Album release concert at Pohjankartano Hall on Friday, February 6
Oulu All Star Big Band joins forces with Finnish Sámi yoiker, singer, and actor Ingá-Máret Gaup-Juuso on the album Davvi Oktavuohta – Northern Connection, which will be released on Sámi National Day, February 6. The ensemble celebrates the release with a concert on the same day at Pohjankartano Hall in Oulu, where the new album will be performed in its entirety. In addition to Oulu, the concert will be heard at the Snöfestivalen event in Kiruna on Friday, January 23.
Davvi Oktavuohta brings together musical traditions and eras in a natural way, as the musical heritage of northern Indigenous peoples meets big band music. Sámi music has deep roots in traditional yoiks, while the big band as an ensemble traces its origins to the United States in the 1930s. Cornerstones of the big band tradition include rhythm and jazz music, as well as the seamless interplay between brass sections and rhythm section. In Sámi music, the most important instrument of expression is the human voice. Improvisation plays a vital role in both traditions.
The album features music by Gaup-Juuso, who has also found success in the Sámi Grand Prix competitions, as well as traditional Sámi yoiks arranged for big band by drummer–composer Mikko Hassinen, one of Finland’s leading big band arrangers. Alongside Gaup-Juuso, the soloist on Davvi Oktavuohta is internationally acclaimed jazz trumpeter and artistic director of Oulu All Star Big Band, Jukka Eskola.
The conductor is Oulu-based musician, music educator, and conductor Jaakko Jauhiainen, who has played with Oulu All Star Big Band since its founding. “Oulu’s northern dimension has always fascinated me: Indigenous people, nature, the seasons. I wanted to combine the diverse sound of a big band with all of this,” Jauhiainen says of the origin of the Davvi Oktavuohta project.
Eclipse Music will release the album Davvi Oktavuohta – Northern Connection on Sámi National Day, February 6, 2026, on LP, CD, and digitally.
The project is part of the European Capital of Culture programme, and the Pohjankartano concert is part of the Dálvemánnu Festival as well as the Jazz Finland 100 anniversary program.
OASBB & Ingá-Máret Gaup-Juuso feat. Jukka Eskola
Davvi Oktavuohta – Northern Connection Album Release Concert
Fri, 6 February, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Pohjankartano Hall, Oulu
Tickets: €27 / €24 / €11 (+ service fee)
Lippu.fi
