The Grizzly Jazz Foundation owes its name to the nickname of its founder Dr. Andreas Hoeft (1954-2020), a leading figure in Intensive Care Medicine and Anaesthesiology in Bonn, who was also a huge jazz fan. The foundation has just announced its second prizewinner, whom the foundation will support for the next two years with a grant of EUR20,000.
The first winner was Alma Naidu, and the second is jazz singer Kateryna Kravchenko (born 1999). Kravchenko is originally from Ukraine, came to Germany to study in Dresden in 2018, and lives in Berlin. The announcement was made at a “United for Ukraine” gala concert at the Telekom Forum in Bonn.
The citation from the foundation reads: “In addition to her great musical talent and engaging stage presence, Kateryna won us over with her thirst for knowledge, her courage and her unconditional enthusiasm for jazz. We look forward to accompanying her in her next steps.” Chairman of the Board is Dr Christian Cassebaum works alongside together with fellow board members Dr. Sabine Hoeft and Dr. Anke Steinbeck on a voluntary basis to increase the visibility of young musicians by providing organisational support or arranging performance opportunities. Part of the grant will finance Kravchenko’s debut CD. Kravchenko will also have targeted mentoring, and access to a substantial network of music industry and other contacts based around the foundation. Bonn is the base of some of the main German national, publicly funded music organisations.
