Budapest Jazz Club rolls into 2026 with a packed calendar, live sound dialed in a top-tier hall, and a hang that blends old-Budapest café nostalgia with a crisp, modern bistro vibe. It’s the city’s jazz HQ: doors open day and night, concerts start at 20:00, and from Tuesday to Saturday the much-loved jam sessions kick off after 22:00. Find it at 1136 Budapest, 13th District, Hollán Ernő St. 7, where the coffee’s strong, the room sounds sweet, and local heroes share the stage with international heavyweights.
June Warm-Up: Bossa, Hendrix, and Open Jams
June 30 sets the tone: LFZE Open Jam led by the Dóra Moldovai Quartet brings the conservatory’s sharpest improvisers into the spotlight, followed by ALERANT Jazz Night with Budapest Bossa Nova slipping sunlit grooves into the room. July 1 layers on Legacy of Native Sense, plus a Wednesday Open Jam fronted by the Attila Rieger Trio. July 2 doubles down with the BJC Café Jam and the Gábor Juhász Trio, then blasts into VBW Hendrix Experience — Celebrating Jimi Hendrix, merging blues fire with jazz language.
First July Weekend: Free Jams, Frankie Látó, Test Jazz Group
The first weekend is all about access. July 3: Free BJC Jam Session with the Károly Gáspár Trio, plus a full set by the Frankie Látó Quartet. July 4 keeps it rolling: Free BJC Jam Session led by the József Balázs Trio, with Test Jazz Group rounding out the night. If you’re hunting for spontaneity, these jams are magnets for late-night sit-ins and surprise guests.
Camp, Trios, and Midweek Heat
From July 7, BJC Music Camp (BJC Zenetábor) runs alongside a string of gigs: LFZE Open Jam with the Sándor Drozdik Trio and a SITMOB set on the same day. July 8 offers Trio Midnight and returns to camp mode, then a Wednesday Open Jam with the Gábor Kollmann Quartet. July 9 threads the needle with the BJC Café Jam by the Tivadar Varga Trio, more BJC Music Camp action, and a Kiss Attila Band show that leans into muscular, groove-forward playing.
Gypsy Swing, Elsa Valle, and Summer Sessions
July 10 flips to a Gypsy Jazz Band showcase, followed by a Free BJC Jam Session led by the Attila Rieger Trio for the nightlife crowd. July 11 brings Elsa Valle Bakary’s Afro-Cuban fire to the stage, then a Free BJC Jam Session with the Szabolcs Horváth Trio. From mid-July, “Free Jam Session Nights” (Ingyenes Jam Session Estek) fly the summer flag: July 17 with the Summer BJC Jam Session featuring the Károly Gáspár Trio, and July 18 with the János Egri Trio — prime spaces for new voices to collide with seasoned pros.
Voice & Guitar, Birthday Jam, and Vocalese
July 14 pairs the Micheller Myrtill & Tibor Pintér Duo in an intimate Voice & Guitar set, then LFZE Open Jam: Dávid Csikó Quartet. July 15 has the Gábor Szalay & Zsolt Bende Duo followed by Wednesday Open Jam: Szakcsi Jr. 58! — a birthday jam special celebrating a pillar of Hungarian jazz. July 16 features the Jr. Egri Trio with Attila László, plus BJC Café Jam led by the Zoltán Oláh Trio. July 21 brings back the LFZE Open Jam with the Ferenc Korbeli Trio and a full-band set from the Juli Szigeti Band. The week rounds out with AppleBlue and Wednesday Open Jam: Iván Nagy Classic Jam on July 22, Gina Kanizsa: Vocalese Trio on July 23 alongside the BJC Café Jam by the János Egri Jr. Trio, and more summer jams across July 24–25 with the Gézu Jónás Trio and the Péter Pintér Trio.
Late July Lift-Off and August Highlights
End of July stays stacked: LFZE Open Jam with the Benjámin Baranyi Trio on July 28, S.K.Y. Chronicles — Fanni Sárközy and Friends (Sárközy Fanni és barátai): MAGIA the same night, Wednesday Open Jam with the András Lakatos Pecek Trio on July 29 plus Double Weisz Quartet, then Budapest Bossa Nova on July 30 with a BJC Café Jam by the Zoltán Oláh Trio. July 31 drops a Summer BJC Jam Session with the Noémi Nagy Quartet.
August opens with the return of the Micheller Myrtill & Tibor Pintér Duo on August 4, then Almaty Youth Jazz Band on August 5, a shimmering Bálint Gyémánt & Mike Gotthard Duo on August 6, and the Noémi Nagy Quartet on August 7. Mid-month, the club presents the Malomvölgy Festival (Malomvölgy Fesztivál) on August 13–15. August 19 lands Mrs. Columbo: Play It Again! with noir-tinged pop-jazz flair, August 26 spins back to Budapest Bossa Nova, and August 28 features Whiteful Jazz Quartet.
Autumn: Global Stars and Winter Glow
October is for world-class trios: October 2 hosts the Jure Pukl – Joe Sanders – Gregory Hutchinson Trio, a bulletproof blend of European edge and New York rhythm-section power. October 17 brings the Andy Sheppard Trio, whose lyrical sax lines and spacious interplay should fill the hall with pin-drop tension and release. On November 22, Vilmos Gryllus: Winter Concert closes the circle with a seasonal program that warms the late-year nights.
Come Early, Stay Late
Between the evening concerts and post-22:00 jams, the café-bistro runs as a second stage for conversation and planning the next set. Whether you’re devoted to straight-ahead swing, bossa ease, gypsy fire, fusion punch, or the open-ended adventure of a jam, Budapest Jazz Club’s 2026 calendar turns Hollán Ernő Street (Hollán Ernő utca) into the city’s pulse point for live music — with room for legends, rising stars, and whoever picks up a horn after midnight.
