Jazz Finland Live

Aleksis Liukko: piano
Mikael Saastamoinen: double bass
Okko Saastamoinen: drums

The Aleksis Liukko trio released their debut album in December 2022, the compositions of which will be heard on the October 2023 tour. In 2019, Aleksis Liukko graduated from the University of Gothenburg with a master’s degree in music. In addition to his own trio, he plays e.g. Sointi Jazz Orchestra and Laura Annika Quartet, for which he has also composed and arranged music, and in the Juho Peltoniemi trio and Anton Berg collective.

Bassist Mikael Saastamoinen (e.g. Perussastamala, Katu Kaiku, Linda Fredriksson) and drummer Okko Saastamoinen (e.g. OK:KO, Sir Garrison, Arppa) are among the top Finnish musicians of the moment. They bring strong joint playing and natural musical communication to the trio. The African-American musical tradition can be heard and the skilful approach to improvisation also creates energetic, Nordic and vividly colourful atmospheres.

Photo: Laura Poikolainen

The concert is supported by City of Helsinki, Svenska Kulturfonden, The Finnish Music Foundation and The Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike).

Tickets: 20/15/12/30 €.

Open event

Tickets 20€

Doors 18:00
Concert 19:00

Kari Ikonen, who turns fifty this year (born in 1973), brings a nostalgic touch to Koko as the Karikko ensemble, founded 25 years ago, performs a selection of charismatic compositions from the iconic group's unique repertoire over the years. The lineup of this internationally acclaimed ensemble has changed several times, and now foreign players have been replaced with top-notch Finnish talents. Alongside Ikonen, the original Karikko lineup includes the masterful drummer Mika Kallio.

Pianist, Moog player, and composer Ikonen, honored with the Emma Award, the Yrjö Award, and international composition competition victories, is known not only for his own projects but also for collaborations with UMO Jazz Orchestra, Orchestra Nazionale della Luna, Lee Konitz, Louis Sclavis, Ingrid Jensen, Fabrizio Cassol, and Bob Moses, among others. He has performed in the Soviet Union and the United States, as well as in remote locations in the Far and Middle East, Australia, Africa, and in over 30 European countries. He has released about fifty recordings, nine of which are under his own name.

Kari Ikonen - piano, moog-synthesizer and compositions
Ville Vannemaa - flute, saxophone
Kalevi Louhivuori - trumpet
Aino Juutilainen - cello
Olli Rantala - double bass
Mika Kallio - drums

Open event

Open event

The delightfully unpredictable ensemble known for their improvisational prowess, F# feat. Pepa Päivinen, embarks on a tour organized by the Finnish Jazz Federation from October 11th to 21st. Having released their second album Scientifically Proven & Clinically Tested in 2022, F# is full of surprises in live performances. In the concert, four esteemed and award-winning composers and musicians come together on stage, creating spontaneously exciting soundscapes, tight grooves, beautiful melodies, and captivating textures. The performances are often entirely improvised, with no preparations or prearranged steps. The ensemble keeps both the audience and themselves in suspense; musicians Sid Hille, bassist Jori Huhtala, drummer Markus Ketola, and woodwind player Pepa Päivinen stay on their toes, as anything can happen, and it invariably does. 

Sid Hille – piano, keys, theremin 
Pepa Päivinen – saxophones, flutes, clarinets 
Jori Huhtala – double bass 
Markus Ketola – drums

Open event

Doors: 6:00 PM
Showtime: 7:00 PM
Jams: 9:00 PM (free entry)

Tickets €15 / €10

Finland's most renowned, long-standing, and significant messenger of dixieland and swing music, the DDT Jazzband (Downtown Dixie Tigers), founded in 1958, celebrates its 65th anniversary at Helsinki's Savoy Theatre at the end of October. The "dress rehearsal" for this celebratory concert will be held at Lahti Jazz Club on October 12th! During the evening, you will enjoy the best selection from the band's repertoire of traditional jazz classics.

DDT Jazzband has preserved the legacy of joyful and swinging jazz music with a sensitive ear for a remarkable eight decades. The orchestra draws inspiration from artists like Louis Armstrong, Dutch Swing College Band, Jelly Roll Morton, Eddie Condon, and Duke Ellington.

To conclude the evening, there will be open stage jazz jams featuring the house band Lahti Jazz Collective! Welcome!

Open event