Moldejazz is proud to present John Legend as the headliner at the Romsdal Museum on Thursday, July 16. With this, the festival welcomes one of the most award-winning, influential, and versatile artists of our time

Moldejazz presents free daytime concerts in Alexandraparken throughout the festival week.
The stage is an important platform for young, local, and regional musicians and bands. Each concert lasts approximately 30 minutes. The performances are unpaid, but the festival provides a travel stipend.

Musikkuttrykket hennes spenner fra det intime og lavmælte til det storslåtte og eksplosive – alltid båret av en stemme som er både skjør og kraftfull. Hun kombinerer rå ærlighet med melodisk styrke og skaper konserter som både beveger og løfter.
SKAAR spiller før John Legend torsdag 16. juli

A youth program for young jazz musicians, culminating in a final during Moldejazz

Moldejazz now unveils three critically acclaimed artists for this year’s festival programme: the groundbreaking harp innovator Brandee Younger, the internationally acclaimed Nduduzo Makhathini Trio, and Molde native Daniel Herskedal, who will bring the festival to a close with an intimate solo concert.

The three artists represent distinct musical expressions and backgrounds, yet are united by improvisation, artistic curiosity, and jazz’s unique ability to reflect the contemporary world.

Artistic Director Magnus Lunay says that the artists embody three different musical voices with diverse cultural backgrounds, brought together through improvisation and the festival’s long-standing history as an international jazz arena with its gaze firmly set on the future.

Melsom is 36 years old and comes from Oslo. She has led numerous projects across a wide range of music and festival events, including serving as project lead for the entire Spellemann Awards in 2023. She holds relevant education from BI, OsloMet, the University of Oslo, and NTNU, and has built broad organizational experience along with a strong national and international network

15 artists showcasing the festival’s breadth, power, and artistic direction

This year, the festival has placed particular emphasis on artistic diversity, resulting in a program announcement that embraces both audience favorites and boundary-pushing artistic expressions. Among the major names are Cécile McLorin Salvant, CARRTOONS, Marilyn Crispell, and Jaga Jazzist, while artists such as Anatole Muster, Charlotte Dos Santos, Karoline Wallace, and corto.alto represent a new generation that challenges and expands the jazz field.

At the same time, space has been made for Norway’s jazz heritage through Ytre Suløens Jass-Ensemble, while the energetic and widely popular Blåsemafian and the hip-hop improvisation phenomenon Harry Mack ensure that the festival’s reach spans both younger and more established audiences.

Music journalist and Moldejazz veteran Petter Pettersson and two former Festival Directors, Jan Ole Otnæs and Hans-Olav Solli has compiled an impressive list of albums recorded at – or born out of – Moldejazz, stretching from 1973 to the present day. The selection highlights legendary concerts, world premieres, and unique collaborations that have helped shape the festival’s rich musical history. From Muddy Waters to Chick Corea, from Arild Andersen to Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, these releases capture the spirit of Moldejazz and its role as a creative meeting place for musicians across generations and genres.

Moldejazz is proud to announce that the groundbreaking American jazz artist esperanza spalding will be the festival’s Artist in Residence in 2026.

With her boundless musical expression and strong social engagement, Spalding is one of the greatest jazz artists in the world today – already hailed as a successor to the legends of jazz.

Audiences can look forward to a truly unique festival experience – featuring at least four diffe,rent concerts, ranging from the intimate and acoustic to the experimental and interdisciplinary.

Read more and apply here!

Endre Volden has chosen not to continue as General Manager of the Molde International Jazz Festival Foundation. The board wishes to thank Volden for his contributions to Moldejazz and to wish him the best in the future

Today's announcement is a tribute to and celebration of International Jazz Day; we are excited to welcome Maridalen and the Mathias Eick Quintet to this year’s Moldejazz!

Today’s announcement is a gift package for those truly passionate about music. This July, we welcome Arooj Aftab, Natalie Greffel, and Bugge Wesseltoft/Arild Andersen/Øyunn to Moldejazz!

Best Western Swing featuring Bjørn Tomren, Stian Carstensen, and Ola Kvernberg sold out in record time. Now, an extra concert is being added. In addition, we can look forward to a grand visit from the legendary Hot Club de Norvège and the charismatic Majken Christiansen at Storyville.

Jon Ranes has achieved great success with the rap group UNDERGRUNN before also debuting as a solo artist in the fall of 2022 with the album Loverboy. Now, the energy bomb is coming to Moldejazz 2025!