Initiated in 1988 by
Musikhuset and local venues, Aarhus Jazz Festival has been an annual summer event in the city since 1989. The festival is bent on featuring new talents in jazz as well as both local and international stars. From the beginning, the festival has featured many notable and world-renowned international jazz stars and bands such as
Stan Getz,
Dizzy Gillespie,
Herbie Hancock,
The Zawinul Syndicate,
Clark Terry,
Mike Stern and
John Scofield – some of them several times – in a mix with more local notables such as
John Tchicai,
Jesper Thilo,
Svend Asmussen,
Ed Thigpen,
Cæcilie Norby,
Sinne Eeg,
Marilyn Mazur,
Pierre Dørge and
Alex Riel. The programme is quite broad in its musical choices, often including world renowned blues performers like
B. B. King,
Bonnie Raitt,
John Mayall or Danish blues acts like
Kenn Lendings Blues Band,
Shades of Blue or
The Blue Junction. Alternative musical styles with jazz-influences have been represented by artists such as
Nitin Sawhney,
Sting,
Dr. John,
Abdullah Ibrahim and
The Roots in a mix with many local, new or unknown names. The festival has grown considerably in the 2010s; in 2014 it featured 230 concerts at 29 venues, while in 2018, the festival celebrated its 30th anniversary with more than 360 concerts across 42 venues. From 2014 to 2017 when Aarhus was
European Capital of Culture, Aarhus Jazz Festival turned its focus towards European jazz; jazz from
Poland in particular, since the city of
Wrocław was Capital of Culture in 2016. The 2016 festival took a deliberate focus on the women in jazz, and included international female artists like
Melody Gardot,
Sarah McKenzie and
Lizz Wright and that years poster also featured
Hiromi Uehara. Both the 2016 and 2017 festivals were expanded to last 10 days and also included
world music concerts in addition to the more rigid jazz programme.
Stan Getz was the first international artist to play at Aarhus Jazz festival in 1989 and as a homage, the 2018 festival played his music at several concerts. The 2019 festival celebrated 100 years of jazz music in Aarhus. ==Posters==