International Jazz Week Burghausen

Burghausen — the "Jazz City" on the Salzach

Burghausen, a town of 18,000 inhabitants in southeastern Upper Bavaria, right on the Austrian border, has been synonymous with high-quality jazz in Europe for five decades. The International Jazz Week Burghausen has been held annually in March since 1970 and is the centerpiece of an annual program that has officially established Burghausen as the "Jazz City".

Founded in 1970

The story begins with the meeting of two men: Helmut Viertl, a local jazz enthusiast, and Joe Viera, a Munich-based saxophonist and jazz educator. Their conviction: "Jazz belongs to the image of the city". Since then, the festival has developed continuously — from small sessions in the Jazzkeller to large concerts in the Wackerhalle with over 1,500 seats.

Wackerhalle, Stadtsaal, Jazzkeller

Venues of the Jazz Week include:

• The Wackerhalle — main venue with seating for approx. 1,500 spectators
• The Stadtsaal (Town Hall) of the City of Burghausen
• The Jazzkeller for intimate club concerts and sessions
• Various other venues in the historic old town — from the world's longest castle complex in Europe (1051 m) to the Renaissance old town

European Young Artists' Jazz Award

A special feature of the festival is the European Young Artists' Jazz Award — a prestigious award for young jazz musicians from all over Europe. The final takes place every year as part of the Jazz Week. Many winners have gone on to launch international careers.

Artists in History

The Jazz Week is a who's who of jazz history: Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Sonny Rollins — all have played here. Today, stars like Mike Stern, Wolfgang Haffner, Cory Henry, Theo Croker, Robben Ford, and Amy Gadiaga perform.

Organizers

The organizer is the Interessengemeinschaft Jazz Burghausen e.V. (IG Jazz), an association that organizes the festival with over 100 volunteers and programs jazz in the city throughout the year. The 50th edition (2019) attracted around 11,000 spectators and 240 musicians. Hotels are regularly fully booked during the festival week.

Discover Burghausen

Anyone coming to Burghausen for the Jazz Week will find one of Bavaria's most beautiful old towns: The Burghausen Castle, at 1,051 meters long, is the longest castle complex in the world according to Guinness. From the castle hill, you can look across the Salzach river to Austria. The old town, with its Renaissance facades, is one of the best-preserved in Southern Germany.