Valentina Ramunno and Luca Prost among the 9 finalists for the prestigious Jazz Comp Graz 2024.
Outperforming a wide selection of European composers, the two graduates of Saint Louis’ Two-Year Postgraduate Program in Jazz Composition and Arrangement participated in the final night of the fifth edition of the contest held in Graz, Austria, whose central theme for 2024 was “Creative Minds from Across Europe.” Valentina Ramunno won the Special Jury Award “Best Female Composer.”
On November 14, 2024, the MUMUTH at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz was transformed into a stage for Europe’s best jazz composers. JazzComp Graz is a leading event on the European jazz calendar and in its fifth edition aims to highlight original pieces by young musicians and their most innovative musical visions.
Nine outstanding talents from eight European countries competed on the final night. From humorous compositions to deep reflections on life and nature, each piece tells a unique story.
Valentina Ramunno participated and won the special prize of the jury, composed of Ed Partyka, John Hollenbeck, Kathrine Windfeld and Jörg Achim Keller, with “Echoes of Heath,” a musical tribute to her homeland that mixes memories with soothing melodies, while Luca Prost presented “The Way the Sea Ebbs and Flows,” in which the composer brings to life in music the movement of the sea, on a journey between gentle waves and stormy sounds.
During the evening their works were performed by the KUG Jazz Orchestra conducted by Johannes Berauer.
