The Torino Jazz Festival is back. During the months of lockdown, we’ve had a chance to reflect at length upon what would be the best way to bring jazz back to Torino. Coming to our aid was the premiere jazz event sponsored by the City of Torino, in collaboration with the city’s major theatrical and musical institutions, Teatro Regio, the TST Foundation, TPE and TRG, the MITO and Todays festivals, and Piemonte dal Vivo. Look forward to the Blu Oltremare series in the Combo courtyard, which is part of the Outdoor Torino initiative. Live music brought to you by the TJF, in safety and as high-quality as ever, thanks to the work of artistic directors Diego Borotti and Giorgio Li Calzi. TJF has become a prestigious annual event with a wide and dedicated following under their supervision.

This year, the eighth edition of TJF features a wealth of Italian artists, as well as stars from the international jazz scene. Borotti and Li Calzi have put together a two-phase program. Part 1 gets underway August 21 and runs through August 30, with ten evening concerts. Part 2 takes place over ten days in mid-October, with performances at local jazz clubs and other venues, thirty concerts in all.

The main goal of this year’s edition is to maintain the high standards TJF has been known for, and to spotlight great musical talent. Of no less importance is our support for all the many companies and individual contributors that work to make events like this possible. They have been hard-hit by the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Special thanks go out to TJF artistic directors Diego Borotti and Giorgio Li Calzi, who never stopped believing that TJF could go on, and to everyone who’s worked so hard to make this happen.

Chiara Appendino
Mayor of Torino

Francesca Leon
Councilwoman, Head of Culture

TJF2020 ARTISTIC DIRECTORS’ PRESENTATIONS

Our assiduous contact with so many members of the Italian jazz community confirms an extraordinary instinct for survival. After months of isolation, look forward to a whole new way of enjoying live music. TJF applauds and does its best to express the innovative spirit of the times. You’re in for a very different lineup of acts, yet our message remains the same. We’ve got big-name Italian jazz artists, along with lesser-known players who are, however, of great artistic value. Plus “foreign” musicians who reside in Italy, and musicians from countries nearby. Original productions and borderline sounds. Live jazz is alive and well in Torino.

Diego Borotti
Artistic Director

TJF 2020 couldn’t be stopped. Our first thought went to sustaining workers’ rights in an emergency situation. A cultural event must be receptive to the whirlwind of situations in which it unfolds, and reopen the doors to a community in search of answers. This year, TJF makes two appearances. The first comes in August, with live music for audiences thirsting for it. We’ll resume in October, with support from local musicians and jazz clubs, staff, and everyone who comes out for a great time.
Part 1 features musicians from Italy and nearby countries in a quintessential Torino setting, Porta Palazzo, home to Europe’s largest multiethnic open-air market. Check out the original productions, ad hoc concerts featuring top local talent, teamed up with some of the biggest names in Italian jazz and the world of Italian culture. That’s TJF. Always has been.

Giorgio Li Calzi
Artistic Director