First names for 2026

The first confirmed acts for the 46th edition:

Yvonne Moriel

Musically, the festival makes a strong statement for the local scene right from the start. The traditional composition commission is taken on by the Tyrolean saxophonist Yvonne Moriel, who is well known in Saalfelden and one of the most prominent voices on the young Austrian jazz scene. After studying in Linz, Vienna and Zurich, she developed her own musical language combining jazz, improvisation and electronic music. Winner of the Austrian Jazz Prize, among other awards, Moriel has already performed at our festival in various formations. This opening act underlines the festival's commitment to bringing the bold visions of local artists to the big stage.

Chicago Underground Duo

USA

Rob Mazurek - trumpet, piccolo trumpet, RMI electric piano, synths, samplers, voice, flutes, bells 
Chad Taylor - drums, percussion, mbira, kalimba 

Back to the surface, eleven years on: the Chicago Underground Duo of Rob Mazurek and Chad Taylor with their eighth album, "Hyperglyph," on International Anthem. Both are composers, as well as "trumpeter/electronicist" (Mazurek) and "drummer/mbiraist" (Taylor), combining their individual talents into an "oversized ambience" (JazzTimes), driven by rhythms from Nigeria, Mali, Zimbabwe, and Ghana, in the free flight of an improvisational interplay typical of the Windy City from the Arkestra to AACM. In other words: this duo builds musical mountains. But: "Once we've climbed the mountain, we have to deal with what's on the other side."

Yeah NO

USA

Chris Speed - tenor saxophone, clarinet
Cuong Vu - trumpet
Skúli Sverrisson - bass
Jim Black - drums

“Yeah no” isn’t a “maybe.” It is the short-form of “I get what you’re saying, but I disagree.” That’s made to measure for this quartet, which, since its foundation in New York in 1997, has been dedicated to an authentic and uncompromising interpretation of their own idea of ​​freedom in Jazz. Led by saxophonist and clarinetist Chris Speed, drummer Jim Black, trumpeter Cuong Vu, and bassist Skúli Sverrisson deconstruct expectations and confidently jump around between jazz and rock, folk traditions and minimalism, sometimes droning as in the funeral march for Latin pianist “Eddie Cano,” sometimes menacing as in the folky “Camper Giorno,” often whimsical and out as in the melodic massacre “He Has A Pair Of Dice.”

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