Taihu Jazz Festival fills Beijing with rhythm

Over 330 artists from 11 countries participated in the recently-concluded sixth Taihu Jazz Festival, which took place at the NCPA Taihu Stage Art Centre in Beijing from April 30 to May 5.

Under the theme “Everything Is Jazz”, the festival transformed the venue into a vibrant world of sound, where jazz expanded beyond genre into a shared cultural experience. The event featured over 200 concerts, workshops and special events, inviting audiences to move freely between performances.

Across seven indoor and outdoor stages, audiences enjoyed performances by internationally acclaimed musicians including Grammy-nominated pianist Kenny Barron, keyboardist Jeff Lorber, and Generation Y led by Grammy-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr.

Chinese musicians also captured the spotlight, most notably Red Hand, and suona (double-reed instrument) virtuoso Liu Wenwen, whose boundary-pushing performances blended traditional sounds with contemporary experimentation.