Janne Tuomi

"What makes someone visit the same music festival for 40 years without a break? This is what has happened to me with Tampere Jazz Happening", writes music journalist Harri Tuominen.

"At times surprisingly groovy, at others surreptitiously enticing, Vodjanoi is free jazz for the future."

In a sun-drenched town only 200 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle, jazz connoisseurs mixed with locals to enjoy their 31st festival of music, at the Jazz on the Beach in Raahe, Finland.

"The Hot Heros' most recent album, Folkjazz from Finland, paints an image of the Finnish (mental) landscape that is best appreciated through focused listening. This gives the feeling of being at a live gig, and there is an irresistible urge to applaud after each solo."

Progress is all about trying out new things, as every forward-thinking artist intrinsically knows. Nevertheless, a case could be made that it is not enough if only the vanguard embraces the unknown. Perhaps all could take a page out of Pepa Päivinen, Janne Tuomi and other open-minded musicians’ book.