European Jazz Festivals- Where To Experience It

Many jazz aficionados do not know that there are many jazz festivals taking place each year, in various European countries and towns. They are well-organized events that attract some of the best talents in the business.

The following are some of the best and most popular European live jazz festivals showcased
across the region:

Vilnius Jazz Festival, Lithuania

Vilnius is a town situated in Lithuania and it started a jazz festival back in 1988. The first reason for starting this festival was an act of rebellion against the former Soviet Union. It was a way for Lithuania to show its differences with the Soviet Union. Even though this festival has political roots, it has grown to become an astounding jazz festival, attracting talent from all over the world. It is known for its highly creative and ambitious talents, stretching musical improvisation to its limits. This festival is ultimately linked to the growth of a distinctive style of jazz known as Vilnius jazz.

The Cathedral  of Vilnius. Taken during our visit last September 2012.

Konfrontationen Nickelsdorf, Austria

This jazz festival was started in 1980 in the town of Nickelsdorf which is located near the border of Hungary. Ever since this festival started it has attracted the top talents from America, Europe and Japan, making it a virtual Mecca for improvised jazz music. This place can be described as a small village and the festival takes place outdoors. It is organized by the Nickelsdorf Jazz Gallery. Some of these jazz musicians might got their exceptional seymour duncan at musicians friend. Who knows?


Varna Jazz Festival, Bulgaria

This festival was started in 1992 and it happens in Varna, which is a small city located in Bulgaria near the Black Sea. It is the largest Jazz festival in Bulgaria and it attracts talent mostly from around Europe. It takes place for 3 days and it is held in the courtyard of the Archeological museum. The director of this festival is a gentleman by the name of Anatoly Vapirov, who is also an accomplished saxophonist.

Ulrichsberger Kaleidophon, Austria

This town is located in Austria, near the Czech border. This jazz festival started in 1986 and has managed to become a highly acclaimed European Jazz festival. The focus of this festival is improvisation, at the same time this festival is also known for so called hybrid music. This would be jazz fused with other forms of music. The primary concerts are done at the Jazzatelier Ulrichsberg building, however there are other venues showcasing special music projects.

Visit to the Hill of Crosses Near Siauliai, Lithuania

Our tour guide instructed us that breakfast will be served at 6:30 am. We had our hotel that time  in the vicinity of  Klaipeda, a city in Lithuania which is situated at the mouth of Dane River, the river that flows to the Baltic Sea. Our bus will be leaving at around   7:45 am going to Riga, the capital city of Latvia.

On our way to Riga, we had a short sightseeing in this famous sight of Lithuania, the so called  Berg der Kreuze as called by  Germans or the Hill of  Crosses.  It is not actually a hill but I guess became a hill of crosses because you can see thousands of crosses, giant crucifixes,  statues of Virgin Mary and thousands of rosaries and tiny effigies  brought by Catholic pilgrims.

I can't understand my feelings as I walked to that  Hill of Crosses.  It is a site of pilgrimage located around 12 km  north of the city of Siauliai in northern Lithuania.

There was a story that  our tour guide had shared to us while we were on our way to the Hill of Crosses. I want to share it in my incoming post. Watch it out. For now, just marvel your eyes with these images I took from Hill of Crosses. It was truly worth a trip.

The Hill of Crosses near Siauliai, Lithuania.  If I am not mistakenly heard our tour guide, there are about a million crosses now in this area. Amazing!

I really marveled the numbers of the crosses, crucifixes, rosaries and other religious Catholic symbols in the Hill of Crosses.

Happy To Visit Vilnius, Lithuania

I finally visited the Baltic States! One of the countries we went to  was Lithuania.  One of the cities  we visited in this country is its capital city, Vilnius.  It is the largest city in Lithuania and the second  largest city  in the Baltic States after Riga. And yes, we also visited Riga during that Baltic trip.

I have a lot of  travel stories  to tell  during our trip there but   I am still not having enough energy to share it. I guess I am still having a jetlag. That trip to the Baltic was quite tiresome for me because I just came back from  a month vacation  from  the United States.  I only have two days rest and proceeded to the  Baltic  region which  was  quite tiresome for me.

I am just sharing these photos below which were taken in Vilnius. Sorry folks, I am not done uploading my travel images yet. More to come soon.

Lastly I wouldsay  that despite that tiresome trip, I am very happy and contented to visit  some parts of the Baltic Regions.

The Presidential Palace in Vilnius, Lithuania.

An original cathedral was built here in 1251. In 1387 a Gothic style cathedral was built. Now it is a classical style cathedral build by the project of Laurynas Gucevicius. The most beautiful part of the Cathedral, the baroque chapel of St. Casimir, was built in 1623–1636. The crypt shows a cross section of Vilnius through the ages, well worth seeing.