Portland Jazz Festival
The annual festival celebrates the rich local jazz scene and attracts international stars.
The Portland Jazz Festival, from PDX Jazz, celebrates Black History Month with a series of concerts and events presented over two weeks every February.
“We strive to produce a festival that reflects the fabric of a vibrant jazz community … there is no city of a similar size in America that boasts such a wealth of talented artists as Portland.”
Managing director Don Lucoff
Dedicated to preserving America’s indigenous art form by presenting internationally recognized jazz masters alongside local musicians, the festival always includes education and outreach programs that extend into Portland’s schools and neighborhoods, as well as a generous offering of free performances.
The annual celebration of improvised music brings some of jazz’s greatest living stars, including a touching tribute to Geri Allen, the beloved American jazz pianist and composer who sadly passed away in June 2017. It also offers the chance to see rising young lions from Portland State University’s Jazz and Contemporary Voice program, Monk competition winner Yotam Silberstein and saxophonist Ian Christensen, plus a parade of Portland’s finest jazz musicians like Pete Krebs, Ezra Weiss and Marilyn Keller.
Upcoming Dates & Times
- Feb. 20
- Feb. 21
- Feb. 22
- Feb. 23
- Feb. 24
- Feb. 25
- Feb. 26
- Feb. 27
- Feb. 28
- Feb. 29
- Mar. 1 More dates & times
PDX Jazz Festival Concerts
PDX Jazz Festival
The Portland Jazz Festival returns every February with a stellar series of concerts and events celebrating Black History Month.
Mark de Clive-Lowe with Jaimie Branch
Pianist, producer, DJ and all round musical maverick Mark de Clive-Lowe blends cutting-edge electronics, live beat-making, classic funk and global influences with a distinctly jazz-inspired approach. At this PDX Jazz Festival concert, Clive-Lowe is joined by Jaimie Branch. A mainstay of the Chicago jazz scene and an active recent addition to the New York scene,…
Ghost-Note with Liv Warfield
Headed by Snarky Puppy’s multi Grammy–winning percussion duo of Robert Sput Searight and Nate Werth, Ghost-Note promises an explosion of sound at its PDX Jazz Festival performance. With an expansive roster of next-level musicians (representing members of Prince, Snoop Dogg, Erykah Badu, Herbie Hancock, Kendrick Lamar, Marcus Miller, Toto, Justin Timberlake and more) —the band…
Larry Carlton with Stanley Jordan
Nineteen-time Grammy nominee, four-time Grammy winner and all-time guitar great Larry Carlton is joined by guitar viurtuoso Stanley Jordan at this PDX Jazz Festival performance. Carlton has 38 albums to his credit and has performed on over 100 albums that have gone Gold or Platinum. Jordan has performed in over 60 countries on six continents,…
Terry Riley with Gyan Riley: Live at 85!
Enjoy the sounds of Terry Riley (composer, pianist, vocalist) and his son, classical guitarist Gyan Riley, at this PDX Jazz Festival performance. Riley launched the minimalist movement with his classic IN C, composed in 1964, a seminal work, which was to have an enormous impact on the course of Western music. In addition to his…
Archie Shepp Quartet with Blue Cranes
Saxophone player, composer, pianist, singer, politically committed poet, playwright: Archie Shepp is a legend – making this PDX Jazz Festival concert a must-see. Shepp populates his musical world with themes and stylistic elements provided by the greatest voices of jazz: from Ellington to Monk and Mingus, from Parker to Siver and Taylor. His technical and…
Antibalas
The musical collective known as Antibalas (Spanish for bullet-proof or anti-bullets) was conceived of in Mexico City and formed in Brooklyn, New York. Catch them in Portland for their 2020 PDX Jazz Festival performance. Though recognized for their fluency in Afrobeat and funk music, the band is known to collaborate with diverse groups and artists,…
An Evening with Branford Marsalis
Part of the 2020 Biamp PDX Jazz Festival. Saxophonist Branford Marsalis is one of the most influential and revered figures in contemporary music. The NEA Jazz Master, Grammy Award winner and Tony Award nominee is equally at home performing concertos with symphony orchestras and sitting in with members of the Grateful Dead, but the core…