A happy hello to all!

2.5.2025

“You always need a carpenter…” is a free translation of an old Finnish song and the idea may apply to Korpo Sea Jazz as well now that we are facing quite big changes. KSJ will naturally go on as one of the most high-class festivals in Finland, particularly focusing on domestic jazz. But the people who behind the scenes have been responsible for its development and production will be changing.
Towards the end of last summer Bosse, the long-time chairman, general manager and head of production of the festival and the Society, asked me if I would be interested in taking more
responsibility of the future of the festival as the producer. So far, I had been active mainly as a
member of the festival’s voluntary working group and a member of the Board of the Society.
However, this was an idea which had been also on my mind after the last year’s festival.
There will be changes anyway and so far it had proved to be challenging to find a proper successor to handle all of Bosse’s many tasks. So I was surprised when he posed the question, I even startled a bit. Is he able even to read thoughts? His boots are big to be filled but I believe that with cooperation it will succeed and the fine story of KSJ will continue!
You will understand from the words above that I am a carpenter by my worldly profession,
specialized in renovation of traditional buildings, but music has been an important way of life for me through all my years. My taste of music has kept on widening as a result of playing instruments, listening to records and attending concerts and gigs. All good music, disregarding the genre, from metal to funk and through Irish folk music into jazz, not forgetting any other musical styles, makes the heart beat and touches deeply when a great piece comes up!
I can claim to be a “barefooted” Korpo-dweller and I did live here through my childhood and youth until I moved to the mainland to study at a secondary school. At that time I could not even imagine that someday there would be an annual jazz festival in Korpo! The local musical offerings consisted of a few local fiddlers sometimes playing folk music in the market place and some dance bands showing up every now and then in Kommunalgården, the local multi-purpose hall, in summer. Well, in 1989, three years after I moved out, things started happening…

It is a great honor to have a possibility, as a “remigrant”, to participate in the production of this fine festival, which has become a nationally significant musical event, from the point of view of both the public and the artists!
When you take a look at this year’s programme, you will find that it looks really good also this time and I want to thank the artistic director of the festival 2025, Bosse Mellberg for that! At the same time I want to thank him for the tremendous amount of work that he has done through all these years as the chairman and general manager of the Korpo Jazz Society as well as the head of production of the festival, all this with a big heart and soul! It has been extraordinary! Without you, Bosse, Korpo Sea Jazz would not be what it is today! Chapeau and a deep bow!
Welcome to the Korpo Sea Jazz festival. Let us have fun!

Mikko Kostiainen – producer/coordinator