Aarhus Jazz Festival puts the conversation at the center

26/6/2025 | Forfatter: Rikke Engsig Nielsen | Fotograf: Katharina Ya

What does march music from totalitarian regimes sound like when turned upside down? How do you build a sound universe of insects, weather data and the movement of stars? And what does everyday life look like for an uncompromising free jazz drummer?

Jazz is much more than music – it is stories, reflection and new perspectives. When Aarhus Jazz Festival 2025 runs from July 11 to 20, the audience can not only listen, but also meet the artists behind the music and gain insight into their thoughts and processes.

“Jazz is not only about listening, but also about sharing thoughts, stories and curiosity. With several talks this year, we are giving the audience the chance to meet the artists behind the music and gain insight into the ideas and themes that make jazz alive and relevant – also in 2025,” says Marie Norman Nyeng, administrative director of Aarhus Jazz Festival.

Talks with powerful artists
This year, the audience can experience in-depth conversations with some of the festival's most prominent names:

Maria Faust, Estonian-Danish saxophonist and composer, will talk at the KØN museum about her masterpiece Marches, in which she turns march music from totalitarian regimes on its head and creates poetic, thoughtful sounds as a commentary on the horrors of war and the experiences of civilian victims. The talk will take place before the concert in KØN's historic city council hall on Saturday, July 12.

Wayne Siegel, American electronic composer, will talk on Friday, July 11 at Kunsthal Aarhus about his many years of work on letting nature, technology and music play together. After the artist talk, the audience can experience him creating a unique sound universe inspired by the exhibition Bugs and Metamorphosis – amidst artworks about small creatures and transformation.

Paal Nilssen-Love, the festival's Norwegian artist in residence, will give a rare insight into his uncompromising life with the drumsticks. In a solo concert at the Institute for X, live music is combined with anecdotes, where Nilssen-Love talks with the festival's administrative manager, Marie Norman Nyeng.

Learn to play jazz music

If you'd rather feel the music in your fingers, you can sign up for FOF Aarhus' popular Jazz Me Up! workshops, where both children and adults can learn to play jazz on piano, saxophone, guitar or try out vocal improvisation.

Meet the jazz people behind the scenes
For industry professionals, musicians and the curious, JazzDanmark also invites you to an informal jazz bar at the Institute for X - a networking meeting place where you can exchange ideas over a drink and celebrate a summer filled with live jazz