1.8.
Friday
13.30
Aurora Hentunen Quintet
Aurora Hentunen is a versatile pianist-composer, bringing her domestic jazz quintet to Jazz-Espa on Friday. Winner of the Jazz/Soul of the Year award at the 2025 Indie Awards, Hentunen's third album Little Further (Eclipse Music) blends acoustic and electronic soundscapes. The music on the album reflects recent events and the emotional state they have caused, a forced collective standstill and uncertainty about the future. However, the music gently encourages listeners to continue their journey and trust in tomorrow. Positive reviews describe Hentunen's music as fresh, surprising and unique. The album features bassist Linda May Han Oh, who has performed with e.g. Pat Metheny and Vijay Iyer. In addition to leading her own ensemble, Hentunen is known for her compositions for big bands and classical music ensembles, among others.
"As with the best albums, the artist's fresh album Little Further unfolds in layers, leaving enough space for the listener's own interpretations." -Indie Awards 2025 jury
Aurora Hentunen – piano, keyboards
Ukko Heinonen – tenor saxophone, effects
Joona Kilponen – trumpet
Veli-Matti Silanterä – bass
Vili Kallonen – drums
Photo: Anisa Xhomaqi
16.00
Aki Rissanen & Mikko Innanen Duo
Internationally recognized top musicians, pianist Aki Rissanen and saxophonist Mikko Innanen, are old friends who are now returning to the stage with a new duo repertoire and recording. The material recently created and rehearsed in residence in Western Uusimaa delves into fundamental questions of art and humanity, as well as trivial and insignificant little matters – described by the duo themselves. Stylistically, Rissanen and Innanen move simultaneously within the tradition of jazz and in some parallel reality of the future, where everything is allowed.
Aki Rissanen – piano
Mikko Innanen – saxophones
17.15
Kalima–Lötjönen–Ounaskari
Kalima–Lötjönen–Ounaskari is a brand-new ensemble that brings together three leading figures of Finnish jazz: guitarist Kalle Kalima, who has built an international career in Central Europe; double bassist Antti Lötjönen, recipient of the 2024 Yrjö Award from the Finnish Jazz Federation; and drummer Markku Ounaskari, who has enjoyed a long and successful career on the international stage.
The program features compositions from Lötjönen’s and Kalima’s recent duo album Stings, Bites and Scratches, arranged for a trio, as well as entirely new material written specifically for this group. Audiences can expect an intense and nuanced concert experience, where improvisation and the musicians’ deep interplay take center stage.
Kalle Kalima – guitar
Antti Lötjönen – double bass
Markku Ounaskari – drums
Photos: Oliver Potratz, Tuomas Timonen, Dag Alveng