Aberdeen Jazz Festival Offers Free Tickets, No Questions Asked
A warm welcome initiative, £5 gigs and over 200 tickets for community partners.
Bon Accord Baths has cathedral-like acoustics. Tiled walls, empty pool, Art Deco bones. The building has been closed to swimmers since 2008, but on Sunday 15 March, violinist Matt Holborn and tuba player Danielle Price will test that space with a series of short, specially commissioned Soundbath performances.
One of several free events across Aberdeen Jazz Festival’s 13-day run (12–22 March), and probably the most unusual.
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No questions asked
This year, organisers have introduced what they’re calling a “warm welcome” initiative. If you want a free ticket to most events, you email them. No eligibility criteria. No forms.
Jazz Scotland CEO John Youngs says: “Affordability should never be a barrier to experiencing world-class musical experiences.”
The festival has also distributed over 200 free tickets to charity and community partners across the city, trying to reach people who might not otherwise come across the programme.
“The current cost of living crisis is making it tough for many,” Youngs adds, “but being together and sharing musical experiences shouldn’t be a luxury. It is a vital part of our community wellbeing.”
What £5 gets you
Several events are priced at a fiver. Jazz the Day City on 15 March offers a full Sunday afternoon of music across four city centre venues on a single £5 ticket. Jazz For Kids! (14 March) is aimed at children aged 2–11, with under-twos free. And The Toolbox Orchestra, an all-female group from Berlin playing 1920s and 1930s jazz, makes its Scottish debut on 21 March.
No ticket across the festival costs more than £30. There’s £8 student entry at nearly all events, and senior concessions for Thursday Jazz at the Blue Lamp concerts.
Free gigs worth noting
Beyond the Bon Accord Baths shows, there are a few other free events. The Ron Bird Concert with the Celtic Django Project plays Middlefield on 12 March. The FLaG Trio is at Tillydrone Community Campus on 13 March. And Richard Michael does a talk-and-play history of jazz piano at Cowdray Hall on 19 March.
The festival includes over 30 events across 18 venues. Full details and tickets are at aberdeenjazzfestival.com. If you’d like to take up the warm welcome offer, email info@jazzscotland.com with “warmwelcome” in the subject line.
