The Vancouver International Jazz Festival is BC’s largest music festival. It attracts hundreds of artists and as many as 500,000 Jazz enthusiasts.
In 2025 the festival runs from June 20th until the 29th. It’s an amazing event that draws musicians and Jazz fans from around the world!
This year the festival celebrates its 40th anniversary! Headliner bands in 2025 include Bill Frisell and Grammy Award-winner Richard Bona.
For full details about the festival, see the Coastal Jazz website.
Vancouver Jazz Festival 2025
In 2025 the Vancouver International Jazz Festival celebrates its 40th year! The festival features a series of concerts and other events during the last couple of weeks in June. There are usually a couple of hundred concerts at lots of different venues over a 10-day period.
This year the Vancouver International Jazz Festival runs from June 20th until the Sunday of the Canada Day Long Weekend. A hub of the festival is Granville Island, where there are lots of ticketed and free shows at the Revue Stage, Performance Works and Ocean Artworks. There are also shows at other venues around Vancouver, including at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre and Guilt & Company.
Other venues are normally clubs and restaurants as well as theatres, public plazas and parks in Vancouver and on the North Shore. There are lots of free outdoor concerts every year. There are absolutely amazing ticketed indoor ones too! At this festival, you’ll see and hear some of the best of the best!
One of the headlining performers this year is Grammy Award-winning artist Richard Bona at the Vancouver Playhouse. Other headliners include Bill Frisell, Delvon Lamarr, Christine Jensen and the New Jazz Underground. There are so many other talented artists too!
TIP: The free concerts at the festival are awesome! If you like Jazz, though, you’ll also want to check out the ticketed events. Some pretty amazing musicians play and are worth paying to see! For a list of ticketed events see our article about Vancouver Jazz Festival Ticketed Concerts.
Ticketed Jazz Festival Concerts
This year, one of the festival’s headliners is Richard Bona. The 2002 Grammy Award-winning artist performs at the Vancouver Playhouse on Monday, June 23rd. Ticket prices range from $50 to $75 each and the show begins at 7:30 pm.
The other top headliner in 2025 is Bill Frisell, who performed at the inaugural Vancouver International Jazz Festival in 1986. He takes the stage at the Vancouver Playhouse on Tuesday, June 24th. Like the Richard Bona show, tickets cost between $50 and $75 and the show starts at 7:30 pm.
Artists and bands who play ticketed shows at Performance Works on Granville Island include New Jazz Underground on June 25th, the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio on June 26th, and Marquis Hill on June 27th. Nubya Garcia hits the stage on June 28th, followed by the Christine Jensen Quartet on June 29th. They should all be amazing concerts! All concerts began at 7:30 pm and tickets cost $34 to $44 per person.
For a list of free concerts, see our article about the Free Jazz Concerts Line-up.
For full details about the festival, see the Coastal Jazz website.
Free Jazz Concerts
In addition to the Jazz performances at bars, restaurants and night clubs throughout Metro Vancouver, there are also free concerts. Some take place outside the Vancouver Art Gallery, on Granville Island, in Gastown and at other venues (including in North Vancouver).
Arguably the biggest and most impressive free concerts are usually the ones at David Lam Park. Thousands of people turn out with their blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy the music, market stalls and beer garden. It’s amazing!
For a list of free concerts happening this year, see Free Jazz Concert Venues.
JAZZ FESTIVAL IN FORT LANGELY
The Vancouver International Jazz Festival isn’t the only festival of its kind in the Lower Mainland. The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival is another exceptional event, although much smaller. The Fort Langley festival features both ticketed and free concerts as well as public art displays. It happens on July 24th to 27th in 2025. Check it out too!
If you like Jazz, you’ll want to attend both of these festivals! They are amazing!
About Coastal Jazz
The Coastal Jazz & Blues Society is the organization behind the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. The non-profit has been operating since 1985. Today, the organization is the biggest not-for-profit music presenter in British Columbia. The Vancouver International Jazz Festival, meanwhile, is one of the largest and most prestigious events of its kind in North America.
Fun Trivia Fact: The Vancouver International Jazz Festival was originally called the Pacific Jazz & Blues Festival.
For full details about the festival, see the Coastal Jazz website.
Other Free Summer Music Venues
If you like outdoor live bands, other venues offering various genres of music at different times in the summer include the following:
- Friday evenings with music and other entertainment in July and August at North Vancouver’s Civic Plaza, Lynn Valley Village and Parkgate Plaza as part of that city’s Summer Concert Series.
- Friday evenings from early May until late September at the Shipyard Night Market in North Vancouver.
- Nightly in late August and early September at the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE).
- Click Free Summer Concerts for a list of even more free music venues in July and August.
Coastal Jazz puts on other concerts and live music events at other times of the year too, including the Iron Fest series at The Ironworks in Vancouver. For a list of what’s coming up, see the Coastal Jazz website.
Other Information
For a list of free concerts organized by location, see Free Jazz Festival Concert Venues.
For a chronological list of free concerts during the Jazz Festival, see Free Jazz Festival Concert Schedule.
To see a list of ticketed events, see our article about Vancouver Jazz Festival Ticketed Concerts.
To learn more about the festival, see the Coastal Jazz website.
