It’s official: the XJAZZ! Festival will not take place in 2026. The promised public funding was withdrawn at the last minute, making it impossible to carry out the program as planned. But October in Berlin won’t be completely quiet after all: From October 8 to 11, friends of XJAZZ! will fill the gap with four days packed with concerts, live acts, and DJs, bringing the community together one last time.
The program from October 8 to 11
Thursday, October 8: The opening event is called SINGÜLAR and will take place at Emmaus Church. It is organized by More Than Music e.V.
Friday, October 9: The “XJAZZ! Funeral Party” kicks off at the Sonnenraum with live acts, DJs, and dancing, also organized by More Than Music e.V. The promised farewell to the festival in party form—with an all-black dress code.
Saturday, October 10: The evening is split between two venues. Momoko Gill and Sasha Perera will perform at the HDV, while Flabbergast Live and Clovis will take the stage at the Sonnenraum. The event is organized by Artkombinat e.V.
Sunday, October 11: To wrap things up, Nduduzo Makhathini will perform at the Emmauskirche, organized by More Than Music e.V.
All information and tickets are available on the official ticket website.
This applies to ticket holders
Anyone who already has an XJAZZ! ticket gets free admission to all the events listed. The individual evenings are organized independently by the respective organizers. Please keep your order confirmation. The XJAZZ! team will email everyone with information about the ticket and the next steps; there’s no need to contact them in advance. If you have questions about specific evenings, please direct them to the organizers via the respective event page.
And all fans of the festival who will still be looking for regular jazz events in Berlin after October need not despair. Our capital city boasts numerous iconic jazz hotspots that are open to you all year round—including, for example, live shows like The Jazz Room, which present a variety of programs in an authentic New Orleans atmosphere.
In their farewell message, the XJAZZ! team writes that the festival was never just about a few days in May or October. It was the artists, the venues, the long nights, the unusual combinations, and an audience that kept coming back. The story may end differently than planned, but at least we can turn up the music one last time in October.
