Although jazz was born in the United States, the world’s first major jazz festival took place in Europe. Interestingly, it was hosted in a venue dedicated to classical music, the Opéra de Nice. The inaugural Nice Jazz Festival was headlined by renowned trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong and his All Stars. Other world-class artists who performed at the festival included Stéphane Grappelli, Claude Lutter, Django Reinhardt, Yves Montand and Suzy Delair. It was at this festival that Suzy Delair sang C’est ci bon in public for the first time.
Unfortunately, the successful inaugural festival turned out a one-time event. The experience was not repeated in Nice for 23 years. The revived Nice Jazz Festival was held in 1971 at the outdoor theater Théâtre de verdure de Nice and the Albert I Garden.
The Nice Jazz Festival has been held every summer since then. Over the years, it has become one of the French Riviera’s biggest and most popular annual events. Notable artists who have performed at the festival include Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Ray Charles, Helen Humes, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Chuck Berry, Erykah Badu, Carlos Santana, Charles Mingus, and many others.
In 1994, the organizers decided to broaden the festival program to reach out to wider audiences. Although still focused on jazz, the Nice Jazz Festival also encompasses world music, pop, blues, and other genres and styles which are related to jazz or have been influenced by it. The present-day festival runs over eight days every July, attracting about 60,000 attendees from all over France and abroad. The event takes place in the Cimiez neighborhood known for its arena and amphitheater. Artists and bands perform simultaneously on several stages.
Unfortunately, the 2016 Nice Jazz Festival was canceled because of the truck attack that happened two days before scheduled beginning of the festival.
Photo: nicejazzfestival.fr
