Since its first year in 2001, Jazz Festival Brasil has been on the move. Different from most festivals, the two-week-long event, held mid-September, travels around the country and has visited five of the main regions in Brazil in up to seven cities. The festival prides itself on keeping to the "roots" of jazz, established from the 1920s to the 1950s. It has played in some of the most exemplary venues Brazil has to offer, including the Teatro Santa Isabel in Recife and the JK Memorial in Brasilia. The festival's main objective is to increase the audience for jazz, and with a following of more than 30,000 people, it is the largest jazz festival in Brazil.
Av. Barao de Melo
4.500/1402
Belo Horizonete--MG
011-31-3296-5624
jazzfestivalbrasil.com.br
Rio das Ostras (Oyster City) is located in the beautiful Region of the Lakes, just 170 kilometers from the center of Rio de Janeiro. It boasts 11 beaches, sand banks, islands, preserved mangroves, and a jazz and blues festival that is quickly gaining a reputation for excellence. The free festival, held in mid-June, is put on by the Tourism, Industry and Commerce Secretary of the Rio das Ostras City Hall and has multiple venues. The city has a wide variety of restaurants and an infrastructure ready to handle flocks of tourists and jazz lovers alike.
Rio das Ostras Jazz & Blues Festival
011-22-2764-7488
riodasostrasjazzeblues.com/en/
La Plata Jazz Festival in Argentina is completely organized by jazz musicians from the city of La Plata. Communities and government agencies worldwide sponsor their artists to go to La Plata to show their talents. The festival, held in April, prides itself on being noncommercial and offers the opportunity to hear talented emerging artists from around the world.
La Plata Jazz Festival
calle 2 nro 664
Buenos Aires, 1900
Argentina
011-022-1423-2094
laplatajazzfestival.com.ar/
El Bolson, considered one of Argentina's "hippy towns," is located in a valley flanked by the two mountain ranges Cerro Pittriquitrón and Cordón Nevado. In early December, which is late spring in Argentina, the town hosts the annual El Bolson Jazz Festival with many musicians found locally, from Buenos Aires, and around the world. Odds are that you'll be able to enjoy a beer with your jazz, too, as El Bolson provides 75 percent of the country's hops and has many locally brewed beers waiting for a taste.
elbolsonjazz.com.ar/