Jazz has a spirit of openness that calls to all of us to look past our differences, not only breaking barriers, but also fostering peace”
Herbie Hancock, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
Maiden Voyage to Africa
The 2024 edition of International Jazz Day will be celebrated on 30 April in more than 190 countries. The Global Host for this year's celebration is the city of Tangier, Morocco. This marks the first time a city on the African continent hosts International Jazz Day.
Tangier is a melting pot of cultural expressions, located at the crossroads of Europe and Africa. It boasts a long, rich history of jazz and is known for its jazz heritage. Many world-renowned jazz artists have performed and spent time in Tangier, including the singer Josephine Baker, the saxophonists Ornette Coleman and Archie Shepp, the flutist Herbie Mann, and jazz master pianist Randy Weston, who lived in Tangier for many years. Weston collaborated with Gnawa master Abdellah El Gourd to explore the roots of jazz and African music.
The four-day celebration (April 27-30) emphasizes the city’s jazz heritage and highlights cultural and artistic ties between people in Morocco, Europe, and Africa. The event includes a series of education programmes, events for students of all ages, and conversations about the history of jazz and its impact on Tangier, among others.
The culminating All-Star Global Concert takes place at the new Palace of Arts and Culture of Tangier. The show is to be broadcast via YouTube, Facebook, the United Nations and UNESCO to millions of viewers worldwide.
In addition to the Global Concert, UNESCO encourages schools, universities, and non-governmental organizations around the world to celebrate International Jazz Day. Performing arts venues, community centers, town squares, parks, libraries, museums, restaurants, clubs, and festivals organize thousands of activities, while public radio and television feature jazz on and around International Jazz Day.
All-Star Global Concert
30 April 2024
Led by jazz legend pianist Herbie Hancock, the All-Star Global Concert features performances by an international roster of artists from all corners of the globe, including master Gnawa musician Abdellah El Gourd (Morocco). Other confirmed artists include saxophonists Lakecia Benjamin (USA), Moreira Chonguiça (Mozambique) ; singers Claudia Acuña (Chile), Shemekia Copeland, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Jazzmeia Horn (USA); pianist Tarek Yamani (Lebanon), Billy Childs (USA) and Antonio Faraò (Italy); trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire (USA); multi-instrumentalists Marcus Miller (USA) and Magnus Lindgren (Sweden) , and many more to be announced.
On 30 April, teachers and students around the world use International Jazz Day as an opportunity to learn more about the empowering history and legacy of jazz music. Check out our growing library of free educational videos and resources.
Music of improvisation and collective creation
International Jazz Day raises awareness in the international community of the virtues of jazz as a force for peace, unity, dialogue and enhanced cooperation among people, as well as an educational tool. Many governments, civil society organizations, educational institutions, and private citizens currently engaged in the promotion of jazz music embrace the opportunity to foster greater appreciation, not only for the music, but also for the contribution it can make to building more inclusive societies.
International Jazz Day has had extraordinary successes over the past decade, becoming the world’s largest annual celebration of jazz. It is a global movement, engaging people annually, on every continent, through education programs, performances, community outreach and media coverage.
Why Jazz?
- Jazz breaks down barriers and creates opportunities for mutual understanding and tolerance;
- Jazz is a vector of freedom of expression;
- Jazz is a symbol of unity and peace;
- Jazz reduces tensions between individuals, groups, and communities;
- Jazz fosters gender equality;
- Jazz reinforces the role youth play for social change;
- Jazz encourages artistic innovation, improvisation, new forms of expression, and inclusion of traditional music forms into new ones;
- Jazz stimulates intercultural dialogue and empowers young people from marginalized societies.
In November 2011 the UNESCO General Conference proclaimed 30 April as “International Jazz Day”. This International Day brings together communities, schools, artists, historians, academics, and jazz enthusiasts all over the world to celebrate and learn about the art of jazz, its roots, its future and its impact. This important international art form is celebrated for promoting peace, dialogue among cultures, diversity, and respect for human rights and human dignity, eradicating discrimination, promoting freedom of expression, fostering gender equality, and reinforcing the role of youth for social change.
Global events
The worldwide programme for International Jazz Day 2024 also includes an extraordinary range of programming in dozens of countries, with concerts and performance-based initiatives complemented by wide-ranging social outreach and educational activities.
Listen
Grammy award winning composer Antonio Sánchez defines jazz simply as “freedom,” highlighting its inclusive power to bring “different elements together, transforming it into something greater.”
