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Preview of the 47th Edition
from March 19 to 22, 2026
– Concerts at Teatro Donizetti and Teatro Sociale –
“Setting the Pace”:
Miles & Trane 100th Celebration!
Setting The Pace
, setting the rhythm or setting the pace. Joe Lovano, for the third time Artistic Director of Bergamo Jazz, announces the title and the first part of the program for the 2026 edition of the Festival, which will take place from March 19 to 22 in the spirit of an extraordinary celebration: the centenary of the birth of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, seminal and iconic figures of Afro-American music. Organized by Fondazione Teatro Donizetti, with the support of Comune di Bergamo, MiC-Ministry of Culture and private sponsors, the Festival will reach its 47th edition with a packed program of concerts at Teatro Donizetti, Teatro Sociale, and other venues in the city, which will once again come alive with the myriad sounds of music that has long taken root in Bergamo.
“In life, in the arts, in sciences, in sports, and in the business world, there have been individuals and collective entities that have set the pace, the rhythm, with passion and love, representing a model for generations. Over the years, Bergamo Jazz has inspired other jazz festivals to achieve a high standard of excellence in programming and organization, setting the rhythm to follow,” specifies Joe Lovano in introducing Bergamo Jazz 2026. “As musicians, we are constantly engaged in study and development to find our voice. This journey is fueled by the sounds and spirit of the masters. Those who have given us and continue to give us the confidence and inspiration to reach today’s high standards. The artists performing at Bergamo Jazz Festival 2026 are all ‘setting the pace’ to celebrate the legacy of Miles and Trane in their centenary.”
Unfailingly faithful to the Festival’s natural international vision, the 2026 edition of Bergamo Jazz will once again be a wide-open window on the diverse scene of an expressive universe that continues to show signs of vitality as an ideal meeting point between different music and cultures, between tradition and modernity. Once again, it is worth highlighting the strong female representation, now more than ever in the spotlight with musicians and composers of absolute value.
While numerous initiatives are being finalized in collaboration with various local entities, including school meetings curated by CDpM and the “Scintille di Jazz” section curated by Tino Tracanna and dedicated to young talents, the concert schedule at Teatro Donizetti and Teatro Sociale is already finalized in detail, allowing the subscription campaign and ticket sales to begin. Existing subscribers can renew from December 3 to 20, 2025 (seat change from January 8 to 10, 2026), with priority for concerts at Sociale. New subscriptions will be available from January 14, 2026, with the possibility of purchasing tickets for Sociale, while tickets for individual evenings at Donizetti will be on sale from January 28.
Jazz at Donizetti
On Friday, March 20, the first of the three subscription evenings at Teatro Donizetti, starting at 8:30 PM, beloved by both the people of Bergamo and those coming from all over Italy and beyond, will be opened by the duo formed by a bass virtuoso like Dave Holland and Lionel Loueke, one of the most innovative guitarists to appear on the jazz scene in recent decades. The duo released the album United in 2024, a record that transcends simple collaboration, embodying the dialogue between the sensibilities of two musicians from different backgrounds, capable of listening to each other and blending their respective instrumental voices. Holland and Loueke will “pave the way” for the concert of Steve Coleman and his Five Elements: the Chicago saxophonist will return to the Donizetti stage exactly twenty years after his previous performance to present his well-tested blend of visionary funk where the most imaginative improvisation intertwines with rigorous compositional structures.
The following evening, Bergamo Jazz will offer one of the groups of the moment, the Bad Plus, in a special edition that will see the two founding members, bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King, joined by saxophonist Chris Potter and pianist Craig Taborn, two other giants of contemporary jazz in their respective instrumental specialties. At the center of the quartet’s music will be compositions written by Keith Jarrett for his glorious American Quartet, where the Allentown pianist dialogued with Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, and Paul Motian. A group rightly gone down in history for its expressive power, of which the Bad Plus are worthy heirs, taking those liberties that characterize every true jazz musician.
Following this, we will welcome the return of Lakecia Benjamin, who will once again be a guest of Bergamo Jazz after her participation in the 2023 Festival, crowned with great success. The New York saxophonist will present her new album, bolstered by five Grammy Nominations obtained in a short time.
The third and final evening of Bergamo Jazz 2026 at Teatro Donizetti will be entirely centered on the special project conceived by Joe Lovano himself to commemorate the centenary of the birth of Miles Davis and John Coltrane. A true
Jazz at the Social
In 2026, there will again be two events at Teatro Sociale in Città Alta, the first of which, on the evening of Thursday, March 19 (8:30 PM), will first feature the new trio of pianist Franco D’Andrea, an excellence of jazz made in Italy who will have alongside him two exceptional adventure companions: bassist Gabriele Evangelista, a regular partner of Enrico Rava and Stefano Bollani, and drummer Roberto Gatto, a veteran of countless musical battles with cymbals and drums. From blues to early jazz, to its more advanced forms and pure invention: D’Andrea, Evangelista, and Gatto draw from the origins of jazz a bluesy feeling that permeates their poetics to create free, joyful, and extremely communicative music.
The same evening will feature the quartet of Chilean saxophonist Melissa Aldana, whose brilliant technical background is well balanced by an increasingly personal stylistic signature, a daughter of Sonny Rollins but also of Wayne Shorter, as revealed by the recent album Echoes Of The Inner Prophet.
On Sunday, March 22 (at 5:00 PM), Bergamo Jazz 2026 will open to the sophisticated mix of pop and jazz by Simona Molinari and her show “La Donna è Mobile”, a musical and theatrical journey that tells the story of the female figure through music and its infinite nuances, inspired by the iconic Verdi aria. On stage, alongside the singer, will be an all-female band composed of musicians with extensive experience in various musical fields: saxophonist and flutist Chiara Lucchini, pianist Sade Mangiaracina, bassist Elisabetta Pasquale, and drummer Francesca Remigi. Together they will reinterpret an eclectic repertoire ranging from opera to contemporary sounds, through the elegance of Lucio Dalla and the intense atmospheres of Milly, up to the energy of Billie Eilish.
As previously mentioned, the Bergamo Jazz 2026 program will be completed by events hosted, even in the morning and late into the evening, in other theaters, museums, and venues, bringing jazz music into contact with the city’s fabric, infecting it with its spirit of adventure, with its universal message of peace and dialogue between different peoples. A message that is current and necessary, especially in complex times like those we are living in.
Finally, Bergamo Jazz now has a new dedicated website, linked to the usual site of Fondazione Teatro Donizetti, to give even more communicative prominence to the Festival itself: the site will contain, in a clear and immediately accessible way, all the useful information for the public.
