Jukka Eskola

Finnish trumpet player Jukka Eskola specializes in groove-oriented jazz, modernizing fusion, soul jazz, bossa nova, and other rhythmically focused styles with a smooth sound. Eskola emerged in the '90s, performing with the Nuspirit Helsinki collective and the Five Corners Quintet before releasing his self-titled 2005 debut with saxophonist Timo Lassy. After another album with the same quintet, Walkover (2009), he recorded Orquesta Bossa, which combined a jazz quintet with a string quartet. In 2017, he released the first album of his new Soul Trio, which focused on soul-jazz; a follow-up, Steamy!, appeared in 2019. Throughout the years, he also remained busy as a sideman and session musician, appearing on records by Jimi Tenor, Kerkko Koskinen, Mikko Innanen, Pentti Hietanen, Jussi Lampela, Hedvig Hanson, and many others. In 2024, Eskola teamed up with Lassy again for 2024's Nordic Stew, which featured a group of New Orleans jazz musicians.