International Day of Jazz 2025

UNESCO Jazz Day Relay III: Learning for Lasting Peace -SDG 4

   

 Presented by the Music Subnetwork of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network

For the third edition of the Jazz Day Relay organized by the Member Cities of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), the theme is Learning for Lasting Peace – SDG Goal 4: Quality Education.

Building on the success of the 2024 Annual UCCN Meeting in Braga, Portugal, and the conference theme “Bringing Youth to the Table” – the 2025 edition of the Jazz Day Relay features UCCN Member Cities and their young musicians in a project built of solidarity, creativity, and resilience.

Each year, the UNESCO Cities of Music share a video montage of music from the UCCN Creative Cities on the occasion of 30 April – the International Day of Jazz.

For this year, the Music Subnetwork of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network highlights contributions from 21 Music Cities of the UCCN Network.

For 2025, the musical composition is provided by educator and composer Mark Simeon Ferguson of Adelaide, Australia. Mark has written an open letter explaining the composition HERE.

This year each full video performance will be shared individually via YouTube in a Jazz Day Relay playlist.  You can view the full play list on May 1 at 10 am local time.

A montage video of selected performances will be shared on YouTube by the team in London, Canada.

 

Jazz Day Relay – how it works

Each year for the annual celebration of the International Day of Jazz on 30^thof April, the participating cities of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network invite musical groups from the UCCN Member Cities to contribute one original performance of a shared musical composition.

The submitted videos are shared in the form of audio/video recordings that feature each group in their city. Together, the compositions “travel” from one city to another – in the form of a musical and media “relay race” around the globe.

These videos are stitched together in a unique montage to highlight the contributing UCCN cities, to build a shared language of musical cooperation, and to advance awareness of one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs). Goal 4: Quality Education: Learning for a Lasting Peace

Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals speaks to the need for equitable and inclusive access to quality education – as well as opportunities for lifelong learning, and the role of education in promoting a culture of peace.

This year the UCCN Cities of Music invite participating UCCN cities and their musical groups to engage youth in every step of the process -from project conceptualization to the recording and production of a local version of the composition provided by composer, musician and educator – Mark Simeon Ferguson, University of Adelaide, Australia.

Mark has participated in each of the previous editions of the Jazz Day Relay since 2023 when the tradition began in Frutillar, Chile with a composition from the young musician Jaylen Ward of Kansas City, Missouri USA. Learn more about Mark here: https://www.marksimeonferguson.com/

Jazz Day Relay 2025: A Lifetime of Learning = SDG 4: Quality Education

For the third edition of the UCCN Jazz Day Relay, the UCCN Music Subnetwork features 21 of the Music Cities, with videos that feature youth and young musicians, universities and vocal groups!

Each video highlights local efforts to use music as a vehicle to advance quality music education.

Each city is featured video playlist shared via YouTube in April 2025. Selected contributions will be included in a music video playlist, and a montage video will be produced and curated by the UCCN Jazz Day Relay team.

April 30, 2025: Debut of the 2025 Jazz Day Relay available online for the 2025 International Day of Jazz. 

The following UCCN Music Cities are featured in the 2025 edition of the Jazz Day Relay:

1. Adelaide, Australia – contributed the original composition for 2025
2. Ambon, Indonesia
3. Auckland, New Zealand
4. Bolzano, Italy
5. Bydgoszcz, Poland
6. Concepcion, Chile
7. Daegu, South Korea
8. Ghent, Belgium
9. Glasgow, Scotland
10. Hamamatsu, Japan
11. Hannover, Germany
12. Idhana-a-Nova, Portugal
13. Kansas City, USA
14. Katowice, Poland
15. Leiria, Portugal
16. Liverpool, UK
17. Lliria, Spain
18. London, Canada – video production and project promotion
19. Mannheim, Germany
20. Metz, France
21. Morelia, Mexico

 

Learn more about the first and second editions of the UNESCO Jazz Day Relay here:

Jazz Day Relay I: 2023 – Life Below Water (SDG14)

The theme of the performance was based on SDG14: “Life Below Water”, connecting musicians around the world through jazz in the same way our rivers, lakes and oceans all interconnect through the water cycle. The Cities of Frutillar, Chile and Kansas City USA provided the inspiring performance of Afro Red, composed by Jaylen Ward of Kansas City.

The creative collaboration on this project of the UNESCO Creative Cities of Music Network on the International Day of Jazz highlights the importance of local and global efforts for water conservation, healthy oceans and sustainable urban development on the water’s edge. 

Jazz Day Relay II: 2024 – Climate Action (SDG13)

Continuing the jazz day relay tradition in April 2024 – the City of Daegu shared a gorgeous version of a traditional Korean melody – Bird, Bird Blue bird, and heightened everyone’s attention to the need for immediate action to address the global climate crisis through Climate Action SDG Goal 13.