The hottest jazz in town heard at Jazz-Espa

The 26th edition of the Jazz-Espa Festival, organized by the Finnish Jazz Federation, gathered nearly 6000 listeners at the Espa Stage in Helsinki over the course of one week. The event’s 15 free and family-friendly concerts showcased the latest in Finnish jazz in a diverse way, set in a sunny park atmosphere.

A total of 49 musicians performed at Jazz-Espa, including both emerging talents and internationally acclaimed stars. The festival’s program featured new Finnish jazz, exciting genre fusions and award-winning releases. On the opening day, a panel discussion titled “Jazz as a Force for Social Change” looked ahead to next year’s Jazz in Finland 100 anniversary celebrations.

Maria Silvennoinen, Executive Director of the Finnish Jazz Federation – who also gave the festival’s opening remarks – emphasized the importance of Jazz-Espa to the Finnish jazz scene: “Every year, hundreds of bands apply to perform at Jazz-Espa, but only a small number can be selected. The Espa Stage is a unique platform to present current jazz to a wide audience in an accessible way, and the crowd here is wonderfully diverse – from casual passersby and tourists to dedicated jazz fans. We also hope the music presented reflects this diversity.”

For the second time, Children’s Saturday invited kids and the young at heart on a joyful jazz adventure. Jazzified versions of familiar children’s songs by the band Jazzkamelit, paired with fun props, along with the Django Collective Helsinki trio’s swinging storytelling of Django Reinhardt’s life, fully engaged the audience.

Help us improve the event

The Finnish Jazz Federation is collecting feedback on the Jazz-Espa event through a survey. The feedback will be used especially to improve accessibility. By responding, you can contribute your valuable insights to help develop Jazz-Espa. The survey can be completed anonymously in Finnish or English and is open until September 10, 2025: https://link.webropolsurveys.com/S/21EC4E20563A6977.

Thank you to our partners

The event was organized in collaboration with the Savoy Theatre, which manages the Espa Stage. Supporters of the event included: Helsinki Cultural Centre, Pop & Jazz Conservatory, the Jazz Music Department of the Sibelius Academy at the University of the Arts Helsinki, the Finnish Music Foundation, Concert Centre Finland, the Embassy of Estonia in Helsinki and Restaurant Kappeli. The Jazz Federation warmly thanks all who made the event possible.

The photo shows Helmi Antila, leader of the Helmi Antila Quartet — a singer-songwriter, pianist, and violinist — who was awarded the Taimi Prize by the Finnish Jazz Federation in 2024 as a promising young jazz artist. Photo by Sakari Puhakka.