Jussi Paavola (Born and raised in Finland) has been playing since he was 15, when in 1996 he got his first alto saxophone. He got interested in playing the sax after listening from records to what he would later call his first role model, Maceo Parker, playing in the bands of James Brown and Parliament-Funkadelic.After a few years of sax lessons and hard practice (still being underage) he started to perform with the local groups like KUJA ORCHESTRA in Helsinki, in various clubs and venues. At this point, he also started seriously studying music theory and improvisation by expanding his musical landscape with reggae, hip-hop and jazz in particular.This was the time when Jussi got into music full time. After some years of study in conservatory he started planning he’s first trip to the Caribbean, which would be the beginning of his international career. In Dominica he recorded an album with MICHELE HENDERSON with his right-hand-in-horn-section HEIKKI TUHKANEN.As the time went by, more and more projects in the Caribbean emerged. He has worked with a wide range of West-Indians. People like JEAN PHILLIP MARTHELY, PACO CHARLERY, GOLDÉE, MANUEL MODESIR, ERIK PEDURAND, RONALD TULLE, Calypso Monarch of Dominica DICE… Groups like LES 5 ELEMENTS and BELENOU.Soon after things started happening in the West-Indies he formed his horn section the FINNISH HORNS with JANNE TOIVONEN and Heikki Tuhkanen. Above some of the artist already mentioned, they have worked with a wide range of people from Africa to Cuba and of course Finland. Groups and artists like, FUTURE WARRIORS, MOMO CAT, DRAMANE DEMBELE, VIBRALTAR, FLEXATONES, EARL 16, NICOLE WILLIS and ALEX SANDUNGA.To make the long story short… After living 9 months in Belgium and back to Finland, Jussi has decided to hit the “big sceneâ€. Now he is settled to Paris, where he works with people like Manuel Mondesir, Erik Perdurand and Dramane Dembele. Recently he won the Saxetera price at the international saxetera saxophone competition in France which immediately got him some serious reputation in the jazz scene. Currently he is working on his first album as a leader. Quintet album featuring some of the finest jazz talent from Paris is coming out soon.Since the beginning, he was always fascinated with the rhythmic aspects of music, which can be heard in the way he plays and seen in the spectrum of the musical influences he has had over the years. Having a strong knowledge of worldbeat, jazz and Afro-Caribbean music, Jussi Paavola is representing the more open-minded generation of musicians exploring the music beyond the barriers.
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