Held every other year, the Helsinki International Big Band Composing Contest will be organized again in 2023 by the UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra and The Finnish Big Band Association (SBBY). The final concert of the contest will be held at Malmitalo, Helsinki, on Thursday 5th of October, 2023. Duration of the concert is about 2,5–3 hours. The concert is hosted in English and Finnish by Henriika Steidel-Luoto. The finalists are now announced, see the list here! 

The final concert will be streamed and can be watched for free at UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra’s mobile app and website or at YouTube channel, live or later on-demand.

This time, all European or Europe-based composers without age limit can participate in the competition with one previously unrecorded and unpublished 4–7 minute piece, composed for a standard big band orchestration. A maximum of ten compositions make it to the finals after two anonymous pre-qualification rounds. The UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra will play the compositions in the final concert with conductor Antti Rissanen. The head of the jury is UMO’s artistic director and chief conductor Ed Partyka. The first prize is 3000, second prize 2000 and third prize 1000 euros.

More information and the rules here.

The head photo: Heikki Kynsijärvi

Antti Rissanen’s photo: Jukka Rapo