Pori Jazz

Betty Carter's appearance at Pori Jazz in 1978

Pori Jazz is an international jazz festival held every summer in Kirjurinluoto , Pori , in southwestern Finland . The first Pori Jazz Festival was organized in July 1966 by the Pori Jazz 66 eV association. The festival is one of the largest jazz festivals in Europe and the largest in Finland due to the number of visitors and the number of tickets sold. Not only jazz is played at the festival , but other genres such as blues , soul , funk , hip-hop , rhythm & blues and reggae can also be heard. Numerous world-famous musicians (such as Stevie Wonder , Alicia Keys , Bob Dylan , Miles Davis , Kanye West ) have played jazz on Pori.

history

The first year of the festival

Pori Jazz 66 eV was founded in May 1966 to organize the jazz festival. The first Pori Jazz Festival took place in Pori from July 16-17, 1966. The beginning of Pori Jazz was simple: During the two days of the festival there were two concerts and a jam session . In the main concert on Saturday, Ted Curson , Carola , George Russell Workshop Band and many other artists performed. At midnight there was a jam session after the main concert.

On Sunday there was an afternoon concert in the open air. About 300 jazz fans came to Kirjurinluoto to hear the music. This Sunday afternoon was felt to be so successful that for the next twenty years the Sunday concert was called the “picnic concert”. The first Pori Jazz Festival had around 1,300 visitors. The proceeds of the festival were 379 Finnish marks , but after deducting expenses, 49 marks remained. Because of the positive response, the event has been organized every year since then.

1966-1990

In the following years the number of visitors grew steadily. In 1970 there was a total audience of 18,000 people. Twenty years later (1990) there were already 60,000 festival visitors and 162,000 in 2010.

The duration of the event has changed over the years. Pori Jazz lasted two days in 1966, three days in 1967, four days in 1975 and five days in the early 1980s. Since 1985 the concerts have stretched over nine days.

The history of Pori Jazz is divided into different periods. The first three years were the celebrations for outspoken jazz fans. Thanks to its growing popularity, other music lovers began to attend the festival from 1969.

Audience at the performance of Sting on the main stage of Pori Jazz (2006)

In the 1970s, pop and rock music became very popular in the world and jazz music had to fight for its future. During those years Pori Jazz was almost the only way to hear top-notch jazz in Finland. At the end of the 1970s, the future of the Pori Jazz Festival was very uncertain due to the poor financial situation. In the 1980s the range of programs was expanded to include other musical styles. At the end of the decade, however, the festival experienced financial difficulties for the second time.

Pori Jazz today

Pori Jazz was the first and for a long time the only jazz festival in Finland. Today Pori Jazz is a versatile meeting place for everyone who likes rhythmic music. According to an economic study, Pori Jazz is the most interesting and famous summer event in Finland. The number of visitors continued to grow in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2010 a total of 155,000 people attended the festival. There were 95,000 listeners at the free concerts and 60,000 at the paid concerts.

Concerts

Jazz Street (2009)

Today's Pori Jazz Festival culminates in the main concerts , which take place from Thursday to Sunday in the Kirjurinluoto Arena , on Kirjurinluoto . These main concerts are chargeable and the most famous music artists play here. In 2012 the main attractions were Norah Jones , Emeli Sandé , Janelle Monáe , Estelle and Paul Anka . There are also free concerts. Around 70 percent of all concerts are free of charge, most of them are in the vicinity of the so-called Jazz Street. In 2012 there were a total of 126 concerts, 89 of which were without admission.

Jazz Street

Jazz Street, a festival site full of music, restaurants and stalls, is located on the bank of the Kokemypenjoki River . The street will be closed to traffic during the Pori Jazz Festival. In 2011 there were almost 100 different sales outlets there. It is possible to enjoy design and craftsmanship, sweets, official Pori Jazz products, as well as Finnish and foreign cuisine. Numerous free concerts take place along the Jazzstrasse, day and night.