Jazzabar

Jazz in Champagne since 2010

Founded in 2010, Jazzabar is the jazz festival of Bar-sur-Aube, a charming wine-growing town in the south of the Aube department, in the heart of the Champagne vineyards. Every September, this human-sized festival transforms the town into a haven of jazz music for three days, with 9 concerts and 50 musicians taking over the venues and streets of Bar-sur-Aube. The festival's subtitle, "Champagne Swing", perfectly captures its spirit: a joyful and elegant celebration of jazz in the Champagne region.

Indoor Concerts, Street Entertainment

The Jazzabar program revolves around indoor concerts—in emblematic venues of Bar-sur-Aube—and free street entertainment throughout the town. The evening concerts feature quality jazz ensembles, blending swing, blues, gypsy jazz, New Orleans jazz, and contemporary jazz. On Saturday morning, a free outdoor performance and a stage concert liven up the town center, creating a festive atmosphere accessible to all. The champagne aperitifs and convivial meals accompanying the concerts enhance the festive and gourmet aspect of the festival.

Swing, Lindy Hop, and Dance

One of Jazzabar's unique features is the emphasis on dance. The festival regularly includes moments dedicated to Lindy Hop and swing dance, inviting the audience to dance to the infectious rhythms of jazz. These dance sessions, held outdoors or indoors depending on the edition, add a participatory and joyful dimension to the festival, evoking the golden age of swing in the 1930s and 1940s. Lindy Hop, a dance born in Harlem in the 1920s, finds an ideal setting at Jazzabar to be expressed to the sound of live orchestras.

A Festival Rooted in the Champagne Terroir

Bar-sur-Aube, located at the confluence of the Aube river and the Champagne vineyards of the Côte des Bar, offers an exceptional setting for a jazz festival. Jazzabar is fully integrated into this terroir by combining music with the discovery of local champagne, featuring tastings and aperitifs that allow festival-goers to sample the vintages of Bar-sur-Aube's winegrowers. The Jazzabar association, chaired by R. Renard and based at rue du Collège in Bar-sur-Aube, passionately and voluntarily runs the festival, making this event a model of community-run festivals in a rural area.