As one of the main aims of Jazzkaar is to spread the love for music all over the city of Tallinn, the first festival Sunday was a day of free concerts. The performances took place in various places in Telliskivi Loomelinnak, starting from small cafes and ending with big festival stages. There was something for everyone and even the slightly off-putting weather didn’t scare anyone. On the contrary, a day packed with jazz activities is the best way to take you one step closer to spring.
How often do you have the chance to literally wake up with yoga and jazz? Not every day I presume. Nevertheless, at 10 am at Vaba Lava, everyone managed to fight the sleepiness and wake up whilst listening to Liina Saar and MyFitness. But for the ones who prefer a more laid back weekend mornings, there was always a chance to join the band Kelly’s Puzzle in Reval Cafe over a cup of coffee and listen to young and talented musicians, the stars of tomorrow from UT Viljandi Culture Academy.
Next up something for the artists and simply art lovers: Andrei Kendrin welcomed everyone to join his jazz portrait workshop, where previous skill was no requirement. At the same time Mari Jürjens and Liisi Koikson took the stage at Punane Maja, as a duo that jazz fans had been waiting for a long time. Meanwhile, the early birds in Reval Cafe were already enjoying DJ Liisi Voolaid’s morning rhythms to set oneself into the perfect weekend mood.
By midday people were already more active and it was high time to focus on dance. At noon, all dance enthusiasts were welcomed at Vaba Lava for Tallinn Swing Society’s workshop. At the same time visitors had also the opportunity to go and listen to a family band Mälgand Bros or join a painting studio organised by Estonian Dance Agency. As right now I am about half way through with the article, it would be a proper time to admit that it was extremely difficult to decide which ones to visit and it broke my heart to leave some of them out…
A compulsory visit for every jazz fan was the jazz records market at Punane Maja. Old, new, rare, common, famous, one hit wonders ‒ you name it, they had it. But moreover, it was a heaven for vinyl lovers, which made it impossible to leave without joining a conversation with random strangers or buying a record yourself. At 1.30pm Erki Pärnoja gave a Jazz Talk about his musical style as an artist, which gave an insight to the understanding of Saja Lugu.
Jaak Juske took the visitors on a time travel to show what was in Telliskivi before jazz was invented. For everyone who were feeling competitive there was a chance to join a Jazz Quiz in Kärbes Kitchen & Bar, to make sure whether one could call him or herself a true jazz fan. Moreover, at 5 pm at Young Talent Stage, Marianne Leibur’s Band made their Jazzkaar stage debut with an amazing performance and a dosage of young jazz.
Various concerts continued throughout the evening, making the audience to join one concert after another. Even though there were a great number of activities to choose from, every single of them connected people in its own way that cannot be put into words. The memories were made free of charge and hopefully Jazzkaar’s team managed to spread the jazz addiction among total music rookies.
Check out photos from the free concert day here.
Day of Free Concerts
Sunday 22nd of April
Various locations all over Tallinn