Factors influencing mental health in Romania

The Central Park in Cluj-Napoca will come alive again, at the biggest jazz competition in Eastern Europe in terms of prizes and number of participants: Jazz in the Park Competition.

“13 young bands from 10 countries are the finalists of the 7th edition of the international competition that will take place on July 5-7, 2024. As usual, entry to the event will be free.

PHOTO. The biggest JAZZ competition in Eastern Europe returns to Cluj with young talents

This year, within the competition, a record number of entries was registered: 246 bands from 39 countries. The 13 finalist bands will have the opportunity to perform live in front of the public and enjoy the vibrant atmosphere of a festival.

Jazz in the Park Competition 2024 finalists (in alphabetical order):

1. Abel Marton Nagy’s Cosmos Band (Austria)

A Viennese collective that channels its energy into a modern jazz-fusion; compare to Blood Sweat & Tears and Frank Zappa.

2. Anna Hauss (Germany)

With an acoustic indie soul style, Anna Hauss from Berlin conquers with her music any music lover who is passionate about songs with deep messages.

3. Chief’s Condition (Netherlands)

A collective from Amsterdam looking for inspiration in hip-hop, drum & bass, afrobeat and electronic music.

4. daoud (France)

Considered the “problem child of French jazz”, daoud comes with new energy and strength to the jazz scene. Inspired by hip-hop, Italian house and modern jazz, the band members managed to create music full of grooves.

5. David Luca Quartet (Romania)

With a balance between international experience and local talent, and with a combination of instrumental skills and creativity, the David Luca Quartet promises to offer a captivating interpretation of contemporary jazz.

6. Jazz Family Trio “ShekBand” (Ukraine)

A teenage jazz trio from Kiev that combines contemporary jazz with Ukrainian folk influences.

7. kitti (Scotland)

Recognized for her authentic music, kitti has already won two important awards: “Best Female Breakthrough” at the Scottish Music Awards and “Best Jazz Vocalist” at the Scottish Jazz Award.

8. Lyder Røed Quintet (Norway)

Honest music, heavily inspired by 60’s jazz mixed with modern influences like Roy Hargrove.

9. MAGRO (Germany)

Producer and drummer MAGRO creates an unusual fusion between acoustic jazz and Hip-Hop/RnB.

10. Nonconformist Anthology (Romania)

A group of passionate musicians from Timișoara who are looking forward to showing their talent on the contemporary jazz scene.

11. Răzvan Cipcă Trio (Romania)

The trio from Bucharest brings a new breath to Romanian jazz with influences of rock, blues and experimental music.

12. Subconscious Trio (Italy)

Consisting of musicians from Italy, Bulgaria and Taiwan, the Subconscious Trio combines the members’ advanced technical skills into modern jazz interpretations.

13. Zouratie Kone Trio (Belgium)

The band centered around the personality of Zouratié Koné, the group’s leader, master percussionist, singer-songwriter and musical instrument maker. Zouratié and his ensemble offer a unique fusion of African groove and jazz harmony.

“The bands experience (…) what it’s like to play live on the stage of an outdoor festival in front of thousands of people”

Denisa Dan: “Jazz in the Park Competition grows from year to year. We see this not only from the perspective of the number of bands entered in the competition, but also from their musical quality. We are very pleasantly impressed by the artists in the competition lineup and we are sure that the audience will have the same feeling.

We wanted to have a festival dedicated to young jazz bands and that’s exactly what we managed to do. Our community has the opportunity to discover new artists and bands experience, some for the first time, what it’s like to play live on an outdoor festival stage in front of thousands of people.

The combination couldn’t be more beneficial for both parties and we can’t wait to see the result. “

The 13 finalists will perform in front of thousands of people and enjoy a festival atmosphere. The total value of the prizes for the winners exceeds 35,000 euros. Judging will be done by a different jury than the one in the pre-selection stage, to be announced soon. They will take into account the quality of interpretation, group cohesion, originality, compliance with organizational specifications, but also stage presence.

AWARDS Jazz in the Park Competition 2024:

– 1st prize: 5,000 euros and the invitation to perform a concert at the Jazz in the Park festival between August 30 and September 1, 2024

– 2nd prize: 3,000 euros;

– 3rd prize: 1,000 euros;

– The prize for the best Romanian band in the competition: 1,000 euros;

– Prize for the most valuable composition: 500 euros;

– Three (3) mentions for the best musicians: 500 euros;

– Audience prize: musical equipment provided by the competition’s partners.

Jazz in the Park Competition, the stage where young talents take off

Each evening of the Jazz in the Park Competition will end with concerts by special guests, offering the audience a variety of musical experiences, such as: the legend of Cuban music, Roberto Fonseca, who presents his new album, Elena Mîndru, 7th SENSE, Răzvan Florescu Quartet. Among them is Klawo, the big winner of the 2023 edition, who return to the stage to once again share their energy and passion for jazz.

Artur Szalsza, Klawo: “Winning the Jazz in the Park competition certainly helped us, as we are a young band and it was the first time we were recognized and appreciated abroad, marking a turning point in our early career of road.

It gave us the credibility of an artistic act in a truly international setting and built the confidence in us that what we do has the ability to go far beyond the local level. I invested the prize money in purchasing a tour van and in more appearances, which would otherwise have been financially impossible.

“Children will also have special experiences”

We also had the opportunity to quickly follow up with a second performance at the Jazz in the Park festival, which further cemented our position in the Romanian jazz community and created comfortable ground for our performance at Mastering the Music Business (MMB) from Bucharest. Which in turn led to her getting a partnership with Eurosonic as her booker was one of the delegates at MMB. And so the snowball grows…”

In addition to the concerts, the Central Park in Cluj-Napoca will look like it used to, when the festival won the Best Small Festival in Europe award: with many activities with and about music, a carefully selected “gastronomic line-up” and an area dedicated to wines. Children will also have special experiences, in an area dedicated to them.

The Jazz in the Park Competition is back in force in 2023

The Jazz in the Park Competition returned in 2023 after a few years off as a mature event. Out of a total of 212 applicants, Klawo from Poland was the big winner of the sixth edition, and now they will perform at the event again as special guests.

The Jazz in the Park Competition aims to discover talented jazz bands from all over the world and make them known. The event reaches its 7th edition this year.

The organizers resume the non-obligatory ticket initiative: Jazz in the Park Fund

During the competition, the participating public will be able to support the cultural initiatives of the organizers, by buying the non-obligatory ticket and contributing to the Jazz in the Park Fund. This campaign started in 2015 and was active until 2020, during which time more than 100,000 euros were raised and donated in the community.

Alin Vaida: “We started the fund in 2015, having at that time a free festival, where the public had no obligation towards us. We said then, that those who believe in us and want to support us, can buy a non-binding ticket, and our community received this idea very well.

Now, we want to resume this initiative because we have many new projects in which we want to involve our community, and for them, the non-compulsory ticket represents a very good civic spirit exercise.”