Annapolis Jazz & Roots Festival Returns With Music, History and Black Cultural Memory

Annapolis Jazz & Roots Festival 2026 brings music, art, poetry and history to eight venues across five Maryland neighborhoods from November 6–15

Annapolis Jazz & Roots will return for its fifth festival from November 6 through November 15, presenting music, art, poetry and history across two weekends in Annapolis, Maryland. Based in the maritime community of Eastport, the festival will use eight venues in five neighborhoods, giving audiences a chance to experience performances alongside the historic architecture and waterfront landscape of the Chesapeake Bay city.

‘New World Music: Centuries of Sound’

The 2026 theme, “New World Music: Centuries of Sound,” places performances within a broad historical frame. International and regional artists will be part of programming that traces musical and cultural change from Indigenous traditions and the colonial period through the history of slavery and indenture in Maryland, the roots of jazz and the continuing evolution of American sound.

Black Women Artists and Historical Memory

A related visual art exhibition, She Speaks: Black Women Artists and the Power of Historical Memory, examines 250 years of American history through a Black feminist lens. Its inclusion expands the festival beyond live performance, connecting music with visual art and questions about whose histories are preserved, interpreted and remembered.

Indigenous Performance Closes the Festival

The closing program will feature Uhwachi-Reh at the Pip Moyer Recreation Center. Led by Louis Campbell of the Lumbee community, the troupe performs traditional dance in ceremonial regalia with live drumming and singing. Denmi Whiteman, Angela Miracle Gladue and Keith Colston are also scheduled to appear, bringing Lakota, Cree, Lumbee and Tuscarora representation to the program.

A Festival Built Across Annapolis

The festival’s multi-venue structure is designed to connect cultural programming with Annapolis itself, moving audiences through distinct neighborhoods and community spaces rather than concentrating events in a single location. Annapolis Jazz & Roots operates as an affiliate of the Annapolis Community Foundation and receives support from state, county and city arts and cultural organizations.

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