JazzPlass 2025

Music & culture

May 20

Who: JazzPlass

What: Nattjazz

Where: Bergen, Norway

Project period: 2025

About the project:

Since 1972, Nattjazz has been one of the leading jazz festivals in the Nordics, focusing on new, experimental, and genre-crossing music. From 2025 we plan to transform the area between USF Verftet and Hallen USF into Jazzplass, a vibrant, inclusive cultural hub in Bergen. The goal is to strengthen the festival output as a part of Bergen cultural city by creating an open, dynamic space for music, art, and food experiences.

The project will offer free concerts, a marketplace for music and local food, talent development for local and national artists. Folkofonien will be the opening concert of the festival in 2025. Jazzplass will be a central meeting place, with low-threshold participation and annual opening concerts featuring new artists. This years Folkofonien will involve the audience, recording their voices to be woven into a grand musical performance with an improvising jazz band.

Bajazz, Nattjazz’s children’s program established in 1996, will continue, offering inspiring concerts that take children seriously as listeners and future musicians. Target groups include music and culture enthusiasts, children and families, young talents, Bergen residents, tourists, and those facing social or economic barriers. Jazzplass is expected to strengthen Bergen’s cultural profile, create a permanent, free cultural arena, support young talent, foster cross-art collaborations, and boost the local economy. The project will contribute to the long-term development of Nattjazz and USF Verftet as a cultural center.

The support from the Grieg Foundation will help fund infrastructure, artist fees, marketing, and talent development, ensuring Jazzplass remains a lasting and sustainable cultural offering for all.

About the organization:

Nattjazz was born from a need — a gap, a question, and a dialogue. In 1973, Bergen’s jazz enthusiasts created a late-night festival, a space for music after dark. From Dexter Gordon to Jan Garbarek, the goal was clear: world-class jazz for all. With low prices, inclusivity, and a focus on community, Nattjazz has stayed true to its roots while evolving. It brings the best of the new and the best of the best to Bergen, giving young local talent a stage. Music here is real, live, and human — no pixels, no AI. To experience it, you must be there.