BeanTown Jazz Festival Unveils Lineup

  I  

Berklee College of Music has announced the lineup for the this year’s BeanTown Jazz Festival, taking place from Sept. 27–29 at various locations around Boston.

In its second year of producing the festival, Berklee will bring Grammy-winning superstars and cornerstones of the Boston jazz scene together on a number of stages in free and ticketed offerings at Symphony Hall, Scullers Jazz Club, the Beehive and outdoor stages along Columbus Avenue.

The Sept. 28 opening night concert is directed by Newport Jazz Festival founder George Wein, and it is a benefit event for a scholarship fund bearing his wife’s name. It features a veritable “who’s who” of the jazz world, including Roy Haynes, Branford Marsalis, Jon Faddis, Joe Lovano, Lizz Wright, Geri Allen, Regina Carter, Toshiko Akiyoshi and Lew Tabackin, Kenny Werner, Howard Alden, Jimmy Cobb, and Ray Drummond. The concert takes place at Symphony Hall at 7:30 p.m. Tickets go on sale Aug. 15 at the Symphony Hall box office or online at bostonsymphonyhall.org.

The following day features an afternoon of free jazz around the city, capped off by an evening show at Scullers. For a full lineup, visit beantownjazz.org.



  • Cassandra_Wilson_%40_2026_Mark_Sheldon-2_copy_2.jpg

    Wilson’s ability to connect to audiences helped her to win two Grammy awards and multiple other accolades. She was named an NEA Jazz Master in 2022.

  • Pritesh_Walia_courtesy_Pritesh_Walia.jpg

    “The love from the jazz and music community restored my faith in humanity,” Walia wrote in an online post upon his release from detention at an ICE facility.

  • GB_Headshot_copy.jpg

    Bertoncini was a specialist and advocate for the nylon-string acoustic guitar, turning down high-profile opportunities that were unsuited to the sound and techniques that he used with that instrument.

  • DB26_Joshua_Redman_Courtesy_Joshua_Redman.jpg

    A solo concert by saxophonist Joshua Redman will close the first night of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival on Sept. 26.

  • Coltrane_John_by_Joe_Alper_copy.jpeg

    “It was just that suddenly … I could hear it,” Ravi Coltrane said of an epiphany he experienced during his late teens regarding his father’s music. “And it was almost like a calling, like something saying, ‘Hey, man, come on. It’s time to get serious.’ And the first time you really tune in and dial in and focus like that, it can be very life-changing.”