Festival Face à la Mer

The Festival Face à la Mer: Jazz, Blues, and World Music by the Mediterranean

The Festival Face à la Mer is one of the flagship musical events in the town of Cavalaire-sur-Mer, a seaside resort located in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez on the Var coast. Every early September, as the summer crowds begin to thin, the festival takes over the Esplanade Sainte-Estelle, right by the sea, to offer several days of completely free open-air concerts.

Its eclectic program, blending jazz, blues, and world music, is designed to appeal to the widest audience: fans of world music mingle with families and late-season tourists on the esplanade, all captivated by the relaxed atmosphere and the beauty of the setting.

An Exceptional Natural Setting

The Esplanade Sainte-Estelle is one of the most beautiful public spaces in Cavalaire-sur-Mer. Located by the sea, facing the Mediterranean and Cavalaire Bay, it offers concerts a wide horizon over the sea, with the silhouette of the Îles d'Hyères as a backdrop on clear days. The sunset over the sea during the festival evenings is one of the magical moments eagerly awaited by festival-goers each year.

Cavalaire-sur-Mer is a human-sized town, spared from the extreme over-tourism that characterizes other towns in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez. This authentic atmosphere is reflected in the spirit of the festival: warm, accessible, and rooted in its territory.

Free Access as a Commitment

The Festival Face à la Mer is entirely free. This founding commitment, supported by the municipality of Cavalaire-sur-Mer, is at the heart of the event's philosophy: to allow all residents and visitors to enjoy quality concerts without any financial barriers or prior purchase. Music as a common good, shared outdoors facing the sea.

This free access encourages broad attendance, attracting both regulars of jazz and blues, as well as curious passers-by, families with children, and seniors. The atmosphere blends the contemplation of true music lovers with the lightheartedness of strollers drawn by the sounds reaching them from the esplanade.

Jazz, Blues, World Music: An Open Program

The three genres featured—jazz, blues, and world music—are three musical traditions deeply linked to the history of global popular music. Jazz, born at the turn of the 20th century in New Orleans, continues to reinvent itself in contemporary forms that cross borders and generations. Blues, the matrix of Anglo-Saxon popular music, retains an incomparable emotional power. World music, an open category encompassing musical expressions from all continents, brings diversity and openness to global cultures.

Each year, the Festival Face à la Mer features artists representative of these traditions in their most vibrant expressions. Local and regional musicians perform alongside artists from mainland France or abroad, ensuring the program has both territorial roots and international reach.

The 3rd Edition: September 2025

The third edition of the Festival Face à la Mer took place from September 4 to 7, 2025, on the Esplanade Sainte-Estelle in Cavalaire-sur-Mer. Four days of free open-air concerts, facing the Mediterranean, brought together a large and enthusiastic audience for a program blending jazz, blues, and world music. The special atmosphere of Cavalaire in early September—mild air, late summer light, still warm sea—contributed to making this edition a moment of shared joy.

The 4th Edition in 2026

The fourth edition of the Festival Face à la Mer is expected in early September 2026 on the Esplanade Sainte-Estelle. The program will be announced by the Cavalaire-sur-Mer town hall on its official website (cavalaire.fr) in the months preceding the festival. Admission will remain free, in line with the event's founding commitment.