums

5.30PM doors
6PM Ebeli Show
7PM Tuomo Uusitalo Trio

Fri 22/3/2024 at 7pm
Kupla Club, Kauppamiehentie 7, Espoo
Tickets €20/15 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

Nicole Willis is an American soul singer from the heart of New York. The singer/songwriter, who settled in Finland in the early 2000s, has released a significant amount of music through the legendary Timmion Records, performed worldwide with her Soul Investigators band, and released a collaborative album with UMO titled "My Name Is Nicole Willis."

Celebrating her 60th birthday, Nicole Willis will be joining forces with KP’s Soul/Funk Unit, assembled by Kari Paavola. The band is assembled specifically for each vocalist, featuring just the right musicians. KP’s Soul/Funk Unit operates as the musical community for Paavola in Finland as the musician is primarily living and performing in London. The ensemble has played across Finland, Sweden, and the Baltics, backing international soul vocalists such as Vanessa Haynes, Imaani, Tasha Taylor, Xantone Blacq, BESS, and James Werts.

Internationally acclaimed drummer Kari Paavola is a musical multitasker, also known as the host of Töölö Funk Club.

Throughout the evening, the audience will hear music spanning Nicole's entire career, along with a few borrowed songs that hold special significance for her.

Nicole Willis - Vocals, Compositions
Kari Paavola - Drums
Aki Haarala - Guitar
Ilmari AItoaho - Keyboards
Pasi Huttula - Bass

6.30PM doors
7PM Ebeli Show
8PM Nicole Willis with KP’s Soul/Funk Unit

Fri 5/4/2024 at 6pm
Exhibition Centre WeeGee, EMMA 2nd floor
Free entry!

Among our country's most esteemed jazz musicians, Dunkel and Tuomarila are both known for their melodic expressiveness and effortlessly flowing virtuosity. Dunkel and Tuomarila have collaborated for years, and this is beautifully conveyed in their musical dialogue. The duo's repertoire emphasizes their own compositions, featuring strong melodies, rich harmonies, and contrasts. Even in this acoustic duo concert, the most delicate nuances and intensity are irresistibly conveyed.

Manuel Dunkel - Tenor and Soprano Saxophones
Alexi Tuomarila - Piano

The April Jazz Club + WeeGee concert series is organized in collaboration with the Exhibition Centre WeeGee and EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art on the first Friday evening of the month at 6 pm in EMMA's 2nd floor. Free admission on Friday evenings to April Jazz Club + WeeGee concerts and WeeGee museums.

Fri 12/4/2024 at 6pm
Original Sokos Hotel Tapiola Garden, Espoo
Tickets €20/15 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

Simon Zion & Ville Luukkonen Trio originated from a musical partnership and the desire to share a common vision with a live audience.

Simon Zion is a Finnish-born guitarist, singer, composer, and producer who has spent most of his life in Sweden. He is primarily known there for his success in Swedish Idol. However, since then, he has actively released music across a wide spectrum, ranging from traditional jazz to psychedelic rock, while working actively between Stockholm and Los Angeles.

Ville Luukkonen (drums) and Zion joined forces in the form of a very intimate acoustic jazz album. "The Ballad Sessions" showcases Zion's strong jazz interpretation, leading far back to his musical roots. According to him, this album has been in the making for a decade, and now the time is finally right to bring the work to completion. Tuomo Uusitalo on piano and Juuso Rinta on bass represent the pinnacle of Finnish jazz music individually, making them a perfect choice to complement the group's delicate and rooted expression.

Simon Zion, guitar and vocals
Ville Luukkonen, drums
Tuomo Uusitalo, piano
Juuso Rinta, bass

5.30PM doors
6PM Ebeli Show
7PM Simon Zion & Ville Luukkonen Trio

Fri 3/5/2024 at 6pm
Exhibition Centre WeeGee, EMMA 2nd floor
Free entry!

Pianist Sid Hille and Austrian saxophonist/flutist Herbert Könighofer create captivating, beautiful, and thrilling soundscapes with their music. The musicians engage in a multifaceted and varied musical dialogue, utilizing a wide range of instruments and electronics. All of their concerts are completely improvised.

The Hille-Könighofer Experience has been active since 2016, performing on numerous tours in Austria, Estonia, and Finland. The duo released their debut album 'All & Everything' in 2019, recorded during a concert at Temppeliaukio Church in the fall of 2018.

Sid Hille, keyboards
Herbert Könighofer, wind instruments

The April Jazz Club + WeeGee concert series is organized in collaboration with the Exhibition Centre WeeGee and EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art on the first Friday evening of the month at 6 pm in EMMA's 2nd floor. Free admission on Friday evenings to April Jazz Club + WeeGee concerts and WeeGee museums.

Fri 10/5/2024 at 6pm
Kupla Club, Kauppamiehentie 7, Espoo
Tickets €20/15 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

According to JAZZTIMES, ”…Sam Ospovat has joined the ranks of forward-looking drummer/composers like Ches Smith, Kate Gentile, Dan Weiss, and Tyshawn Sorey: artists who are fearlessly going against the jazz grain.”

His multifaceted drumming has propelled the ensembles of some of the New York underground’s most diverse, cutting edge performers, including Angelica Sanchez, Ava Mendoza, Brandon Seabrook and Lydia Lunch.

Ospovat's latest outing, Expressive Olympics, inspired as much by the exuberant melody of Arthur Blythe as the meditated entropy of Cecil Taylor, showcases a roster of fiercely individual voices from the heart of the New York and Finnish scenes.

With this special transatlantic configuration Ospovat is featuring the renowned Finns Mikko Innanen on alto saxophone and Raoul Björkenheim on guitar, and the kinetic New Yorkers Matt Nelson on tenor saxophone and Tim Dahl on fretless electric bass. Blending avant-garde (free improvisation, polyrhythms) and traditional elements (swing, song forms), it should be a provocative encounter for any jazz loving audience.

Mikko Innanen, alto saxophone
Matt Nelson, tenor saxophone
Raoul Björkenheim, guitar
Tim Dahl, fretless electric bass
Sam Ospovat, drums and compositions

5.30PM doors
6PM Ebeli Show
7PM Sam Ospovat Expessive Olympics

Fri 17/5/2023 at 6PM
Original Sokos Hotel Tapiola Garden, Espoo
Tickets €25/20 + booking fee (from €1,50 lippu.fi)

A night of Chaka Khan and Funk!

The fantastic and captivating BESS, fronting KP's Soul/Funk Unit led by Kari Paavola, will take the stage at Tapiola Garden to interpret essential funk songs from the repertoire of Chaka and Rufus Khan, as well as other corners of the funk music universe. Paavola and BESS have been collaborating since 2015, predating BESS's meteoric rise to become a shining star in the Finnish pop scene and an Emma Award-winning artist. At Töölö Funk Club, hosted by Paavola, BESS has been a guaranteed guest about once a year.

Internationally acclaimed drummer Kari Paavola is a musical multitasker, also known as the host of Töölö Funk Club. Paavola has spent decades in London, where he has shared the stage with significant international musicians and currently plays with Vanessa Haynes, Imaani, Julian Burdock, Xantone Blacq, and Brandon Allen's Groove Band, among others. Additionally, Paavola has lectured on music as a sustainable career at European music institutions.

The band, composed of Finnish super musicians, will also feature one of Estonia's most awarded jazz bassists and composers, Janno Trump.

BESS - Vocals
Kari Paavola - Drums, Band leadership
Juuso Torpakko - Guitar
Ilmari Aitoaho - Keyboards
Janno Trump - Bass

5.30PM doors
6PM Ebeli Show
7PM KP’s Soul/Funk Unit feat BESS