bahrainthismonth.com | OCTOBER 2026 LIFESTYLE 58 Bahraini musicians have remained part of the festival’s story throughout its growth. Mohammed Rashid, Ahmed AlQasim, Ala Ghawas, Esraa Janahi, Faisal Amin, Abdulla Haji, Ali Alqaseer, Ahmed A. Aziz, Khalid Alshamlan and Jassim Jawad have taken to its stages, along with bands Majaz and The DMT Experience. One commissioned collaboration paired Ahmed AlQasim with New York’s Jazz House USA, led by trumpeter Ted Chubb, giving musicians from different backgrounds an opportunity to work together. Taking Jazz Further Some of Bahrain Jazz Fest’s work extends well beyond its main festival day. Its school and community outreach programme brings A Decade in Rhythm From an open-air stage to a month-long celebration of jazz, Bahrain Jazz Fest has spent a decade building a community around the music while putting the Kingdom on the international jazz map. Exactly 10 years ago, Bahrain Jazz Fest began with an open-air stage, visiting musicians and an audience keen to discover jazz. Since then, the Kingdom’s first dedicated open-air jazz and blues festival has grown into a month-long programme, with its main festival day complemented by Yalla Jazz community events across the island. It remains the only authentic jazz and blues festival in the Arabian Gulf region. The Beat Goes On Owned and operated by Clockwork, a brand activation and events agency with offices in Bahrain and Riyadh, the festival has endured even the most challenging circumstances. When live events were disrupted in 2020, an online edition took the music to audiences worldwide. Later themes, including Jazz Unmasked, Building Bridges and Together in Jazz, reflected the festival’s continuing focus on bringing people together through music. Sharing Centre Stage Over the years, Bahrain Jazz Fest has brought an international line-up of musicians within easy reach of audiences in the Kingdom. Jazz-fusion pioneers Spyro Gyra, singer-songwriter and guitarist Raul Midon, bassist Mohini Dey and Grammy-winning guitarist Frank Gambale are among those to have performed. The roster also includes saxophonist Igor Butman, Andrea Motis, Louis Banks and Bahraini-British trumpeter Yazz Ahmed, alongside Ana Popovic, Ana Carla Maza, Buddy Whittington and Paul Lay.
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