“I live on an island and listen to jazz all day long. The sun is always shining, but you can still see the stars. The breeze sings astonishingly like Ella and the wind rumbles in a Louis way. My friends and I dance under magic skies.”
―  Author Unknown

Listening to some Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong or Miles Davis while sipping a glass of crisp, dry white wine and gazing out at the ocean is – for me – pure summer magic. One of the reasons I love summertime is because I associate it with the sound of jazz.  In most cities and towns, musicians gather together and jam outdoors –  usually at local cafés, bistros and bars. Whether it’s a lone sax player, a jazz quartet, or a singer belting out some husky vocals – I just drink it all in.  It feeds something in my soul. I can’t explain it and probably shouldn’t even try.

Across the globe (in the northern hemisphere), it is the high season for jazz festivals, where you can listen to jazz in the afternoon or under the summer evening stars. Below is a list of some of the poopular festivals. It is by no means an exhaustive list, so please check your local newspapers (or online) for jazz events in your area.

Enjoy the jazz experience.

JAZZ FESTIVALS

CANADA

• June 28-July 7, Festival International de Jazz de Montréal (Montréal, Québec)
• July 2-6, South Delta Jazz Festival and Workshop (Delta, British Columbia)
• July 5-13, Halifax Jazz Festival (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
• July 19-21, UpTown Waterloo Jazz Festival (Waterloo, Ontario)
• July 19-28, Beaches International Jazz Festival (Toronto, Ontario)
• Aug 2-4, Kaslo Jazz Etc. Summer Music Festival (Kaslo, British Columbia)
• Aug 22-25, Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival (Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Aug 23, Chemainus Jazz Festival (Chemainus, British Columbia)
• Sept 20-22, All-Canadian Jazz Festival (Port Hope, Ontario)

EUROPE

• June 28-July 13, Jazz à Vienne (Paris, France)
• July 5-20, Montreux Jazz Festival (Montreux, Switzerland)

USA

• July 4-6, Syracuse Jazz Festival (Jamesville, New York)
• July 6-7, Fillmore Jazz Festival (San Francisco, California)
• July 10-14, Mammoth Lakes Jazz Jubilee (Mammoth Lakes, California)
• July 10-18, Jazz in July (Amherst, Massachusetts)
• July 13-14, Keystone Wine & Jazz Festival (Keystone, Colorado)
• July 18-20, Jazzfest (Sioux Falls, South Dakota)
• July 19-21, Cathedral Park Jazz Festival (Portland, Oregon)
• July 19-21, The Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz (Hartford, Connecticut)
• July 19-21, Jazz & Rib Fest (Columbus, Ohio)
• July 21-28, Jazz Port Townsend (Port Townsend, Washington)
• July 26, An Evening of Smooth Jazz (Holt, Michigan)
• July 26-27, Northeast Jazz & Wine Festival (Syracuse, New York)
• July 26-27, Summer Jazz Celebration (Bellefonte, Pennsylvania)
• July 26-28, Jazz in the Valley (Ellensburg, Washington)
• July 26-28, Evergreen Jazz Festival (Evergreen, Colorado)
• July 26-28, Caramoor Jazz Festival – 20^th Anniversary (Katonah, New York)
• July 27-28, Central Avenue Jazz Festival (Los Angeles, California)
• July 31-Aug 4, Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival (Mobile, Alabama)
• Aug 1-4, Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival (Davenport, Iowa)
• Aug 2-3, Lansing JazzFest (Lansing, Michigan)
• Aug 2-4, Houston International Jazz Festival (Houston, Texas)
• Aug 2-4, Telluride Jazz Celebration (Telluride, Colorado)
• Aug 2-4, Newport Jazz Festival (Newport, Rhode Island)
• Aug 3, Woodland Park Jazz, Food & Wine Festival (Woodland Park, Colorado)
• Aug 8-11, Hudson Valley Jazz Fest (Warwick, New York)
• Aug 8-11, Central PA Jazz Festival (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania)
• Aug 9-11, Litchfield Jazz Festival (Litchfield, Connecticut)
• Aug 9-11, Long Beach Jazz Festival (Long Beach, California)
• Aug 9-11, San Jose Jazz Summer Fest (San Jose, California)
• Aug 17, New Haven Jazz Festival (New Haven, Connecticut)
• Aug 17, A Case of the Blues and All That Jazz (Yakima, Washington)
• Aug 17-18, Idyllwild Jazz in the Pines (Idyllwild, California)
• Aug 17-19, Provincetown Jazz Festival (Provincetown, Massachusetts)
• Aug 23-24, Lewiston Jazz Festival (Lewiston, New York)
• Aug 23-25, Genuine Jazz & Wine Festival (Breckenridge, Colorado)
• Aug 24, Uptown Jazz and Blues Festival (Lafayette, Indiana)
• Aug 24, Long Branch Jazz and Blues Festival (Jersey Shore, Long Branch, New Jersey)
• Aug 29-Sept 1, Chicago Jazz Festival (Chicago, Illinois)
• Aug 30-Sept 2, Detroit Jazz Festival (Detroit, Michigan)
• Sept 6-8, Northampton Jazz Festival (Northampton, Massachusetts)
• Sept 20-22, Monterey Jazz Festival (Monterey, California)

Image via online-jazz.net.