Italian blues-rock star Zucchero kicks off 2026 Barcelona Jazz Festival

Italian blues-rock star Zucchero opened the 2026 Barcelona Jazz Festival on Tuesday night at the Palau de la Música Catalana, kicking off a three-year period commemorating the festival's 60th anniversary.

This year's 58th edition opens as organizers prepare a bid, with the Catalan Government and Barcelona City Council, to make the city the international jazz capital in 2028. Spain's Ministry of Culture has already designated the festival an Event of Exceptional Public Interest.

The lineup includes Zucchero, Dianne Reeves, Samara Joy, Michel Camilo, Branford Marsalis, Andrea Motis, Yamandu Costa, Ramon Mirabet, Ibrahim Maalouf, Nate Smith, Kyle Eastwood (Clint Eastwood's son), and Vicente Amigo.

To open the festival, Adelmo Fornaciari, better known as Zucchero, brought his "Overdose D'Amore Gold" tour to Barcelona, playing his greatest hits. An undoubted highlight was "Baila Morena," his biggest hit, released 25 years ago.

Saxophonist Branford Marsalis and singer Dianne Reeves will present "Dedicated to You," a tribute to the legendary collaboration between John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman.

Samara Joy will make her debut at the Palau de la Música Catalana after a previous performance at the Liceu Conservatory. She is set to perform November 13, two days after her 27th birthday.

The festival will also celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Sant Andreu Jazz Band, this edition's "featured artist," which will receive one of the festival's gold medals. 

The band will play four concerts: a tribute to Louis Armstrong and Frank Sinatra, presentations of new projects by younger musicians and a return to its roots with the Sant Andreu Dixie Band.