Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends of Music and of Bansko,
It is with great joy that I welcome you to another edition of the Bansko Jazz Festival. For the 28th time, this event transforms our town into a vibrant stage of jazz rhythms and talented performers—a place for unforgettable encounters! Here, at the foot of the Pirin Mountains, jazz comes to life in its purest form—as an expression of emotion, inspiration, and freedom.
Jazz is an impulse that connects generations and cultures, and Bansko is the place where that impulse turns into a celebration—with a rich and diverse program full of surprises, new musical projects, and impressive artists from around the world. The city will pulse with jazz—from the Central Square, along the Jazz Alley, to the City Park, through the cozy little streets, the traditional crossroads of Bansko, in countless venues, on open-air stages, and in spontaneous performances that fill every corner of Bansko with music.
For the first time in the festival’s history—and to the delight of all—it will span ten days. From August 1st to 10th, 2025, we will welcome six headliners on the main stage, enjoy beloved and new performers on the Central Square stage and the evening stage in the park, celebrate the talents of the Youth Stage, witness children’s first steps in jazz, watch young people learn from the best at the Jazz Academy, and experience unforgettable moments that will live long in our memories.
We promise you a remarkable musical journey. Join us—all in Bansko, all in jazz!
All in Bansko! All in jazz!
For the 27th Bansko will pulsate to the rhythm of jazz.
Bansko Jazz Festival’2024 will turn the mountain town into the capital of jazz again from 3rd to 10th August!
18 countries, 135 performers, 24 concerts on the big stage; 3 countries, 45 participants, 21 concerts on the daytime stages; 18 international projects, 4 join projects, 5 Bulgarian.
Numbers that are not just statistics, but a musical synergy that is able to transform matter into spirit.
And this year the guests of Bansko jazz festival can see the first permanent jazz exhibition in the country in the Jazz Museum in the Nikola Vaptsarov Community Centre. Guests can trace the history of jazz in Bulgaria. The exposition is alive and will continue to grow with materials and personal belongings of Bulgarian musicians who have left their mark on the history of jazz in Bulgaria.
Bansko Jazz Academy with the support of the Ministry of Culture, daytime stage in the park, afternoon jazz improvisations – Jazz in the City, Jazz BBQ, Meet the Audience, accompanying program – family games, and the news this year is the Jazz Alley. With the support of the National Culture Fund, an workshop will be held to create sculptures from natural materials, testifying to the contributions of Bulgaria’s most outstanding jazz artists from the 1940s to the present day, to lay the foundation for the creation of the Jazz Alley. The works will be located in the centre of Bansko and will be part of the identity of the town, because of the Bansko Jazz Festival called The jazz capital of Bulgaria.
“The Bansko Jazz Festival is talked about all year round because of the special projects that start their life here and expand their presence worldwide, because of the aesthetic criteria it creates with its program of the most influential artists – the legends and important names of our time, because of the young talents who specially formed groups and create collaborations. What is experienced, felt and learned here is a charge for artists and audiences for the months leading up to the next edition of the festival.” Svetoslav Nikolov, Program Director of Jazz FM Radio