Keitelejazz festival

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Festival : Keitelejazz Festival
Interview : Vilja Ruokolainen

When was the festival first established and who's idea / project was it?
The first Keitelejazz festival was in 1984. A group of local jazz enthousiastics formed an association that has been responsible for organizing the festival since.

How could you present your festival to our readers who don't know it?
Keitelejazz is a three-day jazz festival in Central Finland. It's got a unique intimate feeling, because of its small scaled but high quality program. The festival mainly presents modern European jazz. The concerts are held in a tent by the lake.

When is it happening?
Keitelejazz is every year the last weekend in July. This year the dates are 24.-26.7.03.

Why this period of the year was choosen?
It is the peak of Finnish summer. There are no other major festivals happening nearby that same weekend.

Are there many changes / ameliorations from one year to another?
The main concept has been the same the last 6 years. Anyhow, small changes for better are made every year according to the feedback from previous year.

How the programmation of the festival is done?
A group consisting of people who actively follow the international and national jazz scene work on the program.

Are there many spectators coming from abroad?
Mainly the audience is Finnish.

Do you advertise your festival abroad?
Only through internet.

Would you recommend some sites or places that tourists who come to your festival could visit at the same time?
In Central Finland the main attraction is the nature with its forests and thousands of lakes. Near Äänekoski there are some small art galleries and museums. The nearest city, Jyväskylä, has also museum and many buildings by the world-famous architect Alvar Aalto.

Are there many possibilities for accomodation? Would you recommend one particularly?
There are three hotels and a few places with cottages near Äänekoski.

Do you have a web site? What kind of information / content do you offer?
Our website at www.aanekoski.fi/keitelejazz contains information about the past and coming festivals and it is updated before every festival.

What is, to your point of view, the difference between a good and a "not so good" festival?
A good festival offers a total experience and program of good quality.

Do you work in collaboration with other festival abroad?
No.

What are your projects for the coming years?
The festival of 2004 will be the 20th anniversary of Keitelejazz. For that there will be a special program (French jazz is one of the possible themes!) and a book that contains the history of the festival.

Interview by Vincent Lefrançois - 2003 / Photos : Pentti Ronkanen