Kraków Jazz All Souls Day Festival

The Krakow Jazz All Souls Day Festival is one of the more unusual events on the Polish cultural calendar — a jazz festival deliberately timed to coincide with All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day (1-2 November), when Poles traditionally visit cemeteries to light candles and honour the dead. The pairing of jazz with this reflective national holiday turns out to be a natural fit. The music’s contemplative qualities and its tradition of playing for the departed — think of the New Orleans second line — give the festival a distinctive atmosphere unlike any standard jazz event.

Origins and Character

The festival has run for several decades and uses Krakow’s architectural variety to full effect. Performances take place in churches, monastery courtyards, historic cellars, jazz clubs, and outdoor spaces across the city. The programme typically mixes Polish jazz musicians — and Poland has a strong jazz tradition dating to the 1950s — with international guests from across Europe and occasionally further afield.

The combination of candlelit cemeteries and live jazz creates an atmosphere that is sombre in the best sense: reflective, beautiful, and thoroughly Polish. If you visit Krakow during the festival, an evening walk through the Rakowicki or Powazki cemeteries (which are illuminated by thousands of candles on 1-2 November) followed by a late jazz concert is a genuinely memorable way to spend the time.

Programme and Tickets

The full festival programme is typically announced in October. Many outdoor and church performances are free to attend, though ticketed headline concerts at venues such as Harris Piano Jazz Bar and Pod Baranami Cinema take place throughout the four days. Ticket prices for paid events generally range from 30 to 80 PLN. Book in advance for headline acts, as these sell out quickly among Krakow’s large student and music-loving population.

Getting Around

Krakow’s Old Town and Kazimierz district contain most of the festival venues, and both are compact enough to navigate on foot. Trams run along the main arteries until well past midnight, making it easy to move between venues in the evening.

November in Krakow is cool and often misty (5-10°C daytime, colder at night). Pack warm layers and a waterproof jacket — some performances are in unheated historic spaces. See our Krakow city guide for accommodation options and a broader guide to the city. For the full picture of visiting Poland in November, see our November travel guide.

Between festival performances, Kraków’s tours and experiences offer a good way to fill the daytime hours - the Kazimierz Jewish Quarter, Wawel Castle, and the Rynek Główny are all at their least crowded in early November, making this one of the better times of year to explore the city properly.