Ireland’s best Jazz Festival lights up the Walled City this May Bank Holiday weekend, Wednesday 29th April – Monday 4th May 2026.

Jazz is the music of improvisation. No boundaries. No barriers. City of Derry Jazz & Big Band Festival reflects just that. A musical legacy open to all. We invite you to get involved in our 25th year of this world-renowned celebration of all things jazz.

Kevin Lawlor Quartet
UNESCO International Jazz Day 2026

Kevin Lawlor is the Director of Jazz Studies at County Wexford School of Music and is one of the leading voices of jazz outside of the Capital.

Join us on Thursday, 30th of April at 7.00pm for a very special International Jazz Day celebration at IADT, Dún Laoghaire.

This year’s concert promises to be an unforgettable evening for performers and audiences alike. Marking International Jazz Day 2026, the event carries particular significance as it will be the first-ever student jazz performance in our new home on the IADT campus.

Celebrate International Jazz Day with us

Join us for an evening of timeless classics, featuring two sets of music drawn from The Jobim Real Book and The Great American Songbook.

Bray Jazz will showcase some of the brightest and best of the next generation of Irish jazz at this afternoon showcase of ensemble music by graduates of the Dublin City University (DCU) BA in Jazz and Contemporary Music Performance programme.

A triple-harpist, singer and sonic explorer whose performances feel at once ancient yet utterly contemporary, Cerys Hafana’s music honours old songs and storytelling from Wales in a remarkable way.

Tommy Halferty has been instrumental in shaping the sound of Irish jazz, a guitarist who has been at the forefront of a vibrant jazz scene on this island for over half a century.

Opening presentation in double bill with Fred Hersch Trio

Guitarist, composer and author, Mike Nielsen is a leading teacher of jazz guitar in Ireland. His unique style is influenced by jazz, classical, flamenco, Irish and world music genres.

A towering figure of contemporary jazz whose influence spans generations, Fred Hersch has shaped the language of the modern piano trio throughout a career marked by continuous reinvention.

Havana-born pianist Harold López-Nussa’s music pulses with the richness of Cuban music, with its distinct combination of classical, folk and popular music elements, as well as its embrace of jazz improvisation. 

ÓNinaÓ are a captivating six-piece who blend traditional Brazilian rhythms, including samba and bossa nova, with bluesly guitars, electronics and pyschedelic rock.

(If you’re buying tickets to main evening shows at Mermaid, Bray Town Hall or Whale Theatre in Greystones, admissions to these concerts is at a reduced price).

Alina Bzhezhinska made history when she became the first harpist to receive the Best Jazz Ensemble of the Year award when her band Hip Harp Collective took the prize at the UK’s prestigious Parliamentary Jazz Awards in 2024.

Faster Shorter Louder is a Dublin-based trio featuring Matthias Winkler (guitar), Derek Whyte (double bass) and Hugh Denman (drums). The group takes familiar songs and reshapes them through improvisation, uncovering new rhythmic and harmonic possibilities while keeping the directness of the original material intact.