Polish jazz will be heard in Japan. Nikola Kołodziejczyk, Paulina Przybysz, EABS, and others will perform in Osaka and Tokyo.

Polish jazz will soon be coming to Japan. Outstanding representatives of the Polish jazz scene will perform during Polish Culture Week as part of Poland's presence at Expo 2025 Osaka.

Polish jazz is cool, right? True! And we have proof!

"Poles may not realize it, but in my opinion, it's one of the strongest jazz countries in the world . We sell a lot of records here, there are a lot of jazz fans here, you have good festivals and great places to play. It's one of the best jazz places on Earth," Don Was , president of the legendary Blue Note Records, once told me.

We can trust anyone, but he's the one we can trust... So it's time to showcase our native jazz outside of Poland! So what? Heading for Japan! From September 4th to 10th, outstanding Polish jazz musicians will perform during Polish Culture Week as part of Poland's presence at Expo 2025 Osaka .

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And it must be admitted that there will be plenty to listen to. EABS and the Hoshii quartet, founded by Kuba Więcek , will be presenting their music in Japan . They successfully combine jazz with influences of electronica , rap , and alternative music .

Also performing will be the Maciej Obara Quartet , Tomasz Chyła Quartet , winner of the 2024 Fryderyk Award in the "Artist of the Year - Jazz" and "Album of the Year - Jazz" categories, Aga Derlak , Babooshki , Dominik Wania , Nikola Kołodziejczyk , Kasia Pietrzko & Maciej Kądziela Sub Silento , and Paulina Przybysz , who surprised this year with the album "Insides," composed of jazz standards. The set is excellent and showcases the many facets of jazz.

Cover of the jazz album Insides by Paulina Przybysz License: Press materials / Paulina Przybysz

Organized performances will take place at Blue Yard, a club operating under the Blue Note brand in Tokyo, as well as at Space14 and Umeda Club Quatro . Additionally, the Polish Pavilion will host a week of exceptional 30-minute recitals in solo, duo, and trio configurations.

One of the highlights of the "Jazz From Poland in Japan" event will be the premiere of Nikola Kołodziejczyk's "Concert Suite." The piece, written especially for the occasion, will be performed by all the musicians invited to Japan .

- The composition allows for the presentation of important voices of the Polish music scene, communicating their own unique musical language in a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect, using the medium of a jazz orchestra - we read in a press release from the Polish Institute in Tokyo .

The special guest will be Tomohiro Ishii , 3rd place winner of the Zbigniew Seifert International Jazz Violin Competition in 2024.

After the main part in Osaka , on September 11–13, concerts will also be held in the Japanese capital.