The sixth annual Rye International Jazz and Blues Festival brings big music names to the town this August bank holiday weekend.

The festival, which runs from Thursday, August 24 to Bank Holiday Monday, August 28, has five intimate world class headline concerts in the setting of St Mary’s Church, Rye.

Headliners include Scottish brothers Pat and Gregory Kane as Hue & Cry, American soul and jazz singer Kandace Springs, acclaimed American blues singer Eric Bibb, the Ronnie Scott’s All Stars and folk singer and guitarist Seth Lakeman.

New this year will be three days of live jazz, with award winning Nyetimber sparkling wines and food on the Nyetimber Terrace at the Rye Lodge Hotel from Saturday, August 26 to Bank Holiday Monday from 1pm to 3pm.

Performances include gypsy jazz with Trio Manouch on the Saturday, the Iain Rae Jazz Trio perform cool modern jazz classics on the Sunday and the Paul Richards Latin Jazz Trio bring the best Bossa Nova’s and Latin rhythms on Bank Holiday Monday.

Free music takes place at the dedicated outdoor music stage at the Kino Cinema Terrace
in Lion Street, with a fun atmosphere food and bars serving drinks throughout each day.

The outdoor stage will have performances from 1pm to 7pm from the Saturday to Bank Holiday Monday, including by Martin McNeill’s Bottleneck Blues Trio, the Trio Manouch, Faversham-based Nico’s band, and acoustic roots and blues with Sussex based King Size Slim Sound.

Trio Freak Flag perform the music of Jimi Hendrix and Cream, and Dom Pipkin and the Ikos perform New Orleans jazz and stomping blues.

Phil Law and friends perform at the Standard Inn Rye on Thursday, August 24 and the Rye Bay Crew perform at the Queens Head, Rye on the Friday, Julie Edmonds performs Simply
Divas at the Kings Head Inn, Rye on the Sunday and solo jazz guitarist Ed Holden performs jazz vibes at the newly-opened Ethel Loves Me gallery from 4pm on the Sunday.

The final day of the festival on Bank Holiday Monday will feature free music events at the
Old Borough Arms on Strand Quay from 1pm with the Terry Seabrook jazz trio, the Jazz Funk Giants at Simply Italian from 3pm and other live music events at the Grapevine Champagne and Jazz bar in Rye over the weekend.

For details and to book ryejazz.com