Jazzkaar 2021 is indeed happening! From 23 to 29 August the festival will turn Telliskivi Creative City into summertime jazz oasis, surprising the audience with fresh music and concert programmes. The festival welcomes guests who have underwent the COVID-19 infection safety check. A rapid testing point will be also open on site.
The seven-day festival includes stage debuts by twelve Estonian groups and new programme presentations by seven artists. The programme features musicians from ten countries and events will be also held in Tartu, Viljandi, Rakvere and Pärnu in addition to Tallinn.
“What is most important is that the festival can take place and that we can offer musical challenges to the artists and a memorable jazz experiences to the audience. The programme of Jazzkaar 2021 is special in that it will present an extraordinary selection of new Estonian music and groups,” Anne Erm, Artistic Director of the festival says. The festival will have a powerful opening with Raivo Tafenau performing new music from his recent album The Same Differences with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra conducted by Rasmus Puur. Shortly before the festival Tõnu Naissoo Electric Trio released their new album Different Directions. The pianist has also set a personal record: in this difficult year, Naissoo has already released five albums (in Japan, Russia and Estonia), with the sixth on its way.
Making their Jazzkaar debut will be the R’n’B and Soul band The Motown Sound and the masterful New Wind Jazz Orchestra led by the renowned German conductor Wolf Kerschek, featuring Kristjan Randalu as the pianist and composer. This time the bass player and composer Janno Trump will not perform with his dynamic funk band but a brand new group, Clarity Ensemble, combining a jazz trio with a string quartet to play his new acoustic music. Praised by the critics, Susanna Aleksandra will perform at this year’s jazz celebration with her Finnish band. Also performing at Jazzkaar for the first time will be saxophonist Nikita Korzoun with his trio, the improvisational vocal group ImproVoc, the danceable deLULU and the trendy Ellip, as well as Raimond Mägi Trio, offering spontaneous moments. The festival will also introduce two international projects: London-Tallinn Cosmic Bridge featuring the vibrant harp and a carousel of guitar sounds, and guitarist Mart Soo playing in duo with the master multi-instrumentalist Florian Walter. Children can enjoy a brand new family concert with Stig Rästa where they will also hear his popular “teeth brushing song”.
Several bands have released new albums or singles this year. Mingo Rajandi Quintet feat. Liisi Koikson will present their 2020 album To Be!. Tanel Ruben Quintet feat. Kadri Voorand & Kristjan Randalu will perform new songs at the festival, soon to be recorded for the new album Kas tahad ma jutustan laulust?. Joel Remmel Trio and guest artists released the album Kevad this year. Although music lovers have already been able to enjoy the music from Dagö’s seventh album Küte in several parts of Estonia, the programme will be presented to the audience in Tallinn for the first time at Jazzkaar. The concert of Modulshtein will include music from their album Timetrix, released on 5 August. We can also expect unique and spontaneous moments from Argo Vals Ensemble and many others. Estonian musicians are eagerly waiting for Jazzkaar concerts to present themselves again in front of a demanding audience and get feedback on the work they have put their hearts into.
According to the established regulations and in order to ensure a safe festival experience, only jazz lovers who have underwent the COVID-19 infection safety check can attend events at Jazzkaar 2021. The festival welcomes guests who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, recovered from COVID-19 within the last six months or have a valid negative test result. Upon entering the festival area, the validity of the EU Digital COVID Certificate, PCR test or COVID-19 rapid antigen test will be checked and guests will be issued a secure festival wristband. A rapid antigen test can be performed at the festival testing point in Telliskivi Creative City. The price of the test for festival guests is 6 euros. More information for a safe festival visit can be found on Jazzkaar’s website.
The 32nd Tallinn International Jazzkaar Festival will take place from 23 to 29 August 2021 in Tallinn, Tartu, Viljandi, Rakvere and Pärnu. Concert ticket prices for Jazzkaar 2021 will increase from 10 August. Please see the festival programme and information about the artists on our website. Tickets are on sale at Piletilevi sales points and online at www.piletilevi.ee. See you at Jazzkaar!
Keep an eye on Jazzkaar’s activities on our website, Facebook and Instagram.
The main sponsors of the festival are JURA, Jazz Pesulad and Eesti Päevaleht. Annual sponsors are BMW Inchcape, Tallink and Aktaprint. The concert of the legendary jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater will be presented by Viru Keskus. Prike, Telliskivi Creative City and Fotografiska Tallinn help set up the festival hub. We are also supported by Reval Café, Overall, MyFitness, Kodupaber and Estonian Public Broadcasting. The French Institute, Embassy of Finland, Embassy of Norway and Pro Helvetia help us bring the musicians of their countries to Estonia. We would like to thank the Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, the City of Tallinn and Enterprise Estonia for their support.