Big Ears (Music Fest)
March 26-29, 2026
Annual four day music bash celebrating a wide array of artists and venues, Big Ears needs to be on your winter bucket list.
2026 FESTIVAL LINEUP
David ByrneRobert Plant with Saving Grace and Suzi DianThe Avett Brothers and Mike Patton present: AVTT/PTTNLaurie AndersonJohn ZornFlying LotusPat Metheny Side-Eye III+Hania Rani & Knoxville Symphony OrchestraRichard ThompsonChucho Valdés Royal QuartetJohn Scofield Trio ft. Vicente Archer & Bill StewartMarc RibotCécile McLorin SalvantDon Was & the Pan-Detroit EnsembleDirty ThreeTerry AllenNels Cline & Knoxville Jazz OrchestraSHABAKAMary HalvorsonJulian Lage QuartetPino Palladino & Blake Mills ft. Sam Gendel & Chris DavePatrick WatsonAlan Sparhawk with Trampled by TurtlesMJ Lenderman & The WindPerfume GeniusCaroline Shaw & Sō Percussion ft. RingdownTunde AdebimpeReggie WattsMiles Electric Band: Celebrating Miles Davis at 100CymandeChris ThileTim Heidecker & the Very Good Band with Neil Hamburger
JOHN ZORN (12 PERFORMANCES OVER 2 DAYS)
Masada Quartet IBarbara Hannigan Sings Zorn ft. Bertrand ChamayouZorn Plays Harry SmithJunction Trio Plays ZornImpromptus, Ballades, NocturnesAwakening GroundCobraBarbara Hannigan Sings Zorn IIIncertoLaurie Anderson & John ZornLove Songs ft. Petra HadenMasada Quartet II
CURATED BY JOSH JOHNSON
Chicago Underground DuoCleo ReedDeantoni ParksMarquis Hill BlacktetQur’an ShaheedTwin TalkWill Graefe
Adam Tendler’s InheritancesAdrian SherwoodAnna TivelAnnahstasiaAnnie & The CaldwellsBASICBlind Boys of AlabamaBloodshot BillBrandon Woody’s UpendoBrian Marsella & Sae HashimotoBrian Marsella’s iMAGiNARiUMBriggan Krauss SoloBrittany DavisCarlos Niño & Sam GendelChad Taylor QuintetCharlemagne PalestineChávez / Ismaily / SaunierChes Smith Clone RowChuck JohnsonDarius Jones TrioDarrell Scott’s Electrifying TrioDave Douglas GIFTS QuintetDave Harrington & Mary LattimoreDave Harrington’s Pranksters SouthDave McMurray & Grateful DeadicationDeerhoofdigi-squires (sam gendel & nate mercereau)DitherDom FlemonsDoYeon KimEither/OrchestraEliana GlassFilm Scores for No One: a Patrick Watson projectFineFloristFred Frith’s FremakajoGary Lucas & Gods and MonstersGhost Train OrchestraGo KurosawaGRRL x Made of OakGwenifer RaymondHaley HeynderickxHand HabitsHania Rani presents Chilling BambinoHannah CohenHarriet Tubman & Georgia Anne Muldrow: Electrical Field of LoveHayden PedigoHis Name Is AliveIsaiah CollierJACK Quartet plays John Luther AdamsJamie Lidell & Luke SchneiderJanel & AnthonyJeff Parker Expansion TrioJeffrey Lewis & The VoltageJesse Harris’ CosmoJimmie Dale Gilmore & Butch HancockJoe WesterlundJohn Mailander’s ForecastJulia Úlehla & DálavaJulianna BarwickKaren Mantler TrioKaoru Watanabe’s Bloodlines Interwoven (In Residence)Kate Gentile: Find Letter XKen PomeroyKishi BashiKramer (solo)LazyhorseLiselLubomyr MelnykLucrecia DaltMadison CunninghamMali ObomsawinMaria SomervilleMarilyn Crispell & Harvey SorgenMaruja LimónMary Lattimore & Julianna BarwickMary Lattimore & Walt McClementsMatt Mitchell’s Zealous AnglesMeara O’Reilly Vocal EnsembleMei SemonesMiles Okazaki: The Complete MonkMiles Okazaki TricksterMiriam ElhajliModel/ActrizMoinNatalie BergmanNate MercereauNate SmithNed RothenbergNik BärtschNik Bärtsch’s RONINOpenness TrioOrcutt Shelley MillerPan American (solo)Pan American & KramerPatricia Brennan SeptetPeni Candra RiniRafiq Bhatia: EnvironmentsRespira ft. Eucademix, azumi O E & Waldo WalleRich(ard) DawsonRosenau & SanbornRyan Clackner & Tyshawn SoreyRyan Davis & The Roadhouse BandS.G. GoodmanThe Saami Brothers featuring Ustad Naseeruddin SaamiSaha GnawaSami StevensSaul Williams Meets Carlos Niño & FriendsSettingshirlette ammonsSimon Hanes: GARGANTUASML (In Residence)Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra Plays SlySullivan Fortner TrioSUSS Presents Across the HorizonTaper’s ChoiceTara Clerkin TrioThe Crossing presents David Lang’s poor hymnalThurston Moore & Shabaka HutchingsTim BerneTom SkinnerTomas Fujiwara: Dream UpTsons of TsunamiTune-YardsTurning Jewels Into Water (Val Jeanty & Ravish Momin)Uhlmann Johnson WilkesWalt McClementsThe WesterliesWild UpWilliam Hooker QuartetWilliam Tyler & Yasmin WilliamsWinged WheelWu Fei’s Moon HunterWu Fei & Shanir BlumenkranzYagódyYHWH NailgunZeena Parkins & William WinantAnd More!