Walking Jazz Festival

From July 24 to 26, 2026, Cassano delle Murge will host the Walking Jazz Festival, a special event outside the Cassano d'Estate program, created to connect two worlds that may seem distant: jazz, traditionally linked to urban environments, and walking, trekking, and outdoor activities, which express a slower and more authentic relationship with nature and the territory.

The word "walking" represents the heart of the project: it is about walking along the paths of the Murgia and through the streets of the historic center, but it also evokes the walking bass line, one of the fundamental techniques of jazz language. This connection becomes an opportunity for meeting between music, landscape, well-being, culture, and discovery of places.

Opening the musical program on Friday, July 24 at 9:30 PM in Piazza Moro will be The Art Quartet, an international ensemble composed of American pianist Dave Kikoski, vibraphonist Mark Sherman, double bassist Yuri Goloubev, and drummer Alessandro Napolitano. The United States, Russia, and Italy will meet on stage through four prominent figures of the contemporary jazz scene.

On Saturday, July 25, starting at 7:00 PM, the streets of the historic center will be filled with the energy of Dixie Heritage, an Italian group that will bring back the atmospheres of jazz's origins to the streets, featuring brass instruments, improvisation, and dixieland sounds, beginning at Piazza Rossani. The evening will continue at 9:30 PM in Piazza Moro with Angela Esmeralda Plays Jazz feat. Hermon Mehari. Alongside Angela Esmeralda, Gaetano Partipilo, Francesco Schepisi, Giuseppe Bassi, Vitantonio Gasparro, and Dario Congedo will perform, with a special participation by American trumpeter Hermon Mehari.

The festival will conclude on Sunday, July 26 at 7:30 PM at Baby Di Cecca in the Mercadante Forest, with a live session featuring clarinetist Francesco Manfredi and pianist Alessandro Binetti: a final musical encounter immersed in nature.

The Walking Jazz Festival is an original proposal capable of telling the story of Cassano through music, walking, and the beauty of our natural and cultural heritage.

The program also includes a rich schedule of associated activities.

On Friday, July 24 at 7:30 PM, there will be Urban Walking through the historic center curated by Vito Campanale.

At 8:00 PM, in Piazza Moro, the book Black Beauty. Stories of Black Music by Nicola Gaeta will be presented, with Gaetano Partipilo and Nicola Conte.

On Saturday, July 25, the day will begin at 6:30 AM with Nordic Walking on the Cassano Murgia, while at 6:30 PM, trekking and outdoor activities are scheduled in the Mercadante Forest, curated by Alessandro Caponio and Alessandro Sileno.

At 8:00 PM, in Piazza Moro, there will be a focus on the 25 years of Auand Records, featuring Marco Valente.

On Sunday, July 26, activities will resume at 6:30 AM with Nordic Walking along a section of the Materano Trail, and at 6:30 PM with a new experience of trekking and outdoor activities in the Mercadante Forest, respectively organized by Alessandro Caponio and Alessandro Sileno.

Entry to the concerts will be free, and all outdoor activities will also be free.
Web: www.facebook.com/profile.ph...