Featured Events
2025 Markham Jazz Fest Returns for its 28th Year
Markham Jazz Festival – Bringing World-Class Jazz to Unionville – August 16-17, 2025
Markham, ON – The Markham Jazz Festival is back for its 28th year, transforming the picturesque streets of historic Unionville into a vibrant hub of music, community, and celebration. On August 16 and 17, 2025, music lovers from across the GTA and beyond are invited to experience more than 30 free performances, featuring a rich mix of jazz, blues, soul, Afro-Cuban, and R&B from some of Canada’s finest musicians.
This year’s festival arrives with the theme “Play On!”—a spirited response to the temporary closure of Main Street Unionville for streetscape improvements. Rather than pause, the festival has reimagined its layout, creating four dynamic stages that maintain the event’s unique charm while enhancing accessibility and variety for audiences.
“Challenges like these often spark creativity,” says Ernesto Cervini, the festival’s Juno-winning Artistic Director. “We’ve embraced the opportunity to try something new, and we’re thrilled to present a lineup and a festival design that will make this year’s event truly special.”
An Unforgettable Weekend of Music and Community
Festival-goers can look forward to a weekend of top-tier Canadian talent, with performances scheduled continuously from noon to 9:30 pm on Saturday and noon to 7:30 pm on Sunday. The newly adapted festival grounds will feature:
- The North Stage at the Curling Club parking lot—home to the festival’s biggest acts, including the Saturday and Sunday headliners.
- The Varley Art Gallery Patio Stage—an outdoor setting for relaxed, sun-soaked performances.
- The Varley Indoor Stage—an intimate, seated venue where listeners can experience jazz up close and personal with the artists.
- The McKay Wine & Beer Garden Stage—a hidden gem behind the McKay Art Centre, offering a cool drink, good company, and grooving rhythms.
Adding to the festivities are artisan vendors, local shops, gourmet food offerings, and scenic walks around nearby Toogood Pond—perfect for visitors who want to pair their musical experience with a taste of Unionville’s charm. Free shuttle services and dedicated parking make the festival easy to access for all.
A Stellar Lineup Reflecting Canada’s Jazz Landscape
The 2025 festival showcases 31 exceptional acts, with 30 hailing from across Canada and one special guest from Europe to add an international spark. Cervini, who personally reviews over 200 artist submissions each year, has curated a program that embraces every facet of the modern jazz scene.
Saturday night’s headliner is Caity Gyorgy, a three-time Juno Award-winning vocalist whose high-energy performances have captivated audiences across the country. Closing out the weekend on Sunday evening is Jay Douglas & His All Stars, bringing soulful reggae, R&B, and jazz to send festival-goers home dancing.
Other featured performers include:
- Rachel Therrien, one of Canada’s most exciting jazz trumpet players.
- Waleed Kush, a Sudanese-Canadian bassist whose music blends global rhythms with soulful jazz traditions.
- Andrea Superstein, Juno-nominated vocalist and composer exploring motherhood and identity through jazz.
- Turbo Street Funk, bringing New Orleans-style brass energy to the streets.
- Dizzy & Fay, a songwriting duo whose lush, vintage-inspired originals light up the Varley Indoor Stage.
- The Vaudevillian, offering a unique mix of performance and workshop, teaching audiences to play the washboard while delivering high-energy jug band music.
- Kate Wyatt Trio, representing the best of Montréal’s jazz scene with playful, probing piano-led improvisations.
In total, 15 of the acts are led or co-led by women, a reflection of the exciting, inclusive direction of Canada’s jazz community today.
More Than a Festival—A Celebration of Canadian Music
“The Markham Jazz Festival is about more than just concerts,” says Cervini. “It’s about bringing people together, supporting local businesses, and celebrating the creativity that thrives in our Canadian jazz scene. Whether you’re a traditional jazz fan, love vocalists, or want to dance to some funky street music, you’ll find it here.”
Festival Hotspots—local bars and restaurants presenting jazz throughout the week—kick things off starting August 8, with additional performances leading up to the main weekend on August 16 and 17.
All performances are free of charge, and visitors are encouraged to come for the music, stay for the atmosphere, and explore the many shops, cafés, and restaurants that make Unionville a beloved summer destination.
For full schedules, artist bios, and festival updates, visit www.markhamjazzfestival.com.
Source: Orange Grove Publicity
Part I – Thursday, October 23, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Free masterclasses, talks, and performances by students from the RCM’s Oscar Peterson School of Music. Full details to come in September.
Curated by Kelly Peterson and Mervon Mehta.
Free tickets available starting from 10am on Thursday, October 16, 2025.
WHEN: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2025 AT 6:00 PM
WHERE: KOERNER HALL – TELUS CENTRE
ADDRESS: 273 BLOOR ST WEST – TORONTO
TICKETS: FREE
Part II – Friday, October 24, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Benny Green, Christian McBride, and the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra
Day two’s celebration starts with a nod to Peterson’s 1977 release, Oscar and the Bassists, featuring Christian McBride, John Clayton, and others, with Benny Green on piano, and Jeff Hamilton on drums, along with a performance of his AFRICA! Suite featuring the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Green, and McBride. Hosted by The Honourable Justice Rosalie Abella.
Curated by Kelly Peterson and Mervon Mehta.
After the concert, enjoy a beverage and more music at the Postlude Performance in the Leslie and Anna Dan Galleria.
WHEN: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2025 AT 8:00 PM
WHERE: KOERNER HALL – TELUS CENTRE
ADDRESS: 273 BLOOR ST WEST – TORONTO
TICKETS: STARTING AT $90
Part III – Saturday, October 25, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Oscar Solo and Cecile McLorin-Salvant
Hear Oscar’s solo compositions played by an all-star lineup of pianists: Makoto Ozone, Jon Kimura Parker, Amanda Tosoff, and Thompson Egbo-Egbo. Renowned jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant and her trio perform Oscar’s songs in the second half of the concert.
Curated by Kelly Peterson and Mervon Mehta.
After the concert, enjoy a beverage and more music at the Postlude Performance in the Leslie and Anna Dan Galleria.
WHEN: SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2025 AT 8:00 PM
WHERE: KOERNER HALL – TELUS CENTRE
ADDRESS: 273 BLOOR ST WEST – TORONTO
TICKETS: STARTING AT $65
Purchase the special Oscar Peterson’s 100th Birthday Celebration package to enjoy a 15% discount on tickets and exclusive early access to free tickets for the first night of celebrations. The offer will be automatically applied when you add both Oscar Peterson’s 100th Birthday Part II and Part III concerts to your shopping cart. You can also purchase via phone by contacting our box office team at 416.408.0208.
Don’t miss this wonderful Canadian-Brazilian chamber jazz ensemble at The Rex!
Toronto has a brand new jazz festival and it’s all about celebrating the city’s richly diverse local talent pool.
On Saturday May 31st at 11:30am, the festival will continue its showcasing of world music with the ONÁ Ensemble at The Rex Hotel Jazz and Blues Bar (194 Queen St W).
ONÁ is a Canadian-Brazilian eclectic chamber jazz ensemble inspired by the life-force that is the music of Brazil. Each musician has achieved international recognition on the Classical, Jazz and World Music stages spanning 3 decades. The ensemble’s unique instrumentation of two french horns, bassoon, reeds, guitar, bass, and percussion provides a captivating global, “classical” sound combined with the soul of Jazz and Brazilian Choro, and Samba.
ONÁ released their first EP in April 2025 titled, “São Paulo Sessions” which was recorded in Brazil with legendary, Grammy-nominated singer, multi-instrumentalist, and composer, Filó Machado.
Olivia Esther & Victor Prado, French horn
Sheba Thibideau, Bassoon
Colleen Allen, Reeds
Andre Valerio, Guitar
Roberto Occhipinti, Bass
Alan Hetherington, Percussion
The JazzInToronto Community Celebration will take place all over the downtown core May 30, 31 and June 1st. Produced by musicians Lina Welch and Ori Dagan – who collectively run JazzInToronto, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting live music – the festival is a young grassroots affair fueled by a passion for community.
For more information visit www.jazzintoronto.ca
Toronto’s got a brand new jazz festival and it’s all about celebrating the city’s richly diverse local talent pool.
Join us for a special performance at the Jazz Bistro!
Sunday, June 1, 2025 – 6 to 8pm EDT
251 Victoria Street, Toronto ON
The JazzInToronto Community Celebration will take place all over the downtown core May 30, 31 and June 1st. Produced by musicians Lina Welch and Ori Dagan – who collectively run JazzInToronto, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting live music – the festival is a young grassroots affair fueled by a passion for community.
The festival concludes with a concert reuniting Order of Canada member and 5-time JUNO winner Jane Bunnett with her musical kindred spirit, acclaimed avant-garde pianist Marilyn Lerner. The two started their jazz journey as a duo in 1977 and have rarely performed together, despite remaining close friends since then. They will share some of the classics by Ellington, Strayhorn and Monk which they both learned together nearly five decades ago.
For more information visit www.jazzintoronto.ca
JazzInToronto is a platform which promotes local jazz artists in the Greater Toronto Area, connecting audiences, musicians, venues and presenters. We offer a platform which bundles all jazz-related information and showcases a complete range of artists from new talents to established jazz musicians to increase the discoverability and access to the works of Canadian musicians.
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