Your Guide to Live Music in Upstate New York

Middlebury Festival on the Green

Audience at the Middlebury Festival on the Green in Middlebury, Vermont

Middlebury Festival on the Green runs July 12-18, 2026 — seven consecutive nights of free live music on the Village Green in one of Vermont’s most charming college towns.

Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival

Crowd at the Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival at Jennings Landing along the Hudson River

The Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival returns September 5, 2026 at Jennings Landing. Free all-day jazz on the Hudson River waterfront — Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, Moon Hooch, and more.

Colorscape Chenango Arts Festival

Attendees painting at the Colorscape Chenango Arts Festival in Norwich NY

Colorscape Chenango returns to Norwich September 12-13, 2026 for its 32nd year — two days of free live music, visual arts, and performances drawing 10,000+ to the Southern Tier.

Blue Note Jazz Festival NYC

Blue Note Jazz Club performance venue in Greenwich Village, New York City

World-class jazz spreads across New York City’s clubs and concert halls every June. The Blue Note Jazz Festival is a month-long celebration of the form — from intimate sets to landmark performances.

SummerStage

SummerStage 40th anniversary collage featuring performers at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park NYC

Free concerts in NYC’s parks all summer long. SummerStage has been Central Park’s open-air concert series since 1986 — hundreds of free performances across the city, every year.

Montauk Music Festival

Live band performing inside a tent at the Montauk Music Festival on Long Island

100 acts across 45 venues at the tip of Long Island. The Montauk Music Festival turns the entire town into a stage for four days every May — intimate shows in an iconic setting.

Newport Jazz Festival

Newport Jazz Festival artistic poster featuring musical motifs and the Newport Bridge

The original outdoor jazz festival, founded in 1954. Newport Jazz brings The Roots, Janelle Monae, and Jacob Collier to Fort Adams State Park in 2026 — the standard by which all jazz festivals are measured.

Montreal Jazz Festival

Outdoor concert crowd at the Montreal International Jazz Festival

Ten days, 350+ concerts, two-thirds of them free. The Montreal International Jazz Festival is a pilgrimage for anyone who cares about the form — the world’s largest jazz festival, five hours from Albany.

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival

Live jazz performance at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival in Vermont

One of America’s longest-running jazz festivals fills downtown Burlington with free outdoor shows and ticketed performances. Five days of jazz across Vermont’s most vibrant city.

Oswego Harborfest

Fireworks display over Oswego Harbor with boats and crowd along the waterfront

Four days of free music on the Lake Ontario waterfront, capped by Grucci fireworks — Oswego Harborfest is one of New York’s largest free festivals and returns July 23-26, 2026.