Guinness World Records has named the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal the biggest jazz festival on the planet. Every summer, in June and July, more than 3,000 musicians and artists from 30 countries give nearly 1,000 concerts, two thirds of which are free public events!
Place des Arts at the heart of the festivities
As a major summer event founded in 1980, the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal attracts more than two million visitors each year for ten days, from noon to midnight, on the vast Place des Arts site as well as many other locations in the Quartier des spectacles.
Every year, Place des Arts, our Esplanade, the outdoor stages lining our plaza and all the neighbouring venues become a gathering place for people who love all sorts of jazz-related music. The free shows take place on some ten outdoor stages, alongside the fifteen venues that host a broad diversity of concerts.
Many jazz greats have stepped onto the stage at Place des Arts! Among others, let’s recall Dave Brubeck, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Paco de Lucía, Ray Charles, B. B. King, Diana Krall, Oliver Jones, Wynton Marsalis and Chick Corea.