The Dutch Jazz Competition is a national contest for outstanding jazz talents up to age 35, taking place every two years. Four groups will compete in the final for the title of Best Group and for the audience award. The four finalists are:
Tijs Klaassen Kwintet
Mo van der Does alto sax/clarinet, Matthias Van den Brande tenor sax, Floris Kappeyne piano/synthesizer, Tijs Klaassen double bass/compositions, Wouter Kühne drums.
Ragazzi
Joshua Herwig cello, Reinout de Vey Mestdagh cello, Noah Hassler Forrest violin, Ischa Kooistra cello, Wouter Torringa violin.
Simone van der Weerden & NAOS
Simone van der Weerden bandoneon/composition, Gustavo Cabrera violin, Wajdi Riahi piano, Johannes Fend double bass, Martin Hafizi drums.
Pietre
Jesse Schilderink baritone sax/tenor sax, Nicolò Ricci tenor sax, Alessandro Fongaro double bass/composition, Giovanni Iacovella drums.
Participants in the Dutch Jazz Competition will compete for a cash prize, appearances at relevant festivals and financial support for recording an album.
Previous winners include Kapok (2012), Loran Witteveen Quintet (2014), Xavi Torres Trio (2016) en Sun Mi Hong Quartet (2018) and the previous winner Aviv Noam Quartet. The Dutch Jazz Competition is co-organized by main sponsor Sena Performers, Hendrik Muller Fonds and Kunstenbond/Ntb.