Telluride Jazz Festival 2026

Written By Emily Wilson

We love this festival. Here's what we noticed.

This year marked our second year covering the Telluride Jazz Festival, and it's still one of our favorite weekends on the calendar. The festival was held in the same mountainous, gorgeous setting at Telluride Town Park. The weather was warm and sunny, and cool into the night. People had blankets to sprawl out on, tent coverings to shade under, cards to play, and smiles all around. It’s that easy, welcoming energy that keeps pulling us back year after year.

A quick recap of the festival before diving into our thoughts on how it could evolve, and what the future could look like:

Friday, August 7, day 1:

We were able to see DTF, Endea Owens & the Cookout, Don Was & the Pan Detroit Ensemble, and The Disco Biscuits. All the artists did a stellar job and were clearly happy to be on stage.

We were able to chat with DTF after their set — stay tuned for that interview, which will go live on our YouTube channel next week.

DTF

Endea Owens' set was particularly enjoyable and felt diverse throughout the performance.

Endea Owens & the Cookout

The Disco Biscuits had some of the best crowd reaction of the whole festival. There were quite a few people there just to see them, wearing merch and all. While they didn’t move me, it was incredible to see people connect with the music, which is the reason we're all there.

Jazz After Dark at 10 pm:

Saturday, August 8, day 2:

Morning Events

The parade was a highlight of the weekend. Small but mighty, it went through downtown Telluride all the way into the festival. We walked in the parade, and the sense of joy and community was clear. The Hooligans Brass Band transported us to New Orleans and delivered that classic, exciting brass-band energy. See clips from the parade in our upcoming YouTube video.

The most memorable act from Day 2 for us was Robert Randolph and his band, which played very loud and proud. They got people up and dancing throughout their whole set.

We were able to chat with Theo Croker too after an incredible performance — stay tuned for that interview, which will go live on our YouTube channel next week.

Theo Croker

Jazz After Dark at 10 pm:

Sunday, August 9:

  • 10:00 am - Jazz Brunch ft. Telluride Student All-Stars Jazz Ensemble & Sound House Quartet, at Reflection Plaza, Mountain Village

We had an incredible time at the festival. There's a clear sense of community, excitement, and relaxed energy that defines the festival's atmosphere.

We did sense a need for change in the air though, mainly around the size and lineup of the festival. This year's festival felt smaller than last year's, though we're not sure of the exact attendance numbers. Bigger doesn't necessarily mean better, but for the festival organizers, we imagine more tickets sold means more resources to put back into the experience. This year, the festival was cut down from three days to two, and there was speculation from some staff and festival-goers that low ticket sales this year and last year led to that reduction.

Last year, I really enjoyed the lineup. Kamasi Washington was the highlight for us — his performance left us truly in awe. When thinking about last year's festival, this year's festival, and the future of the festival and jazz itself, I wonder what the festival's goals are and how they can sustain running a festival in a location, and a world, where jazz isn't the leading genre.

I wonder: when the genre isn't as broadly popular as, say, bluegrass which packs Telluride every year, how do you cater to your core audience while still keeping the lineup fresh and encouraging more people to travel to attend?

What the festival might need is a couple stellar neo-jazz acts with large followings to bring in more people. I would love to see FKJ, Yussef Dayes, Nora Jones, or Thundercat play this festival. While Kamasi did play last year, and he's one of the biggest names in jazz right now, that wasn't enough to bring what it seems like the festival needs most: more people attending.

Telluride isn't the easiest or cheapest place to be, which is another obstacle for drawing people in. I would suggest targeting people in cities like Denver and Salt Lake City (both around a six-hour drive) to bring in that more diverse, larger crowd. Once people come once and see how epic the weekend is, they’ll come back.

Speaking of expansion, one of my favorite things about this festival is that it isn't Telluride Bluegrass — it isn't flooded with people, and it has a relaxed atmosphere. I do believe with the nature of jazz this would still be true even if more people attended. Another thing we love is the ability to exit and re-enter freely to roam Telluride, then get right back to the jazz.

We reached out to the festival with questions so we can do a follow-up on this piece and get more clarity on what they see for the future of jazz and the Telluride Jazz Festival. We’re rooting for the success of the festival, as it's one of our favorites of all time.

Next year is a special year, as they'll be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the festival on August 13 and 14, 2027, and we can't wait to hopefully be a part of it for the third year in a row.

Thank you to Jacob Bomersback, the Director of Marketing, who brought our interview visions to life and set us up for a smooth experience, and to everyone at the festival who was kind enough to chat with us and share the experience of the weekend.

Emily Wilson
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