Between 15 and 18 October, the increasingly legendary Jazz Point Festival was back in town for another week of high-quality music.
Arriving at its seventh edition, a highly applaudable milestone, this mighty festival of Jazz music beckoned out to us, coaxing us to book a table at the prestigious The Standard Ibiza. Once again there we were, right in the front row for a great night of music.
We decided to attend the opening and closing nights of the festival.
The opening: A taste of the festival
Thursday 15 October
This year, the organisers outdid themselves. Opening night felt like an introduction to everything Jazz Point Festival has to offer: a showcase of outstanding musicians, different musical traditions and a glimpse of what was to come over the following days.
There is a fascinating correlation between Ibiza's vibrant cultural scene and the legendary Jazz scene of New York. The people behind Jazz Point have managed to create a musical dialogue between two destinations that, although very different, share a great interest for creativity and artistic experimentation.
The result is a line-up that celebrates Jazz in all its forms.
By the time we arrived at The Standard, the venue was already packed with Jazz enthusiasts, waiting for the first notes. The evening began with Brazilian guitar legend Romero Lubambo (pictured below), accompanied by André Coll and Joan Carles Marí.
Lubambo immediately transported us to the musical landscapes of Brazil. His performance blends the elegance of Jazz with the influence of Bossa Nova and Samba - sophisticated rhythms delivered with irresistible energy.
Watching his fingers fly across the guitar strings was a reminder of just how much technique, precision and imagination can exit in a single performance. Improvisation was at the heart of the set, and his fellow musicians were more than up to the task.
André Coll and Joan Carles Marí brought their own virtuosity to the stage, complementing Lubambo’s guitar work with rhythm and precision. It was an exhilarating start that set a very high bar for the rest of the evening. And there was much more to come...
Next up was the Tal Cohen Trio, joined by Colombian singer Catarina Londono (pictured above). What an ensemble. Their sound was adventurous, unpredictable and full of character - the kind of music that makes you stop talking and simply listen.
The musicians clearly knew exactly where they wanted to take us, but they were never afraid to explore the mysterious ways of music along the way.
Londono's voice added another dimension to the performance, bringing some warm feeling to the performance. But it was during the instrumental monologues, the solos and more experimental moments, that the trio really start to shine.
The piano erupted with furious energy, the basslines were delivered with astonishing coordination and the drums felt like they were being hammered in an entirely different universe - until the perfect moment came for them to take centre stage.
Every musician had space to explore and start their own musical journey, which we invested our full attention in.
This was Jazz that didn't simply follow a structure of notes. It felt instinctive, physical and deeply rooted in the musicians themselves. For novices, it might have leaned too experimental at times, but for us it was the height of entertainment.
It was the sort of performance that leaves you wondering how musicians manage to make something so complex sound alive.
The evening continued with the Tal Cohen Trio, this time with the addition of saxophonist Karolina Strassmayer (pictured above). The mood shifted, offering a different perspective on the festival's musical range. Opening with a gentle, intimate ballad, they allowed the audience to settle into a more reflective atmosphere. But Jazz never stays in one lane for too long...
The performance moved into the repertoire of Charlie Parker, and suddenly the saxophone was relentlessly racing ahead with the forward-momentum of an unstoppable runaway train.
It was a thrilling change of pace, showcasing the contrast between the intimacy of a ballad and the exhilarating speed and complexity of the bebop.
The last artist of the night was saxophonist Maikel Vistel (pictured above), accompanied by two-thirds of the Tal Cohen Trio: François Boutin on bass and Florian Arbenz on drums. This was pure Jazz, ladies and gentlemen! The musical intensity of this performance was undeniable.
You could feel that the musicians were now completely mesmerised by the music. The creativity and craftsmanship of these artists reach perfection and they give us a taste of jazz in its purest form. What an experience it was!
Like Kerouac's alter ego Sal in American literature classic On The Road, we felt carried away by passionate constant movement, driven by the emotions this music awakens in the human spirit.
Perhaps no other genre can describe the changing states of the human condition quite the same as Jazz. With its many different narratives, Jazz can be restless or acid, gentle or contemplative. It may be difficult at first to understand such an elaborate musical language.
But open your soul to this music and, slowly, without even realising it, you will begin to understand the language of Jazz.
The last night: An evening to remember
Sunday 18 October
On the final night of the festival, Jazz Point served up another great performance, this time by the Pere Navarro Trio, featuring Pere Navarro on trumpet and piano, alongside Jesús Bastia and Alain Ladrón de Guevara.
They opened with modern Jazz infused with a laid-back, lounge-like atmosphere.
There was something effortlessly cool about it, and yet the performance carried a deeper musical spirit: the kind of innovation that emerged in the 1970s, when Jazz began embracing new sounds and influences, giving birth to fresh and exciting musical directions.
There were echoes of Jazz fusion, bringing to mind artists such as Pat Metheny and bands like Weather Report. This was Jazz in its most absolute form, but influenced by many different musical strands, bringing the music into the present without sacrificing its artistic integrity.
Innovative but deeply creative, the performance showed how Jazz continues to evolve, absorbing new ideas while remaining true to its adventurous spirit.
It was a fitting way to close the festival: a performance that left us looking towards the future and already anticipating the next unmissable edition of the Jazz Point Festival.
Jazz Point Festival is about much more than bring talented musicians to the stage. It is about creating a space where different backgrounds, influences and musical personalities can meet, challenge one another and produce something totally unexpected.
From the Brazilian rhythms of Romero Lubambo, to the adventurous explorations of the Tal Cohen Trio and the expressive power of the Pere Navarro Trio's saxophone, these concerts offered a taste of the diversity that makes Jazz a very compelling musical style.
We left with a renewed appreciation for Jazz as a powerful vehicle for creativity - a genre in which technical knowledge is very important, but imagination counts just as much.
Because, at its best, Jazz is not simply music you listen to. It is music that you feel.
We're confident Jazz Point Festival will return to Ibiza in 2027.
To stay up to date, visit our magazine regularly throughout winter, follow our social channels and use our event calendar to plan your island itinerary.
