Karen Underwood, affectionately known as Cork’s Jazz Diva, returns to the Green Room this October following five sell-out performances at Cork Opera House in October 2025.

Join Karen and her outstanding band for “To Love Somebody”—an unforgettable evening celebrating the timeless songs of Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Roberta Flack, Gladys Knight and other legendary artists whose music has captured every emotion of love.

The Jazz Festival Club continues on Sunday with another extensive programme of live music throughout The Metropole Hotel.

Performances take place across the Ballroom, Douglas Vance, Beckett, Met Bar, Merchant Restaurant, Lobby and the outdoor terrace on MacCurtain Street.

Joe-Armon Jones (Ezra Collective) plays Live At St. Luke's during the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival 2026.

Joe Armon-Jones is a London based producer, composer and keyboard player who creates in an uncompromising, free-flowing, experimental way, combining jazz, dub, hip-hop, funk and soul.

Maciej Obara is a renowned Polish alto saxophonist, composer, and bandleader, widely recognised on the international jazz scene. He is the founder of a Polish-Norwegian quartet, with which he released three albums on the For Tune label: Komeda, Live at Manggha, and Live in Mińsk Mazowiecki.

A familiar favourite of the Cork jazz weekend, the Des Hopkins International Dixieland Jazz Band returns to the Clayton Cork City Hotel for three days of spirited traditional jazz, with two performances each day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and special guests joining the celebrations.

Kokoroko are a London seven-piece weaving afrobeat, highlife and jazz into a sound shaped by the city’s black diaspora.

Since breaking through with the viral Abusey Junction and their acclaimed debut album Could We Be More, the band have expanded into afro-house, amapiano and techno through club remixes.

A set of original compositions and jazz-infused contemporary pieces by Rory McCarthy & Hugh Dillon featuring Davie Ryan - Drums and Mikey O'Connell - Bass

This annual gig on the Saturday and Sunday afternoons of the Jazz festival has become one of the most sought after of the festival. Paul Dunlea assembles the best of all visiting Jazz musicians as well as some of the best national and regional improvisors around. Previous years have seen Grammy winners, festival headliners and musicians that would normally play sold out stadiums join Dunlea for this now legendary session.

with Ian Thomas & Laurence Cottle

An intimate night of Great American Songbook classics with celebrated jazz vocalist Claire Martin OBE and her longtime collaborator, the legendary Scottish guitarist Jim Mullen. Joining them are bassist extraordinaire Laurence Cottle and the highly sought-after drummer Ian Thomas completing a truly all-star quartet, who between them have worked with Tom Jones, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, BB King, Brian Eno, Seal, Stephane Grappelli and Van Morrison, to name but a few.