RECONNECT:
jazzahead! is looking forward to partner countries Spain, France and Switzerland in 2025
Every year in April, the jazzahead! Festival takes place parallel to the jazzahead! trade fair in Bremen. Together with numerous cooperation partners, we organize a city-wide music program around the world's largest meeting place for the jazz scene. In addition to the showcase festival, the program includes the Opening Ceremony, the CLUBNIGHT and a fringe program.
In 2025, there will be a RECONNECT edition presenting a partner region for the first time, focusing the former partner countries Spain (2012), France (2015) and Switzerland (2016). From April 24 to April 26, we can observe the developments in these strong jazz countries since they were last the focus of the jazzahead! trade fair and festival. The three neighboring countries were selected as partner region in order to promote artistic exchange between them and beyond in connection with the important topic of „Green Touring".
PARTNER REGION INSTITUTIONS
FUNDING & PARTNERS FESTIVAL
Partner Region
RECONNECT: jazzahead! is looking forward to partner countries Spain, France and Switzerland in 2025
Every year in April, the jazzahead! Festival takes place parallel to the jazzahead! trade fair in Bremen. Together with numerous cooperation partners, we organize a city-wide music program around the world's largest meeting place for the jazz scene. In addition to the showcase festival, the program includes the Opening Ceremony, the CLUBNIGHT and a fringe program.
In 2025, there will be a RECONNECT edition presenting a partner region for the first time, focusing the former partner countries Spain (2012), France (2015) and Switzerland (2016). From April 24 to April 26, we can observe the developments in these strong jazz countries since they were last the focus of the jazzahead! trade fair and festival. The three neighboring countries were selected as partner region in order to promote artistic exchange between them and beyond in connection with the important topic of „Green Touring".
THE PARTNER REGION AND ITS JAZZ SCENE WILL BE PRESENTED AT THE FAIR, FOR EXAMPLE DURING THESE OPPORTUNITIES:
The combined space of the partner country stands with the lounge which is adjacent to it are the most central presentation areas at the trade fair.
At jazzahead! there will also be 38 showcase concerts, from which 9 are dedicated to the partner region.
Industry- and country-specific topics can be presented and discussed here. In the past, the programme ranged from book presentations, panels and talks to target-group-specific workshops.
For the official opening of jazzahead! trade fair, national and international guests are expected. On stage, official representatives of the partner countries (e.g. ambassadors, ministers, state secretaries) will open the trade fair together with the jazzahead! and representatives of Bremen, which is one of the German Länder in its own right.
MUSIC FROM THE JAZZAHEAD! PARTNER REGION IN BREMEN
The partner region is the focus of next year's jazzahead!, whether in the context of the showcases in Messehalle 7 and the adjacent Kulturzentrum Schlachthof, in the CLUBNIGHT in Bremen's city center, or at special gala moments. The opening ceremony on Thursday at noon promises to be a brilliant start.
CHOICE OF THE PARTNER COUNTRY
Since 2011 jazzahead! presents an annually changing partner country in the scope of the fair, but also within a city-wide cultural program aimed at the public in Bremen & region. The partner country is chosen and invited by jazzahead! The highest criterion is an exciting, in part still undiscovered jazz scene, which deserves greater international recognition.
jazzahead! selects its partner countries, applications are not possible. If you are interested, please send an e-mail to project manager Sybille Kornitschky.
- 2025 | SPAIN, FRANCE, SWITZERLAND
- 2024 | NETHERLANDS
- 2023 | GERMANY
- 2022 | CANADA
- 2019 | NORWAY
- 2018 | POLAND
- 2017 | FINNLAND
- 2016 | SWITZERLAND
- 2015 | FRANCE
- 2014| DENMARK
- 2013 | ISRAEL
- 2012 | SPAIN
- 2011 | TURKEY
jazzahead! Grand Opening: Louis Matute Large Ensemble & Guests
Let’s celebrate: on the eve of jazzahead! we are presenting audience-favorites from our partner countries Switzerland, Spain and France for an exclusive "Grand Opening" in the Congress Center. For the first and only time, the „fusion folklore innovators“ of the Large Ensemble of Swiss guitarist Louis Matute (on several best of-lists 2024) are inviting a select group of "special guests": French singers Célia Kameni and Gabi Hartmann, alternately compared to Nina Simone or Norah Jones and still wonderfully original, the Cuban trumpet virtuoso Yelfris Valdés, who lives in Spain, and singer, flautist and "Clinton Award" winner Marta Mansilla from Madrid.
Congress Centrum Bremen, Great Concert Hall, Concert start 7:00 PM
Louis Matute | Célia Kameni | | Yelfris Valdés | Gabi Hartmann | Marta Mansilla
Louis Matute Large Ensemble
PROGRAM
- Grand Opening
- Showcases
- Impro & Jazz for Kids
- Up and Coming Writers Camp
- Fringe
- Outdoor "Jazzport"
- Sample tab
jazzahead! 2025 kicks off with a Grand Opening on Wednesday, April 23, featuring an international gala showcasing music from the festival partner countries Spain, France, and Switzerland.
Highlights include French singer Célia Kameni with the Large Ensemble of Swiss guitarist Louis Matute, and Spanish-based trumpeter Yelfris Valdés, known for his Afro-Cuban sounds. The opening promises a vibrant preview of the festival's three-day concert lineup in Bremen.
Congress Centrum Bremen
Great Concert Hall
Concert start: 7:00 PM
Célia Kameni
The showcase application phase for jazzahead! 2024 will end on 1st October, 2024. The jazzahead! showcases 2025 will be selected!
in October."Showcases" are the 30- to 45-minute short concerts at jazzahead!. 38 jazz highlights and current formations from Germany, Europe and overseas as well as the partner regioncan be experienced on three days and nights on the stages of Hall 7 and the Kulturzentrum Schlachthof.
"IMPROVISATION AND JAZZ FOR KIDS"meets JazzCamp for Girls and Zirkus Jazzino
Improvisation and jazz for children has been one of the core topics in the specialist program since jazzahead! was founded. While the first events were held at a local level, the topic has developed over a national to an international focus. With the JazzCamp for Girls held in the second week of the Easter holidays, jazzahead! is teaming up with the internationally active music institution Jazz Danmark, giving twelve girls the opportunity to spend four days at the museum Universum Bremen learning about rhythm instruments in jazz and forming their own band. They are accompanied by the two teachers Magdalena Otto and Johanna Borchert. The showing in the Universum on Thursday morning is complemented by the Nuremberg education project Zirkus Jazzino, which combines jazz improvisation with circus elements. Furthermore there will be accompanying program items such as the subsequent panel “Education projects in the context of international cooperations” and a presentation of the teaching material “Jazzpilot*innen zu Gast im Klassenzimmer” by Magdalena Otto and Jan Darius Monazahian as well as on Friday the network meeting “Jazz and Children” and a family concert as part of the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT at MS Dauerwelle. Further information on the individual events can be found further down on this page.
The focus on "Improvisation and Jazz for Children" as part of the jazzahead! specialist program is kindly supported by Dataport.
Your contact for more info is:
Jakob Fraisse
Improvisation & Jazz for Kids
T +49 (0)421 3505 583
E-Mail: fraisse@jazzahead.de
International connections and support of Up and Coming female and non-binary musicians
From February 24th to 27th, the jazzahead! Up and Coming Writers Camp creates a creative meeting place for female and non-binary musicians from the fields of jazz and improvised music. Two up-and-coming projects from Bremen and Groningen, selected by an international jury, will get the chance to work on new material together over several days and prepare it for a joint performance at the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT on April 25th. The two bands zwanzig nach eins from Bremen and FOUR from Groningen will be coached by the internationally active bass player Lisa Hoppe, who started her studies in Bremen. The jazzahead! Up and Coming Writers Camp thus combines the three important future topics of promoting young talent, gender balance in the jazz world and international exchange, in this case with Bremen's twin city Groningen.
The camp is made possible by the support of Clubverstärker e.V. and the Senator für Kultur as part of the “Perspektivwechsel” funding program as well as the injazz program from buma cultuur. The project is being carried out in cooperation with Musikszene Bremen e.V., buma cultuur and the Prins Claus Conservatorium.
Your contact for more info is:
Jakob Fraisse
Improvisation & Jazz for Kids
T +49 (0)421 3505 583
E-Mail: fraisse@jazzahead.de
Event details coming soon.
Latest information will be updated soon!
CLUBNIGHT
25. APRIL 2025
1 TICKET - 1 NIGHT: JAZZAHEAD! CLUBNIGHT IN BREMEN
Since 2011, jazzahead! has been presenting jazz and related music in Bremen's city centre for a predominantly regional audience as part of its CLUBNIGHT. Every year, around 35 venues take part in the much-loved long night of jazz, which is to be held on the Friday evening of the trade fair in 2025. Clubs, bars, theatres, museums, churches and hotels, they all become live venues on this night. The program will be released in January 2025.
A CLUBNIGHT ticket gives access to all venues. Professional participants of jazzahead! can purchase this ticket at a reduced price.
Your contact for more info is: Jakob Fraisse
Partner Country & CLUBNIGHT
T +49 (0)421 3505 583
E-Mail: fraisse@jazzahead.de
BY BIKE YOU CAN GET AROUND IN BREMEN AND TO THE FESTIVAL VENUES QUICKLY, FLEXIBLY AND RELAXED
In cooperation with Bremen Bike it! we organize bike rental in front of Hall 7:
Taking the bike is a quick, convenient and stress-free way to get around Bremen and to the various venues of the jazzahead! festival. You’ll find everything you need at the Bike it! bike station, where bikes are available for hire. More information coming soon.
In cooperation with ADFC Bremen we organize guided bike tours through the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT. More information coming soon.
HOW TO PLAY DURING CLUBNIGHT
In parallel to the official Showcase-Festival the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT will take place in about 35 venues in Bremen. CLUBNIGHT is not part of the showcase festival.
The booking of the bands will be handled exclusively by the clubs, but jazzahead! will help arrange country or label nights and will also forward showcase applications selected by the artistic management team to the clubs on request. So there is no additional application process.
free.kind @ Bike it! Stage
Sera Kalo @ KLUB DIALOG
free.kind @ KLUB DIALOG
Magro @ Theater Bremen CLUB
Silvan Strauss @ Römer
Sera Kalo @ KLUB DIALOG
LBT @ Kellerei im Ratskeller
Kalkanis Duo @ Olive Weinbar
Concert Tickets & Prices
If you only want to see the concerts and have no access to the trade fair, you can now buy your tickets here below.
If you want to get the full jazzahead! experience and have access to the trade fair, the conference program and all the showcase concerts, please register as (co-)exhibitor or professional participant.
For registered participants of jazzahead! 2025 access to the showcase concerts is included in the registration for the trade fair. The Grand Opening is also included but limited to 290 tickets on-site - first come, first served!
Tickets for the CLUBNIGHT can be purchased at the reduced price. Please show your jazzahead! badge at the entrance as proof of validation.
Pre-sale
Tickets are available from the Nordwest Ticket advance booking offices or by calling 0421 – 36 36 36, as well as from Nordwest Ticket Webshop. For online purchase or orders via the call center an additional booking fee of 1,50 €.
The jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT ticket can also be purchased via the RAUSGEGANGEN website & app.
Tickets are also available from the ticket service at the GLOCKE (0421 – 33 66 99), at the Weser-Kurier press centre and at all regional newspaper outlets.
jazzahead! GRAND OPENING
19 € red*
23 April · 19.00
with
Louis Matute Large Ensemble & Guests:
Célia Kameni, Yelfris Valdés, Gabi Hartmann & Marta Mansilla
at Congress Centrum Bremen - Great Concert Hall
jazzahead! PASS
135 € red.*
24 - 26 April · 3 days full of music
incl.
24 - 26 April · daily from 14.00 : 12 resp. 13 Showcases - Day & Night
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
25 April from 17.00: jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT (incl. public transport**)
in 35 venues in Bremen
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Thursday / ALL IN
45 € red.*
24 April · 14.00 - 00.15
7 Day Showcases
5 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Friday / ALL IN
55 € red.*
25 April · 14.00 - 01.00
7 Day Showcases
6 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Saturday / ALL IN
55 € red.*
26 April · 14.00 - 00.45
7 Day Showcases
6 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Thursday / DAY
25 € red.*
24 April · 14.00 - 19.15
7 Day Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Friday / DAY
30 € red.*
25 April · 14.00 - 19.15
7 Day Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Saturday / DAY
30 € red.*
26 April · 14.00 - 19.00
7 Day Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Thursday / NIGHT
25 € red.*
24 April · 20.15 - 00.15
5 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Friday / NIGHT
35 € red.*
25 April · 20.15 - 01.00
6 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! Saturday / NIGHT
35 € red.*
26 April · 20.00 - 00.45
6 Night Showcases
at Hall 7 & Kulturzentrum Schlachthof
Access to the trade fair is not included
jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT
19 € red.*
25 April · from 17.00
1 night - 35 clubs - 1 ticket incl. public transport**.
35 venues in Bremen
More information on the program can be found here on our website from February 2025.
**The included VBN ticket is valid from 25 April from 15.00 until 26 April 10.00 in all means of transport of the VBN. In the trains only valid in 2nd class!Access to the trade fair is not included
*Reductions
Reduced ticket prices apply to pupils, students, volunteers working in the Federal Voluntary Service, trainees, the unemployed and the handicapped (accompanying person gets access free of charge). Children up to 10 years accompanied by an adult ticket holder get free access to the showcases.
For participants of jazzahead! 2025 access to the showcase concerts is included in the registration for the trade fair. The Grand Opening is also included but limited to 290 tickets on-site - first come, first served!
Tickets for the CLUBNIGHT can be purchased at the reduced price. Please show your jazzahead! badge at the entrance as proof of validation.
Box office hours
From 24 to 26 April 2025 you can also purchase the tickets on site:
Ticket counter "Concert Tickets" at Hall 7
-
- Thu 24 April 13.00 – 22.00
- Fri 25 April 13.00 – 22.30
- Sat 26 April 13.00 – 22.45
subject to changes
jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT venues
Tickets for the jazzahead! CLUBNIGHT are also available on site at the box offices of the participating venues.
Registrants of jazzahead! 2025 can purchase the tickets for the reduced price. Please show your jazzahead! badge at the entrance as proof of validation.
