Nanaimo gets classy, with the celebration of Nanaimo Jazz Festival’s 10th anniversary
Blues musician Luke Blu Guthrie (pictured), kicks off Nanaimo’s Jazz Festival celebration this weekend at Maffeo Sutton Park. (Photo by Tina Knowles)
The Nanaimo Jazz Festival is set to celebrate 10 years with a free concert this weekend, and performer Luke Blu Guthrie said it's a big deal.
“I think it's probably a lot more imperative and crucial than the average person might think of these days. Obviously, live music and community events like have taken a hit over the past years, right?”
The Nanaimo Jazz Festival is a volunteer run non-profit organization that brings not only an annual festival, but year round live jazz performances to the city. They host shows in theatres, halls, pubs, clubs, and parks as well as workshops.
This weekend, the festival will kick off at Maffeo Sutton Park with 10 free performances, spanning classical jazz, hip hop, electronic, latin, and soul influences.
Guthrie is a Vancouver Island born rhythm and blues musician who has made a living performing along the coast of British Columbia. He says this weekend’s performance comes at a time that venues and opportunities are getting harder to find.
“I used to play in Nanaimo quite regularly. You know, even 15 years ago, and you know a lot of those venues and opportunities have kind of disappeared, and so you know this is certainly just for me as an island-based musician. It's an opportunity to try to reestablish a connection with some of the community in Nanaimo.”
Kim Smythe, the executive director of the Nanaimo Jazz Festival, spoke on the organization’s journey to the 10 year milestone.
“Well, I think it's quite a testament to the strength of the art form and the passion and love for that art form in our community. Having lasted and being able to create and then sustain this festival for 10 years is really important to the event, and of course, it's grown over the years as well.”
Smythe explained the festival was started by educators, jazz musicians and members of Nananimo’s live music community who wanted to increase the local interest in jazz. It has expanded from a handful of events in its early years to up to 17 performances over the course of three weekends in 2026 with both paid and free performances.
Smythe explained this year’s sampler weekend was inspired by the Jazz Festival’s partners in Vancouver and Victoria.
“Something that we've kind of copied in making our first weekend a sampler weekend, so people could come out at no cost to themselves, enjoy the music in the park, and decide what kind of jazz they want to follow and what kind of performance they want to come back and hear in the following two weeks.”
The festival’s organizers have also increased the number of featured performers and experimented with new formats, such as this year’s first parkade concert.
The festival will continue over the next three weeks with ticketed blues and jazz performances featuring the festival’s headliners.
Mary Ancheta (pictured), leads the Mary Ancheta: Quartet and kicks off the headliner performances for the festival (Photo by Jaime Verdres)
Mary Ancheta, plays piano and synth, and leads the Mary Ancheta: Quartet. She stressed the importance of connecting Nanaimo with touring artists such as herself.
“Yeah, I think it's really important. You know, for me, it bridges. It's not that far, but it's far enough. You know, so I mean, as an artist that's based out of Vancouver, I feel like it bridges the gap. You know, me too and for other artists to want to come out there a little more regularly, as well as international artists, I think as well.”
Ancheta and her bandmates have individually performed in Nanaimo through other projects, but the upcoming September 18th concert will mark their first Nanaimo performance together as a quartet. This comes shortly after the release of the group’s first full length album When the Light Comes to Play.
She explained how she engages with her audience, and what she looks forward to with the festival.
“I think there's never going to be this a show that's exactly the same every time. So for me, that's exciting, and I think I always encourage the audience to, you know, to feel free to make noise if they're feeling something. And for me, it's that exchange of energy, and we hope to really bring some excitement and yeah, to go deep into the music for the listeners in Nanaimo,” said Ancheta. “So, it's great to see for me just the variety and the level of musicianship that's coming to this festival.”
The Nanaimo Jazz Festival will run from September 12th to 27th, featuring a diverse set of performers. It opens this weekend with two full days of free concerts at Maffeo Sutton Park, featuring over ten performances, alongside local artisan vendors and food trucks.
Ticketed headline shows will take place at venues such as the Shaw Auditorium and the Coast Bastion Ballroom.
Further information on the festival and ticketed performances through the month is available on the Nanaimo Jazz Festival website.
Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.
Newsroom Ethics • About our Newsroom • Report an Error • Corrections & Clarifications