Cork will be a city of jazz this weekend!
Cork city is about to come alive as the annual jazz festival gets underway starting with an exciting parade full of flare!
This is the 42nd Guinness Cork Jazz Festival to be held in the city over the October bank holiday weekend with 1,000 musicians from 20 countries set to perform in 70 venues over the weekend.
The festival will officially open tonight with one big family friendly Blaze of Jazz parade which organisers have said “will kick the weekend off in spectacular flare”, through the city streets from 7pm on Grand Parade.
The red-hot parade, which will consist of a mix of sizzling jazz bands and fiery Cork characters, presents the perfect opportunity to get into the swing of all things jazz for the weekend ahead, so come into town early and get ready for a phenomenal weekend of music and entertainment.
You could spend your weekend venue hopping, catching great jazz in all its guises across the city, but to help you plan a great Guinness Cork Jazz Festival weekend, we’ve picked out some not to be missed headline and fringe events across the weekend so get your jazz hands ready!
Guinness Music Trail
Satisfy your musical appetite with a trail that spans over 40 Cork venues. With music as diverse as the venues, you’ll get everything from ska to swing jazz to brass. Music takes you places and this trail is no different, leading you to every corner of a city alive with music. See guinnessjazzfestival.com for the full music trail which is happening today, Saturday and Sunday.
Super Dome
Visit the Super Dome Jazz Stage on the Opera House plaza for live music throughout the afternoon, and enjoy the food fair on Emmet Place on Saturday and Sunday from 2-5pm.
Kurt Elling
Grammy award winning jazz vocalist Kurt Elling, dubbed the “standout male vocalist of our time” by The New York Times, will pay tribute to jazz legends like Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Jon Hendricks, Shirley Horn and Nancy Wilson in City Hall Cork on Saturday at 8pm. Tickets are available from Ticketmaster.ie.
Big Brass Band Explosion
One afternoon, one venue and three big brass bands only means one thing, the Big Brass Band Explosion! Veterans of the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival the OhnO! Jazzband, Hyde Park Brass and Les Fan Fleurs play back to back in a high energy gig guaranteed to knock your socks off on Saturday in the Everyman Theatre at 2pm.
Jazz Jamboree
Get into the groove with visiting European bands for a farewell gathering on Opera House Plaza. This great jam session will feature all the brass bands as they bid farewell to Cork and the festival for this year on Sunday at 5pm.
Fred Hersch Trio and Linley Hamilton Quartet
Join 2018 jazz pianist of the year Fred Hersch and his trio, along with Northern Ireland’s world-renowned trumpeter Linley Hamilton and his quintet for a double bill of pure jazz in the Everyman on Sunday at 7pm.
Martha Reeves and The Vandellas
The Motown diva who is listed among Rolling Stone magazine’s ‘100 Immortal Artists’ will take to the stage of City Hall for the first time as part of the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival on Sunday at 8pm. Visit ticketmaster.ie for ticket details.
See guinnessjazzfestival.com for a full list of events.