VILNIUS MAMA JAZZ 2025 | Concerts in the Small Hall of the LNDT

The 24th VILNIUS MAMA JAZZ Festival presents its audience with free daytime concerts, where the most talented artists not only delight the audience, but also have the opportunity to introduce themselves to the jazz industry professionals from abroad.

Since 2016, the Showcase Stage has hosted the country’s brightest jazz names and up-and-coming young talents, presenting the most progressive musical ideas. This year’s programme features ten original and exceptional bands, so jazz gourmets, alternative music fans and those looking for new sounds will find their favourites.

TRIO EL GREY

Lithuania

• Leonardas Pilkauskas – asax, compositions
• Tadas Žukauskas – bg
• Tuomas J. Räsänen – dr

TRIO EL GREY is the latest musical venture by the renowned Lithuanian saxophonist, composer, and arranger, Leonardas Pilkauskas. This contemporary jazz trio creates a distinctive, fresh and stylistically daring soundscape. The trio’s music combines intricate compositions, spontaneous improvisation, rhythmic variety and emotional intensity.

Leonardas Pilkauskas is a multifaceted figure on the Lithuanian jazz scene: a talented saxophonist, arranger, experienced teacher and an active participant in various music projects both in Lithuania and abroad. Pilkauskas’ expressive alto saxophone leads TRIO EL GREY’s musical narrative through complex phrasing, emotional transformations and subtle harmonic discoveries. This expressive line is supplemented with rich, rhythmically pulsating base by Tadas Žukauskas, a master of the instrument and an established alternative music composer, that solidifies the compositions and provides room for improvisation. Finnish drummer, Tuomas Joonas Räsänen, a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music, brings modern R&B, jazz and electronic influences to the band’s sound. His rhythmic style is lively, creative and sensitive to the musical expression of his band members.

TRIO EL GREY builds on a strong compositional basis and lively improvisational space where the visions of three different musicians interplay. Their performances emanate spontaneity, inner freedom and energy.

THE FOLDS

Lithuania

• Domantas Pūras – keys, g, synth
• Dominykas Snarskis – dr, perc

The Folds is a duo that combines jazz, electronic and organic sounds into immersive, long-form compositions that defy easy categorization. The music produced by Domantas Pūras and Dominykas Snarskis feels like a shamanic ritual.

Domantas Pūras is a composer who experiments with electroacoustic and contemporary academic music. His work organically blends acoustic instruments with electronics to create new soundscapes. Pūras studied at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and trained at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm, and his compositions have been performed at international festivals.

Dominykas Snarskis is a versatile and creative drummer in the jazz, improvisational and contemporary academic music scenes. He plays with Lazy Diamonds Underground, Quark Effect, Luvhurts, Artisans, and The Folds, and participates in interdisciplinary art projects and contemporary music festivals. His creative work has been recognised with the Young Creator Award of the Ministry of Culture of Lithuania.

Seamlessly merging pulsating synths, free-floating piano, and earthy percussion, The Folds’ live performances are transformative, with intricate, spontaneous interactions and a palpable energy. Each piece invites listeners on a journey of self-discovery, offering a sonic experience that is both intimate and expansive.

TRIO NEDA / LABUTIS / BANYS

Lithuania

• Neda Malūnavičiūtė – voc, fl
• Vytautas Labutis – saxes, bcl
• Richardas Banys – p

Neda Malūnavičiūtė, Vytautas Labutis and the young talent, Richardas Banys, reunite on stage for a reverting musical experience. Their performances feature not only top level jazz, but also a theatrical, colourful and emotional show. Richardas Banys brings a youthful energy and passion to the mix, perfectly complementing the unpredictable improvisational escapages of his long-standing stage partners.

Since 1990, when Neda and Vytautas started their collaboration, their duo has become one of the most prominent Lithuanian jazz phenomena. Their extraordinary telepathic inter-play allows them to improvise freely, instantly creating a lively, unpredictable stream of music. Richardas Banys, who joined them in 2017, further expanded the band’s sonic possibilities.

Each of their performances is unique, full of spontaneity and pure jazz freedom. The trio’s repertoire consists of original compositions by all three musicians, as well as works by other composers. The trio has already conquered the hearts of listeners both in Lithuania and abroad – the joy of the trio’s creativity leaves no one indifferent!

VERONIKA CHICHI QUARTET

Lithuania, Latvia

• Veronika ChiChi – voc
• Dmitrij Golovanov – p, keys
• Artūrs Duckis – eb
• Domantas Razmus – dr

Veronika ChiChi Quartet is a collective formed by Veronika ChiChi, an ambitious and remarkable jazz vocalist who has performed in many European countries, the USA and China.

In 2018, the vocalist recorded her debut album Singer of a 1000 faces, and in 2022 released her second album in the Lithuanian language Namai. Veronika is an active participant in the jazz scene, including jazz festivals. She performs with her quartet, has collaborated with the retro swing vocal trio the Ditties and pianist Dimitrij Golovanov, and toured with the contemporary opera troupe Geros Dienos! In 2024, at the prestigious Opus Jazz Club in Budapest, Veronika unveiled her latest program, which you will hear at this year’s Vilnius Mama Jazz.

The quartet features some of the best jazz performers of their generation: piano virtuoso Dmitrij Golovanov, long-time stage collaborator drummer Domantas Razmus, and young Latvian talent double bassist Artūrs Duckis.

DUCK SAVED JONES

Lithuania, Latvia

• Andrius Savčenko – keys
• Artūrs Duckis – bg
• Dovydas Jonas Šulskis – dr

Talented young jazz musicians – Andrius Savčenko, Artūrs Duckis and Dovydas Jonas Šulskis – who have come together to form a bold, experimental trio Duck Saved Jones that amalgamate jazz with hip hop, electronics and urban aesthetics.

Andrius Savčenko is a unique pianist and composer, who has honed his skills studying at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre under Prof. Artūras Anusauskas and in the Netherlands from such jazz greats as Karel Boehlee, Xavi Torres and Harmen Fraanje. He plays with the 21st Century Quintet and Leonidas Šinkarenka’s bands and has performed in Spain, the Netherlands, Moldova and Norway. His compositions combine jazz, poetry set to music and contemporary music.

Artūrs Duckis is a bass guitar master from Latvia, who also plays with Dmitrij Golovanov, Liudas Mockūnas, Monika Liu, and Adriano Trindade. His energy is reflected in his performances with Vilnius JJAZZ Ensemble, KJ Collective, 21st Century Quintet and at the biggest Lithuanian jazz festivals.

Dovydas Jonas Šulskis is a drummer who feels the rhythm with mathematical precision. His path from Kretinga Art School to the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre (under Arkady Gotesman) led him to Vilnius JJAZZ Ensemble, The Schwings Band, and Basement Jazz Crew. In 2023, he became the winner of Tamsta DrumDay.

The music by Duck Saved Jones is an open-ended experiment, an ever-changing soundscape where contemporary trends meet the freedom of improvisation. The trio’s sound is influenced by modern electronica, dance music and R&B, while retaining the spirit of jazz improvisation.

What inspires Duck Saved Jones? A constantly evolving creative process, not restricted by genres or styles. The trio’s organically evolving music is rooted in everyday life, urban rhythms, season cycles, and moods, so every listener will discover a sound, an emotion, and a story close to their heart.

FREAKY KID

Lithuania, Latvia

• Artūrs Duckis – synth
• Danielius Skeivelas – g
• Andrius Savčenko – synth
• Tuomas J. Räsänen – dr, voc

Tuomas Joonas Räsänen, better known as Freaky Kid, is a Finnish-born professional drummer, music teacher, producer and performer. His music is a fusion of modern R&B, jazz rhythms, electronic experiments and vocal improvisation. Freaky Kid’s performances are energetic yet sensitive, telling a story of love, longing and the ability to let go.

Räsänen is the winner of the 2019 Drum Day and Baltic Drummers League competitions. In 2021, he graduated from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in the USA with a degree in Jazz Drumming and Music Production.

Freaky Kid’s debut performance took place at the Mello live music venue in February 2024, and the musician is gearing up to his new project due in summer 2025.

In addition to his solo projects, Räsänen works with the Mindaugas Stumbras Trio, Avis Rara, JJAZZ Ensemble and Beyond Borders Trio.

Freaky Kid will be joined by Artūrs Duckis, Danielius Skeivelas and Andrius Savčenko at Vilnius Mama Jazz.