Hull Jazz Festival 2026 (Winter Edition)

The Hull Jazz Festival is back for its 34th edition, with the Winter Edition running throughout November 2026 and a concentrated run of shows from Thursday 12 to Saturday 21 November. It's a new era for the festival: founder David Porter stepped back after 32 years at the helm, and it's now led by Hull Music Service alongside Hull City Council's Arts Development Team. The music is spread across the city, with dates at Hull Truck Theatre, The Albemarle Music Centre, Polar Bear Music Club, The People's Republic, Garbutts, and Goodfellowship Inn.

A good deal of the programme is built around Out of the Box, the festival's platform for new and experimental work. This year it commissions three brand-new pieces from Hull artists that fuse acoustic instruments and technology, giving local musicians room to create, collaborate and improvise. On 14 November at Hull Truck Theatre, you'll hear Harbour of Unrest by Mahmud Ibrahim, Avis Ushie and Abidemi Peter Amosu; Attunement by Fleete — Dave Gawthorpe and Jay Moy with Matthew Smith; and To Scream by Jenni Harrison, Niall Thomas and Eddi Pickard. The bill also leans on festival stalwarts: Hull legend Lyn Acton, known for her technical prowess and versatility fronting iconic acts, and Tomorrow's Warriors emerging artist Christ-Stephane Boizi, a trombonist, composer and bandleader.

The rest of the line-up fills in the gaps. The Zoe Rahman Trio play Hull Suite Live at Hull Truck Theatre on 13 November, followed by the Christ-Stephane Boizi Quintet there on 14 November. The Ancient Infinity Orchestra open things off at Goodfellowship Inn on 12 November, then Mambo Jambo & Hull Samba take over The Albemarle Music Centre on 15 November. Lyn Acton & Dan Edwards are at Garbutts on 17 November, Ain't That Got Swing! at The People's Republic on 19 November, and the Polar Bear Jazz Club at Polar Bear on 20 November. It all wraps up with Five-Way Split at The Albemarle Music Centre on 21 November.

Tickets for Out of the Box on 14 November are £6. If you're planning to catch the Hull Truck shows, there's a festival offer: book tickets for all three in a single transaction and pay £30.