In brief
The festival’s opening night honored 100 years of Miles Davis with Rossen Zahariev All Stars, followed by performances from Aaron Parks and other acts. The three‑day event, running until November 8, also features British singer Emma Smith, Turkish guitarist Cenk Erdogan, Swiss‑Albanian vocalist Elina Duni and pianist Shai Maestro, with a lifetime‑achievement award slated for Hilda Kazasyan.
The 12th Plovdiv Jazz Fest opened Friday in Plovdiv, Southern Bulgaria, with a tribute to 100 years of Miles Davis, as reported by the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA). The festival’s opening concert, titled "100 Years of Miles Davis," was organized by the Rossen Zahariev All Stars and showcased a progression of Davis’s musical style from bebop to hip‑hop, covering eras between the albums _Birth of the Cool_ and _Doo‑Bop_.
Alongside Zahariev, the performance included pianist Steve Hamilton, double bassist Vasil Hajigrudev, drummer Borislav Petrov, tenor saxophonist Petar Momchev, and beatboxer Alexander "SkilleR" Deyanov. The evening closed with a set by pianist and composer Aaron Parks and his trio, with trumpeter Vili Stoyanov hosting.
Miroslava Katsarova, the festival’s organizer and artistic director, welcomed attendees by noting that the 2026 event marked the first time the fest has run three editions in a single year. She also highlighted that jazz audiences in Bulgaria are becoming younger while long‑time listeners remain engaged. In her address, Katsarova read a greeting from Culture Minister Evtim Miloshev, who said that jazz continues to enrich Bulgaria’s cultural life and strengthen its presence in the international jazz scene.
Friday’s lineup was followed by a diverse mix of Bulgarian and international musicians over the next two days. On November 7, British jazz singer Emma Smith and her quartet, as well as Turkish guitarist Cenk Erdogan and his trio, performed. Erdogan is noted for blending fretless guitar and tambura, merging Anatolian traditions with contemporary jazz. The festival will close on November 8 with performances by the quartet of Swiss‑Albanian vocalist and composer Elina Duni and the band led by pianist Shai Maestro.
A lifetime‑achievement award for jazz in Bulgaria is scheduled for Hilda Kazasyan, a celebrated jazz singer, to be presented during the event. The Plovdiv Jazz Fest is organized with support from the Plovdiv Municipality and the Ministry of Culture, and it is part of the city’s 2026 Cultural Calendar.
