Billy Cobham, Nubya Garcia and KOKOROKO to headline Cheltenham Jazz Festival 2025

The Friday night at Cheltenham gets grooving with Afrobeat jazzers KOKOROKO in the Town Hall, while Guy Barker brings his Soul Jazz Summit to the Big Top with his Big Band and BBC Concert Orchestra backing guest singers Emeli Sandé, Vanessa Haynes, Tommy Blaize, Lucy-Anne Daniels and Curtis Stigers.

Chief among the heavyweight names announced is iconic drummer Billy Cobham, who will perform at the Town Hall (3 May) with his Spectrum 50 band following his triumphant show at last year’s EFG London Jazz Festival. The Saturday also sees Mercury Prize winning Ezra Collective keyboardist Joe Armon Jones play dub-into-jazz sounds from his forthcoming double album All The Quiet. This gig takes place in the Jazz Arena, which will now be a standing venue for the first time. Perfect then for electro-soul-jazz group Submotion Orchestra who follow Jones and top the Jazz Arena on Saturday night.

The venue also hosts saxophonist of the moment James Brandon Lewis and lauded US trumpeter Keyon Harrold on the Sunday, with the resurgent Neil Cowley Trio playing there on the Bank Holiday Monday.

Two leading UK jazz vocalists, Claire Martin and Georgia Mancio, are on Sunday's bill. The former is at the Town Hall with her Rhapsody in Blue show, and the latter performs music from her forthcoming album A Story Left Untold, with her multi-Grammy winning musical partner, pianist Alan Broadbent at Dunkerton's Tap Room.

The Parabola’s line-up will feature six-piece experimentalists Brown Penny, an electronic jazz collective comprised of saxophonist Cassie Kinoshi, drummer Ayo Salawu, keys/vibes player David Mrakpor, keyboardist Tyrone Isaac Stuart and bassist Isobella Burnham. Also appearing at PAC will be virtuosic UK trumpeter Byron Wallen, the bass-led Daniel Casimir Big Band and Flight Call who feature a trio of top vocalists with Georgia Cécile, Lucy-Anne Daniels and Pete Horsfall. Fiery post-bop trumpeter Mark Kavuma, Menorca-born pianist Marco Mezquida, rising star violinist/composer Olivia Murphy and her Orchestra, and exciting young trumpeter Poppy Daniels also perform at the Parabola.

The National Youth Jazz Orchestra return to PAC with a concert dedicated to civil rights activist James Baldwin (1924–1987) with new jazz compositions inspired by his life and influences and incorporating Baldwin’s words as lyrics. These names join those already announced for the Saturday with Nubya Garcia at the Town Hall, and Corinne Bailey Rae with Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra at the Big Top. 

A host of world class acts from across the worlds of jazz, blues, pop, soul and beyond will perform in the Festival’s Big Top including  legendary Scottish singer Lulu whose “Champagne with Lulu" show is inspired by her life during the 1960s; one of the all-time great soul singers Beverly Knight; British-Georgian singer-songwriter Katie Melua; the US soul star Macy Gray with her festival debut; soul-inspired three-time BRIT award winner Lisa Stansfield; multi-GRAMMY-award-winning Corinne Bailey Rae with the Ronnie Scott’s Orchestra and revered pianist and broadcaster Jools Holland.

Jazzwise is festival media partner.

For full details and tickets visit www.cheltenhamfestivals.org/festivals/jazz-festival