Time in Jazz debuts this year with a rich and varied three-day program. In anticipation of the festival, which will take place from August 8th to 16th in Berchidda and fifteen other towns in northern Sardinia, the 39th edition of the musical event conceived and directed by Paolo Fresu offers a first round of events, taking place from June 19th to 21st, entirely in Fresu's hometown, centered around Sa colte 'e su oltiju, the garden of Sa Casara, the former dairy that has been home to Time in Jazz for years.
This is where the festival's first movement will take shape, titled this year "Kind of Blue" to pay homage to the great Miles Davis on the centenary of his birth. This prologue, while not a foretaste, already encapsulates the spirit of the entire edition. On the first day, Friday the 19th at 7:00 p.m., Fesu will engage in a dialogue with two historic figures of Italian jazz, Gegè Munari and Gianni Cazzola, in the event "The Beat of Jazz."
At 9:00 PM, the stage will welcome guitarist Peppe Spanu's trio, featuring Antonio Argiolas on drums and Angelo Salaris on electric bass and synths. At 10:30 PM, Munari and Cazzola will return, this time behind their cymbals and drums, to perform "Seniors," an original production by Insulae Lab (Time in Jazz's music production center). They will lead a group of young musicians specially selected for the occasion: Cesare Mecca on trumpet, Gabriel Marciano on alto saxophone, Attilio Costantino on guitar, and Davide Di Mascio on double bass. The evening, and all evenings, will close out around midnight with a DJ set by DJ Cris, aka Cristian Orsini.
The second day will kick off at 7:00 p.m. with a discussion with another great musician, Antonello Salis. "Blu come libertà" (Blue as Freedom) is the title chosen for the event, which will culminate with the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to the Sardinian pianist and accordionist, a key figure in Italian jazz. The conversation with Fresu promises to be a journey into Salis's musical life, which the following evening will transform into a solo performance by the 76-year-old jazz musician himself, replacing the scheduled concert by Enrico Pieranunzi's trio.
Live music will begin at 9 pm with Casadilego, aka Elisa Coclite, a multi-instrumentalist and superb performer who, in addition to wowing the judges and audiences of X Factor Italy, has performed duets with Ed Sheeran and opened for Carmen Consoli, Daniele Silvestri, Max Gazzè, Ben Harper, and Asaf Avidan. Last January, Casadilego released her first album, "Silenzio (tutto di me)," which lends its title to the tour, which will have its only stop in Sardinia in Berchidda.
Then, at 10:30 p.m., Gaia Cuatro, an ensemble formed in Paris by Japanese violinist Aska Kaneko (vocals and violin), percussionist Tomohiro Yahiro, and Argentinian pianist Natalio Mangalavite (piano) and double bass player Carlos Buschini (double bass), will perform. The quartet has released five albums, two of which featured guest Paolo Fresu, just like on the June 20th evening in Berchidda.
The curtain falls on the first part of Time in Jazz 2026 on the day of the summer solstice, opening at noon with Mario Ganau and his "Miniatures," another project hosted by the music production center Insulae Lab. At 7 p.m., the usual meeting space will feature the host presenting "Qualcosa di Miles," the RAI Radio 3 podcast that Paolo Fresu co-wrote with Antonia Tessitore and Daria Corrias.
Live music with Antonello Salis, on piano and accordion, at 9 pm, and at 10:30 pm with singer-songwriter Ilaria Porceddu and saxophonist, composer, and producer Emanuele Contis, who, accompanied by Nicola Vacca on drums and guitar, will present "Lùmia," from the album of the same name.
