Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival returns in 2025, ready to electrify the city with ten days of world-class music. From Friday 11 to Sunday 20 July, the capital will come alive as venues across Edinburgh host an incredible line-up of jazz and blues artists from around the globe. Whether you're a festival regular or a first-time visitor, prepare for a genre-spanning celebration - from bebop to boogie-woogie, funk to soul, trad to techno, swing to searing blues-rock. There’s something for every musical mood in this year’s programme.
From Friday 11 to Sunday 20 July, the festival will feature:
- More than 100 events taking place across the city
- A return to The Famous Spiegeltent in St Andrew Square
- Edinburgh Festival Carnival – Edinburgh’s largest multi-cultural event
- Edinburgh Napier University Jazz Summer School
- A host of interactive events including workshops, kid's events, masterclasses and a talk
No other festival covers jazz and blues, across all the styles, with such depth and quality, and with so many unique events. Acclaimed American guitarist Julian Lage, leading lights of the British and Irish blues scene Elles Bailey and Muireann Bradley, mesmerising singer Anaïs Reno and the techno brilliance of LBT are highlights of the programme. These names join the previously announced gigs from world-renowned singer Curtis Stigers, American blues star Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and Scotland's own Colin Steele and corto.alto.
EJBF prides itself on promoting live events all over the city with highlights including award-winning blues artist Stacy Mitchhart in Oxgangs, Luxembourg quartet Saxitude in Murrayfield, and a jazz party at The Pitt Street Food Market.
This year’s international showcases introduce some exciting new names to the festival as we collaborate with partners in Poland and Luxembourg.
Our Polish Jazz Focus shines the spotlight on compelling mix of voices including visionary pianist Joanna Duda, trailblazing all-women ensemble O.N.E., vocalist Aga Zaryan’s trademark intimacy and nuance and Pawel Kaczmarczyk Trio, an unmissable piano trio. Acclaimed saxophonist Marta Wajdzik joins Alan Benzie in a Polish/Scottish musical meeting. Finally, the stellar Maciej Obara presents a masterclass whilst Piotr Smith talks about the history. This series is part of the 2025 UK/Poland Season organised by the British Council.
Our SPARK programme presents the best in jazz from Luxembourg with a programme curated in association with Kultur | lx – Arts Council Luxembourg. We will welcome a host of new generation of artists who are making waves across the European modern jazz scene. We look forward to introducing Veda Bartinger, Maxime Bender Trio, Michel Meis and Joel Metz (who performs with Scotland’s Brodie Laird-Jarvie) to Edinburgh audiences.
Scottish artists are the beating heart of our programme, and we feature an array of new and exciting bands, projects and commissions including Nathan Somevi’s Afro-jazz playlist, Emma Smith’s tribute to carers and Paul Harrison pays homage to Keith Jarrett’s legendary Köln Concert. Collaborations include Martin Taylor, who performs with Sweden’s Ulf Wakenius and Mathew Kilner with German drummer Gerwin Eisenhauer. We also give a voice to the new wave of Scottish jazz including Unoma Okudo, TAO and Gaia Jeannot.
As part of a series of interactive events, the festival presents digital music making workshops from Stu Brown, as well as two shows for young music fans with Jazz For Kids and Sound Explorers, both courtesy of Sue McKenzie, as well as talks, masterclasses, jam sessions and more.
The Edinburgh Festival Carnival, Scotland’s largest and most flamboyant multicultural event, returns to the city centre on Sunday 13 July with over 750 participants from across the globe and from the heart of Edinburgh. The Carnival programme will be released on Thursday 12 June.
The full programme will be live from noon on Tuesday 29 April at ejbf.co.uk.
Chair of Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival, Councillor Jason Rust said: “I am delighted that the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival returns for 2025 with an exciting programme that sees us presenting our events at iconic venues right across the city, including a welcome return to The Famous Spiegeltent in St Andrew Square. The festival spans a huge range of styles and specialisms, and features familiar faces, new names and everything in-between. I am proud to see us celebrating the history of the artform in Edinburgh while supporting the brightest and best young talent in Scotland.”
Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland commented: “This year’s festival takes giant steps towards connecting audiences to all styles of jazz and blues from the past, present and future. Reaching out through a wider network of venues spread across the city, it builds bridges between some of Scotland’s greatest musicians and international partner countries in Europe and beyond. The carnival draws from our grassroots communities to present a global portrait of modern Scotland, where traditions become richer and music more diverse. The 2025 festival is the first to be supported through Creative Scotland’s Multi Year Funding programme, which puts this essential event on a stable three-year footing at a time when Scotland’s jazz sector is overflowing with talent and attracting attention from all over the world.”
Culture Secretary Angus Robertson said: “It’s great to see so many talented musicians from Scotland and around the world collaborating and converging in Edinburgh once again. The breadth of this year’s programme, which includes gigs, workshops and events for people of all ages in so many venues across the city, underlines why this festival is held in such high esteem internationally.
“The Scottish Government is proud to continue our support for the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival. Receiving multi year funding from Creative Scotland for the first time, thanks in part to a record increase in culture spending in the 2025-26 Scottish Budget, will ensure they have certainty and confidence to build on this year’s programme and plan ambitiously for the years ahead.”
Background
Header image is by Ellie Koepke.
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports culture and creativity across all parts of Scotland, distributing funding provided by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery, which, now in its 30th year, has supported over 14,600 projects with more than £501.9 million in funding through Creative Scotland and its predecessor, the Scottish Arts Council. Further information at creativescotland.com. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Learn more about the value of art and creativity in Scotland and join in at www.ourcreativevoice.scot.
Media contact
For further information please contact:
Paula Wilson, Marketing & Audience Development Manager: [email protected]