Held under the auspices of the UNESCO Office in Tashkent, the Festival is organized on the occasion of the International Jazz Day by the State Conservatory of Uzbekistan, the State Jazz Orchestra of Uzbekistan named after B. Zakirov, and the Ilkhom Theatre/Ilkhom Theatre Jazz Club, with the support and participation of several Embassies, and the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Uzbekistan.

The Festival aims to give the opportunity to jazz musicians from Uzbekistan and abroad to celebrate this universal language of peace, cultural diversity and inter-cultural dialogue through a series of events to be held in Tashkent and other cities of Uzbekistan:

• concerts and jam sessions
• master classes
• musical encounters
• other jazz-related events

So far, musicians from France, Latvia, Turkey and the United States of America have confirmed their participation, and some other Embassies are currently considering their musicians’ participation.

30 April was officially designated as International Jazz Day by UNESCO in November 2011 in order to highlight jazz and its role in uniting people in all corners of the globe. The United Nations General Assembly formally welcomed this decision to proclaim April 30 as International Jazz Day in December 2012. The month of April is widely recognized as Jazz Appreciation Month.

The International Jazz Day contributes to acknowledging the power of jazz in promoting peace, dialogue among cultures, diversity, and respect for human rights and human dignity. International Jazz Day brings together communities, schools, artists, historians, academics, and music fans all over the world to celebrate and learn about jazz and its roots, future and impact.

Countries all over the world are encouraged to join the celebrations and pay tribute to jazz in any way possible. The objective is to create a global community of people who connect and build peace through jazz. The International Jazz Day 2016 Global Host City is Washington, D.C. On 30 April 2016, International Jazz Day will be celebrated by thousands of performances and programmes in over 190 countries worldwide.