Organisers Big Bear Music have revealed that 178 gigs, 165 with free admission, performed at 102 venues in Birmingham, Sandwell and the wider West Midlands attracted audiences totalling 62,702 across 11 days this August.

And a survey of that audience has revealed that an impressive 98% rated performances ‘very good’ (83%) or ‘Good’ (15%), while 86% said they expected to visit the festival again in 2027.

Jim Simpson, the renowned Birmingham music impresario who runs Big Bear Music, today confirmed that the “overwhelming enthusiasm” of live music fans means the festival will run again from 16th-25th July 2027.

Mr Simpson said: “They say an audience votes with its feet, and that’s certainly the case this year with tens of thousands of jazz and blues fans turning up at venues in Birmingham and across the West Midlands.”

He also revealed that a crowdfunder campaign launched to help support the festival’s costs had now reached nearly £10,000. Mr Simpson said: “We not only enjoyed large audiences, but we were once again humbled by many individuals’ generosity for the festival via financial contributions.”

Those public donations, together with a £10,000 grant from Sandwell Borough Council, £800 from The Musicians’ Union and £650 from USA broadcaster Rockefellas TV, mean that the 2026 festival’s financial support totalled nearly £21,500.

Mr Simpson explained that while this only covered around a third of the total costs, he was determined to dig deep into Big Bear Music’s other revenues to cover the remainder. He added: “A huge thank you is deserved by all our funders, ranging from an enthusiastic pensioner who insisted on giving us £5 to our major backer Sandwell Council, who once again contributed £10,000.

“We will need more funds to fully finance what will be our 43rd consecutive year in 2027, but we’re heartened by the support we have received and are already exploring other funding avenues.”

The 2026 festival featured 59 musical acts and 265 musicians from Birmingham, the West Midlands and across the UK, many acknowledged as leading British jazz and blues musicians.

International musicians included Andres Roots (Tartu, Estonia), the B. D. Lenz Trio (New Jersay, USA), Ben Toury (Paris, France), Miho Hazama (Tokyo, Japan) and Stacy Mitchhart (Cincinnati, USA). Venues included everywhere from stately homes to markets, art galleries to libraries and gardens to shopping centres, as well as clubs, pubs, bars, cafés, hotels, city squares, museums and bandstands.

The festival survey, conducted by volunteers throughout the festival with 1,372 written responses, found that 60% of the audience came from Birmingham or Sandwell, 28% from the wider West Midlands, 10% from elsewhere in the UK, and 2% from abroad.

The audience age profile was 53% aged 50-plus, 26% 30-50, 20% 18-30 and 1% under 18, with 65% out to specifically attend the festival, and 25% watching for the first time. The audience brought extra spend to the region, with one example being people staying overnight. Of those surveyed who came from outside the region, 54% booked rooms in local hotels or guest houses, with 59% staying for between three to more than six nights.