Creative Jazz Clinic Velenje is a series of workshops and masterclasses started in 2016 by Slovenian musician, teacher and Prešeren Award recipient Jure Pukl, who was raised in the town and is widely regarded as one of the best young saxophonists in the world. The huge roster of musicians with whom he has collaborated over the last two decades means that Pukl has been able to attract many top names from the world of jazz to teach and perform at the clinic, which generally takes place over five days at the end of February.
Although he has lived in New York City since 2013, Pukl continues to take a keen interest in the jazz scene in his homeland, and was also instrumental in reviving the Max Club Jazz Festival in 2012 after a hiatus of ten years.
The masked rite of spring known as Kurentovanje has been held since 1960, every February for 10 days leading up to Shrove Tuesday. It is the most popular Mardi Gras celebration in Slovenia, with most of the festivities centred in Ptuj, Slovenia's oldest town, which has hosted Kurentovanje since the beginning. Today, the programme also includes several international groups.
