Adelaide is set to groove once again as the Adelaide Jazz Festival (AJF) returns from 24 April to 2 May 2025, bringing a jam-packed, extended program to venues across the city’s vibrant centre. This year’s festival is a special celebration, marking Adelaide’s 10th anniversary as a UNESCO City of Music and honouring UNESCO’s International Jazz Day with style and soul.

This year’s AJF is a love letter to South Australia’s thriving jazz scene, spotlighting homegrown talent and the venues that keep live jazz pulsing through Adelaide’s laneways, bars, and iconic halls. From swing to soul, afro-Cuban beats to nu-jazz, the 2025 program proves the genre is anything but one note.

Kicking things off is the electrifying Sabor a Cuba, led by Cuban trumpeter Lazaro Numa, fresh from his appearance at Byron Bay’s Bluesfest with The Cat Empire. The ensemble promises a high-energy opening night rich in rhythm, groove, and Latin flair.

Thanks to a major Cultural Strategic Partnership with the City of Adelaide, audiences can enjoy two free community performances: a midday concert at the Adelaide Town Hall, and Jazz In The Square, a magical evening in Hindmarsh Square complete with firepits, food trucks, and of course, live jazz under the stars.

“Music is the emotional epicentre of Adelaide’s cultural life and our city’s love of jazz stretches back to the 1950s,” says Lord Mayor Dr Jane Lomax-Smith AM. “We’re thrilled to support this tremendous festival that brings swing-time energy back into the heart of the city.”

Festival Producer and Artistic Director Kaya Blum is particularly excited by the range in this year’s lineup: “An annual jazz festival is an important opportunity to showcase the incredible musical talent here in South Australia. This year’s program stretches across an exciting range of jazz styles.”

Long-time creative partners, Elder Conservatorium of Music, The University of Adelaide, return with a big band blowout, and their monthly jazz night Hal’s Hall will feature standout local vocalists Millie Sarah and Marlene Richards in an ANZAC Day special of wartime-era jazz.

Another 2025 highlight is the genre-defying Djawbreaker, whose David Lynch-inspired performance at The Lab will merge dark jazz-rock with immersive digital visuals by Ryan Sahb, displayed across 50 square metres of LED screens.

The Adelaide Festival Centre will once again host the official UNESCO International Jazz Day Concert, and the city’s beloved Grace Emily Hotel keeps things fresh with a series dedicated to emerging acts pushing the boundaries of jazz — from jazz-funk to electro-jazz.

“Thanks to the City of Adelaide and the Music Development Office, we’re able to keep building on our grassroots foundation,” says Blum. “We’re proud to support the local jazz community and present something truly special — live music experiences that are rich, diverse, and financially accessible.”

So, whether you’re a lifelong jazz aficionado or new to the scene, Adelaide Jazz Festival 2025, happening 24 April – 2 May across multiple central venues, promises the perfect soundtrack to autumn.

🎷 For the full program and bookings, head to adelaidejazzfestival.com