Pirkanmaa Saxophone Festival: Cannonball Lives!

Information

6 February 2027 at 6:30 pm
Pirkanmaa Saxophone Festival: Cannonball Lives!
Small Auditorium, Tampere Hall

Tickets
Standard tickets: €28
Pensioners: €22
Students: €10
Pirkanmaa Saxophone Festival performers: €15

Duration: approximately 2 hours, including an interval.

Performers:
Petri “Pope” Puolitaival – alto saxophone
Tampere Big Band
Ville Vannemaa – conductor

Programme:
Work Song (Nat Adderley)
Jeannine (Duke Pearson)
One for Daddy-O (N. Adderley)
Fun (N. Adderley)

Interval (25 min)

This Here (Bobby Timmons, arr. Wilkins)
Jive Samba (N. Adderley, arr. Thad Jones)
Shake a Lady (Ray Bryant, arr. Oliver Nelson)
Gon Gong (Victor Feldman, arr. Nelson)
Country Preacher (Joe Zawinul)
Sticks (Cannonball Adderley)

Julian “Cannonball” Adderley (1928–1975) is one of the undisputed legends of the alto saxophone. His sparkling, vibrant playing blended blues and gospel with Charlie Parker’s bebop language in a way that has captivated jazz audiences from the 1950s to the present day. Adderley rose to prominence playing alongside John Coltrane in one of Miles Davis’s most celebrated ensembles. The group created several milestones in jazz history, including the albums Milestones (1958) and Kind of Blue (1959). After leaving Davis’s band, Adderley formed a hugely successful quintet with his brother, cornetist Nat Adderley. Their music was irresistibly soulful, exuberantly energetic and refreshingly sincere. Now this joyous music comes to life in arrangements enhanced by the full sound of Tampere Big Band, featuring the magnificent Pope Puolitaival as soloist!

Petri “Pope” Puolitaival is a jazz musician from Oulu who plays saxophones and flutes. He has been based in the Helsinki metropolitan area since 1994 and graduated from the Sibelius Academy’s Jazz Department in 2004. Puolitaival is known for his powerful saxophone sound and expressive playing. Firmly rooted in the jazz tradition, he names John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders and Charlie Parker as his greatest influences. He is currently one of Finland’s busiest saxophonists, performing with artists and ensembles including Juha Tapio, Dalindèo, Dallapé, Ricky-Tick Big Band, the Elämäni biisi house band and Martti Vesala Soundpost Quintet. Throughout his career, Petri has played with renowned jazz musicians including Jukkis Uotila, Peter Erskine, Wayne Kranz, Mark Levine and Jimmy Smith.

Ville Vannemaa is one of Finland’s most sought-after big band conductors. He currently serves as Chief Conductor of UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra. Having studied saxophone and arranging at the Sibelius Academy’s Jazz Department, Vannemaa also has extensive experience working with big bands as a composer, arranger and ensemble musician. His long experience as an educator and deep understanding of different musical genres, particularly jazz, have earned him a reputation for excellence in rehearsing and coaching big bands.

Tampere Big Band

Founded in 1985, Tampere Big Band is known for its varied repertoire, ranging from traditional big band swing to funk and contemporary popular music. The orchestra has collaborated with leading Finnish soloists including Maria Ylipää, Johanna Försti, Emma Salokoski, Sami Pitkämö, Waltteri Torikka, Mikael Konttinen and Diandra.

Tampere Big Band has also performed big band arrangements of Juice Leskinen’s music with soloists Mikko Alatalo and Heikki Hela. Recent productions include a performance at G Livelab Tampere in November 2024 with soloist Maja Mannila, and the orchestra’s own 40th anniversary concert at Tampere Hall in September 2025, featuring Diandra.

With two albums and a diverse range of performances, including its Svengaava joulu Christmas concert series, Tampere Big Band has established its place on the Finnish jazz scene.

Since 2006, the orchestra has been led by Juha Untala, a lecturer with a Master of Music degree.

Subject to change.

Produced by Tampere Big Band and Tampere-talo Oy