Free Performances 11am-7pm Scroll Down For Schedule
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TJF2026 invites you to partake in our annual FREE festival, the Downtown Jazz Fiesta, located at the vibrant setting in and around Corbett’s – 340 N 6th Ave. Please note that 7th St. between 5th Ave and 6th Ave will be closed for this event, and there is plenty of PARKING nearby.
With 2 stages, the day will be filled with non-stop music featuring top-notch local and national artists. Local food trucks as well as Corbett’s will dish up some Tucson specialties, ensuring a delightful experience for music enthusiasts and families of all ages.
DJF2026 HEADLINER CHA WA
New Orleans brass band-meets-Mardi Gras Indian outfit Cha Wa radiates the energy of the city’s street culture. Twice-Grammy-nominated, the band’s last album ‘My People’ has been described as “pure joy, a distillation of generations of New Orleans expression.” Now, entering a new chapter, the band’s 2025 album ‘Rise Up’ sees the band coming into its own to make its most mature and accessible album yet.
“Mardi Gras Indian songs are inherently songs about freedom,” the band’s drummer Joe Gelini says. “And that struggle is as relevant today as it’s ever been.” Popmatters describes the band as “a grand gumbo of singing, intoxicating rhythms, and deep funk grooves that are impossible to resist.”
“I’ve seen the future of New Orleans music and its name is Cha Wa.” – Paste “Powerful, relatable, vibrant.” – NPR All Things Considered “Cha Wa, with bass lines played on sousaphone plus trumpet and two trombones, bring the city’s brass band tradition to bear. Add sick jazz-funk guitar, and…full-beaded holiday regalia, and the result was a portable Mardi Gras Dance Party!” – Rolling Stone “Cha Wa blends Mardi Gras Indian tradition and modern pop magic.” – No Depression
SCHEDULE
Corbett’s Stage
11:00 AM THMS Jazz Ensemble
12:15 PM The Jazztechs
1:45 PM Liz Cracchiolo
3:35 PM Agua de Coco
5:30 PM Soul Essential
Mainstage
11:30 AM TJI Ellington Big Band
1:00 PM Joe Bourne – The Music of Sam Cooke and Lou Rawls
2:30 PM Cha Wa
4:30 PM Low Down Brass Band
