Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency

Following its acclaimed debut in 2025, the Southbank Centre x Montreux Jazz Festival Residency is returning for a second year, with this year's edition dedicated to the question: “What is Jazz Today?”

Alongside a stellar line-up of performances, the programme for the festival is unique both in its variety – with workshops, jam sessions, and in conversations – and its range of free offerings, with 30% of events at the festival free to attend!

Across the three-day festival, visitors can look forward to live performances and events celebrating Miles Davis’ legacy at what would be his 100th birthday, with a line-up that includes Grammy-nominated Theo Croker, Children of Zeus, and Mercury Music Prize-nominated corto.alto, plus a variety of free events including improvisational open jam sessions and a tribute to the late D’Angelo.

Festival highlights include:

FRI 13 MAR from 7pm |  Theo Croker - Miles Davis Mixtape
Grammy-nominated trumpeter, composer and producer Theo Croker is joined on stage at the Royal Festival Hall by special guests to mark the 100th anniversary of Miles Davis with a personal mixtape, selecting the pieces that have shaped his own musical language, presented in new, unexpected ways.

FRI 13 MAR from 7pm  |  The Five Points Jam
Five Points Project hosts a free open late session in the Clore Ballroom built around live improvisation, collective musicianship and spontaneous collaboration.

FRI 13 MAR from 7:30pm | Women in Jazz
Championing female artists at the forefront of the UK scene, Women in Jazz returns with a showcase of exceptional live performances and stories from its thriving community of 10,500 musicians, producers and composers, live at the Purcell Room.

SAT 14 MAR from 2pm |  Women in Jazz: In Conversation with Celeste
Music journalist Emma Warren sits down with Celeste for an intimate conversation about voice, creative process and the musical lineages that shape her sound. Together they explore the ways jazz continues to inform contemporary songwriting and the role of women shaping the future of the genre.

SAT 14 MAR, 6pm & 9pm | Children Of Zeus
Manchester duo Children of Zeus bring their lush fusion of soul and hip-hop to the Southbank Centre for two performances. For this special collaboration, they’re joined by members of Southbank Centre's resident organisation Tomorrow’s Warriors, for a celebration of the jazz DNA running through today’s neo-soul, R&B and hip-hop.

SAT 14 MAR from 7:45pm |  Hidden Tracks
A series of storytelling events from OneTrackMinds, Hidden Tracks invites performers to share a personal story about a life-changing song, before the song is then played for the audience.

SUN 15 MAR from 12pm  |  Hidden Tracks: Write Your Story
A free practical writing workshop inviting participants to explore the connections between music and narrative,
shaping personal stories through music and exploring how memories, sound and emotion intersect.

SUN 15 MAR from 4pm |  Track Record: On D’Angelo
Guest artists gather at this free panel in the Queen Elizabeth Hall foyer to discuss the profound impact of the late D’Angelo – the boundary-breaking artist whose fusion of soul, funk and jazz redefined modern music.

SUN 15 MAR from 7:30pm |  corto.alto 
In the residency’s closing night, Mercury Music Prize-nominated corto.alto (the brainchild of Glasgow trombonist and producer Liam Shortall) brings a blistering live set of improvisation, broken-beat bounce and bass-heavy dub at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.

SUN 15 MAR from 7:45pm  |  Ramzi Hammad & Collective: Montreux Jazz Artists Foundation Concert
Closing the residency, Swiss-Palestinian drummer and composer Ramzi Hammad leads a genre-crossing ensemble that draws together Arabic musical traditions, hip-hop, contemporary jazz and London improvisation at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.