Athens Jazz marks 25 years and celebrates with a special Greek Day dedicated to its journey

Athens Jazz celebrates 25 years on the city’s music scene with a major anniversary edition. From May 25 to 31, 2026, Technopolis City of Athens will be filled with music, rhythm and the energy that has defined the pulse of the city for the past 25 years, as always with free admission. For one week, artists and bands from Greece and abroad will take the stage at Technopolis, showcasing the freshest expressions of contemporary jazz, while a series of parallel events will complete the festival experience.

For its 25th anniversary, Athens Jazz has prepared a major surprise, dedicating its Greek Day to the very journey of the festival. In this celebratory edition, Athens Jazz returns to its roots to highlight what has shaped it: the people, the collaborators, and the moments that established it as a point of reference for both the Greek and international jazz scene for more than two decades. This year, the Greek Day is reimagined as a tribute evening, a condensation of memory and creation, designed exclusively for the 25 years of Athens Jazz.

Within this context, the festival presents a renewed Greek Day that honors its history while dynamically looking toward the future, while the established open call for selecting the three bands that traditionally opened the first day will return next year. Thus, on Monday, May 25, two Greek acts will take the stage at Technopolis, captivating audiences and setting the tone for this anniversary edition.

More specifically, the 25th Athens Jazz will open with the Stavros Lantsias Quartet and the project “My Ennio Morricone,” a tribute to Giorgos Haronitis, a key collaborator of Athens Jazz and member of its artistic committee since 2015, who maintained a deep connection with the work of Ennio Morricone, whom he regarded as his “spiritual father.” Immediately after, the stage will host the Greek Cooking Band, a special ensemble created specifically for the 25th edition, activating a living network of past winners and creators of the Athens Jazz Greek Day and transforming the stage into a meeting point between history and the present.

Both Greek acts carry strong symbolism, forming an anniversary “potpourri” of artists and collaborators connected to Athens Jazz, bridging generations and artistic directions. It is a curated musical proposal that honors the creative evolution of Greek jazz and its ongoing dialogue with the international sound. This year’s Greek Day thus takes on a dual character, functioning both as a tribute and as a creative restart, adding emotional and historical depth to the evening.

A few words about the Greek acts of the 25th Athens Jazz

Stavros Lantsias Quartet “My Ennio Morricone”: From the big screen to the Technopolis stage
On Monday, May 25, the first note of the 25th Athens Jazz will be played by the Stavros Lantsias Quartet with “My Ennio Morricone.” The acclaimed pianist and composer Stavros Lantsias, together with his quartet, creatively approaches the work of the iconic Italian composer who left an indelible mark on global film music, bringing to the Technopolis stage the magic of some of the most recognizable sounds in cinema history. Melodies that defined the big screen re-emerge through contemporary jazz arrangements and improvisational paths, creating a soundscape that balances nostalgia with live creation. Joining him on stage are Andreas Polyzogopoulos, Michalis Kalkanis and Michalis Kapilidis, in a performance that bridges cinema, memory and contemporary improvisation.

The Greek Cooking Band: A unique collaboration taking the stage for the first time
The evening will culminate with the Greek Cooking Band, an ensemble created especially for the grand celebration of the 25th Athens Jazz. Drawing inspiration from the iconic 1967 album Greek Cooking, the project revisits the meeting between saxophonist Phil Woods and bouzouki player Iordanis Tsomidis through a contemporary jazz lens, highlighting the timelessness and transformative power of Greek musical identity. At the same time, the band’s lineup functions as a living “family tree” of the festival, featuring winners and creators from different periods of Athens Jazz: Giorgos Kontrafouris (keys), Alexandros Dandoulakis (guitar), Giannis Kasetas (tenor sax), Fausto Sierakowski (alto sax), Giorgos Konstantinou (bass), Panagiotis Kostopoulos (drums), and Nikos Tatasopoulos on bouzouki, joined by the voice of Nefeli Fasouli on two songs.

Together, they form a dynamic ensemble that does not reproduce the past but reinterprets it, opening new paths through improvisation and collective expression. In this sense, the Greek Cooking Band is not a typical revival. It is a celebration of continuity, a living testament to how Greek jazz evolves, dialogues with its past, and remains open, bold and contemporary.