CURATION

Launched in 2025 by Freek Dijkstra and Kika Sprangers, Ultrajazz is a new umbrella platform bringing together a range of small-scale concert series, all aimed at putting jazz in Utrecht firmly on the map, establishing the city as a hub for jazz development. The platform presents accessible, forward-thinking (inter)national jazz, with a strong focus on original work and experimentation, complementing and expanding Utrecht’s existing jazz scene.

After the success of the podcast series Jazz Changers, saxophonist Kika Sprangers and jazz programmer Koen Graat return with a new series: Hoezo Jazz?!. Together, they dive into legendary records, distinctive voices and unexpected subgenres, revealing jazz as an ongoing conversation with the world around us.
In half-hour episodes, Kika and Koen explore how jazz flows into other musical landscapes—rock, hip-hop, world and electronic music—and back again. Jazz is often weighed down by stubborn clichés, even as its makers move freely beyond borders and labels. Through stories, sound fragments and surprising musical connections, Hoezo Jazz?! lets jazz breathe in all its openness, refusing to be boxed in. In the end, every music lover discovers a thread that leads back to jazz.

From Studio Pandora, Kika Sprangers sits down with inspiring voices from across the cultural sector. Drawing on her perspective as a saxophonist, she explores leadership through the lens of the music scene—where listening, improvisation and collaboration take center stage. But what does leadership really mean? And what sets a truly good leader apart?