ECN Music is proud to announce its involvement as one of the official 2025 England stand partners at this year’s jazzahead! meeting in Bremen (24-26 April 2025), supported by Arts Council England. This important backing by ACE underscores the commitment to championing English jazz artists on the international stage and fostering meaningful global connections within the jazz community.
We are particularly proud to see three ECN Music collaborating artists presented at the showcase and clubnight programme: Mark Kavuma, Rebecca Nash and Tim Garland’s Lighthouse Trio.
Getting jazzahead!-ready
To help maximise the opportunities presented by the event, ECN Music will also be hosting a virtual two-part workshop for musicians and music professionals preparing to attend jazzahead!. These sessions will provide useful guidance for navigating the often overwhelming nature of international trade fairs, offering practical strategies for making impactful industry connections and ensuring artists can fully leverage their visit.
In today’s interconnected music landscape, having a presence at jazzahead! is increasingly vital for professionals in our genre who seek to expand beyond domestic markets. The 3-day event serves as a critical gateway for meeting with international promoters, labels, future partners and artists, opening doors to performances at festivals, touring opportunities, and collaborative projects that just benefit from a direct, interpersonal connection to be made. ECN Music’s involvement reflects our ongoing mission to support jazz artists in building sustainable careers within the complexities of the music industry ecosystem with confidence and purpose.
Register for jazzahead! 2025
Arts Council England media statement:
Arts Council England announces new £25,000 investment supporting English jazz
Arts Council England is pleased to announce two new strategic investments in England’s thriving jazz scene:
- celebrating England’s diverse jazz talent through support for Breakthrough Act of the Year award at the 2025 Jazz FM Awards
- raising the visibility of England’s jazz artists on the world stage through enhanced presence at jazzahead!, a leading international jazz industry showcase and tradefair.
These initiatives recognise the achievements of individuals and groups within the vibrant UK jazz scene underpinned by Arts Council’s longstanding investment in leading English jazz organisations including Tomorrow’s Warriors, Jazz re:freshed, and the London and Manchester jazz festivals, all of which played a formative role in the success of Mercury and Brit Award winners, Ezra Collective, amongst others.
Building on the work of organisations across the English jazz sector, Arts Council’s new investment acknowledges the success of UK Jazz on the international stage – at jazzahead!, and elsewhere globally including SXSW, SIM São Paolo and more, signalling its commitment to supporting emerging talent in English jazz sector. This newly expanded English presence will sit alongside that of other UK nations represented by artists, promoters and others from across the full spectrum of jazz music.
Dr Claire Mera-Nelson, Director, Music at Arts Council England said:
“Arts Council England is delighted to support these two strategic investments for English jazz. Celebrating the achievements and visibility of outstanding jazz artists on the world stage, our partnerships with Jazz FM and jazzahead! will enable England’s extraordinary and diverse jazz talent to make the most of the opportunities that await them, supported by a fantastic coalition of UK partners.”
Sybille Kornitschky, CEO at jazzahead! said:
“As a platform for global jazz connections, jazzahead! is delighted to strengthen ties with England and the UK at the 2025 Trade Fair and Festival. The work of our UK & Ireland Ambassador Nick Brown has played an instrumental role in bringing this together, and we look forward to seeing England elevate its international presence, ensuring English artists and industry professionals take their rightful place on the global stage.”
Ros Rigby, Chair of the Jazz Promotion Network said
“The Jazz Promotion Network (JPN) is delighted that there will be an English stand at jazzahead! 2025 where jazz musicians, promoters and others can gather, and that this will also provide an opportunity for discussion about how we all can work together to develop a more extensive presence in future years.”
Crispin Parry, CEO of British Underground said
“British Underground understands that international showcasing can be transformative for musicians so we are excited to collaborate in the development of this new initiative at jazzahead! supporting new talent from England and their industry networks.”
Nick Pitts, Content Director for Jazz FM and Magic Classical said:
“Jazz FM is delighted that Arts Council England is supporting the Breakthrough Act of the Year in this year’s Jazz FM Awards. Their dedication to nurturing emerging talent aligns perfectly with our mission to celebrate and elevate the UK’s jazz scene. This, alongside their support for English artists at jazzahead! in Bremen, underscores the vital role Arts Council England plays in championing jazz both nationally and internationally.”
- Arts Council England and jazz sector partners will have a stand at the 2025 event, providing an enhanced “shop window” for jazz from England and a vital point of contact.
- A programme of speed networking sessions on festivals, touring and label contacts; several ‘meet the showcase artists’ sessions; discussions panels and presentations; and an informal daily networking reception will be hosted by Arts Council and its partners.
- The Arts Council’s new investment will also provide delegate bursaries and support, and a programme of showcase and platforming events.
- An English showcase club night event curated by English promoter Peter Conway (presented at the Bremer Shakespeare Theatre) will feature three leading English jazz acts: Mark Kavuma, Jo Harrop and Rebecca Nash. English jazz artist Henry Spencer will also present a showcase as part of the official jazzahead! showcase programme. Tim Garland’s Lighthouse Trio will be performing at the Sendesaal.
- Producing partner British Underground – bringing their experience of managing music, tech and arts programmes on the international stage – will coordinate a small group of delegate bursaries for artists and managers new to jazzahead!
- As a further benefit to English delegates, jazzahead! will announce a discounted co-exhibitor rate of €155 (plus 19% VAT) for delegates registering through the England stand (6A20). Delegates should use the discount code 25GEMTR1 via the co-exhibitor registration form.
