jazzahead! to Feature Innumerable Performances, Panels

By DownBeat I Apr. 16, 2018

The German Jazz Expo, one of the showcases at this year’s jazzahead! in Bremen, Germany, aims to bolster the international visibility of performers from the festival’s home country.
(Photo: Jan Rathke)

April 19 marks the opening of jazzahead!’s trade fair in Bremen, Germany. The annual industry meeting features innumerable performances and panels, one of which is focused on musicians’ marketing their work.

The German Jazz Expo, one of the showcases at this year’s event, aims to bolster the international visibility of performers from the festival’s home country, as 50 international programmers from 30 countries are expected be on-hand.

Similarly, the Polish jazz scene, will be put on display through eight showcase events that include performances by the Marcin Wasilewski Trio and Kuba Wieçek. The Adam Mickiewicz Institute, a cultural institution from the festival’s partner country, will be in the exhibition hall to discuss the Polish jazz scene with festival attendees.

A panel, “Improvisation & Jazz for Children in Practice,” is set to investigate how children in elementary school are introduced to jazz and the formats that seem best suited to learning.

“Our long-term goal here is to anchor improvisation and jazz more firmly in everyday school life,” said Sybille Kornitschky, of jazzahead!. “This year’s conference is therefore very practice-oriented. Participants should discover effective methods to bring this expertise into their daily work. We would also like to invite German jazz musicians to come and bring their focus to this topic, and to take an active role in the proceedings.”

Through a new partnership, Stingray DJazz will be live-streaming the concert events at the festival, and Radio Bremen will record the shows, which will be made available to select radio stations.

Registration still can be completed on-site. For more information about the festival, visit the jazzahead! website. DB