The 45th Saalfelden Jazz Festival came to an end on Sunday evening (August 24, 2025). For four days, the town in the Salzburg region once again became a stage for contemporary jazz and experimental music forms – and a meeting place for an open-minded and enthusiastic audience.
Visitor numbers exceeded all expectations
190 artists from 26 countries, more than 28,500 concert visits, 98% capacity utilization, and record ticket sales: the 2025 festival exceeded all expectations. It was a program that consistently defied pigeonholing – stylistically diverse, artistically bold, and emotionally touching.
A festival nestled between nature and the urban environment
The festival kick-off on Thursday was already a statement: City Tracks in the city park attracted numerous visitors with acts such as Sir Waldo Weathers & Henry Carpaneto Trio and Vieux Farka Touré, transforming the center of Saalfelden into a funk and blues zone. Dutch guitarist Teis Semey, who played on several stages throughout the festival weekend, gave his first concert together with Estonian pianist Kirke Karja in the extraordinary setting of the Fuchs bookbindery. And the project “Chez Fría – Die Kunst dem Fuge” (The Art of Fugue) also combined old and new – from baroque to trap – in a joyful sound experiment.
The popular Short Cuts at Nexus once again delivered great surprises on a small stage: concerts by Max Andrzejewski & Ensemble Resonanz, Alfred Vogel with Leo Genovese & Camila Nebbia, and the Portuguese trio HIIT sold out the venue on the very first day.
In the industrial atmosphere of the Otto Gruber Hall, acts such as Phønix and I Like To Sleep created impressive soundscapes, while outside in the city park, bands such as the SoulVision Allstars and the Italian group Shanti Powa created a festival atmosphere even in cooler temperatures.
Diversity on the main stage
After the opening concert on the main stage at Congress Saalfelden by Austrian musician Leonhard Skorupa, who brought in collaborators from Germany and Estonia on saxophone, piano, bass, and percussion for his commissioned project “Sonic Feast,” the stage belonged to Laura Jurd, Tomoki Sanders, [Ahmed], Ancient to the Future, and The Bad Plus w/ Chris Potter & Craig Taborn, and Austrian drummer Alfred Vogel also brought Argentina and Portugal into play with his Bezau Beatz Orchestra of Good Hope.
Jazz in nature – and in the middle of the city
The Mountain Tracks and musical flash mobs once again proved to be unique experiences: the concert with Laura Jurd and saxophonist Jon Irabagon showed the soundscape of the mountains in a completely new light. Valentin Schuster and other artists added creative touches to the cityscape with spontaneous mini-concerts in unexpected locations – a trademark of the festival.
Records, awards, and impact
“We can look back on an exceptionally successful edition in the history of the festival,” says Marco Pointner, managing director of Saalfelden Leogang Tourism & organizer of the Saalfelden Jazz Festival. A special milestone was the presentation of the EJN Award for Adventurous Programming, which recognizes the festival’s bold and diverse program selection at the European level.
Unforgettable moments and artistic highlights
Whether intimate improvisations in the bookbindery, danceable grooves in the city park, or breathtaking soundscapes high up in the mountains—the 45th Saalfelden Jazz Festival was marked by moments that touched, surprised, and lingered long after.
Artists such as Patricia Brennan, Mette Rasmussen, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Andreas Schaerer, and Sun-Mi Hong turned the festival into a place of musical freedom. Boundaries blurred, new soundscapes opened up, and time and again a special connection was created between the stage and the audience.
Mario Steidl, artistic director of the Saalfelden Jazz Festival, is thrilled: “Whenever I think it can’t get any better, the festival surprises me again: it moves, touches, makes you happy and grateful – and goes a little deeper than anything that came before. Perhaps we are growing together over time: artists, audience, team, and city – becoming a kind of “large ensemble” that meets with curiosity and joy, supports and drives each other, and repeatedly plunges into the next adventure with anticipation. I am grateful that the EJN Adventurous Programming Award has given us a round of applause that encourages us to continue.”
Outlook: The anticipation begins now
After this outstanding festival year, the team is looking forward to the upcoming editions with great confidence and fresh inspiration. The small but exquisite winter festival “3 Tage Jazz” will take place from January 23 to 25, 2026, followed by the 46th Saalfelden Jazz Festival from August 20 to 23, 2026. So next year, we can once again look forward to programs that are as diverse as they are bold.
The festival remains true to its core: musical discoveries in a special setting, characterized by openness, a spirit of experimentation, and a unique atmosphere between mountains and stages. Preparations are already underway—and anyone who was there in 2025 knows that it’s worth getting your calendar out early.
Translated from the German original by Arianna Alfreds.