News

21.10.2026

Powerful concert experiences, fantastic volunteers, and an engaged audience made DølaJazz 2026 a festival filled with musical joy and unforgettable moments.

16.10.2026

As tradition dictates, DølaJazz has invited the shops in the city center to contribute to the festival atmosphere through a special window decoration competition. This year's winner was Naturkompaniet, which impressed the jury with a creative and humorous connection between jazz and outdoor life.

15.10.2026

Unfortunately, Enok Monk has had to cancel his planned concert at this year's DølaJazz. Fortunately, the change offers a rare opportunity to experience something truly special.

13.10.2026

How do you build a strong digital presence as a musician or cultural actor? Jazz saxophonist Magnus Bakken, well known to the DølaJazz audience, shares his experiences in an inspiring lecture on Saturday, October 17th at Ekspedisjonen.

29.09.2026

First Hotel Breiseth is this year's festival hotel! As a DølaJazz guest, you get a 15% discount on accommodation – perfect for those who want to stay in the heart of the festival atmosphere.

18.09.2026

Young jazz musicians meet at DølaJazz!

This year as well, students from the National Jazz Program in Molde are coming to Lillehammer to participate in the festival – including at the Ungjazz seminar.

10.09.2026

Once again, Dølajazz invites you to the Tour of art  – a musical three-part journey through the city's central art institutions. Three different rooms, three unique encounters between music and visual art.

31.08.2026

DølaJazz invites audiences to a special evening at Heartbox featuring three exciting acts from the region’s jazz scene. The concert brings together established musicians, rising young talents, and fresh musical voices as Lillehammer Storband, Innlandet Youth Jazz Orchestra (IJO), and Gjøkur take the stage.

31.08.2026

Drummer and composer Amund Kleppan is coming to DølaJazz with his quartet. In recent years, Kleppan has established himself as a prominent voice on the Norwegian and European jazz scene, drawing on experience from studies and performances in Norway, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

21.08.2026

During this year's DølaJazz, the audience will meet the distinctive duo Enok Monk, when Trond Wiger and Erlend Smalås take the stage at Wiese on Friday, October 16.

15.08.2026

With an unconventional lineup and an expression that moves between pop, jazz, and folk, BLÅNE creates music by and for the soul. The duo, consisting of Henrik Aam and Mina Klokkersveen Thomle, offers powerful lyrics, and a delivery that invites the audience to lean back and relax.

14.08.2026

DølaJazz is pleased to present this year's opening concert, where Stian Carstensen and Ola Kvernberg invite you to a boundless and genre-defying musical journey as the duo Troll and Knott take the audience on a playful trip through music history.

11.06.2026

DølaJazz 2026 presents Fåberg Musikkforening in collaboration with the renowned
jazz artists Ellen Andrea Wang and Hanna Paulsberg. The audience can look forward to a varied and
atmospheric concert in Lillehammer Church, where traditional band music meets modern jazz expressions in
an evening characterized by quality, joy of playing, and powerful musical encounters.

04.05.2026

There is a unique warmth that flows from the music and musicianship of the Arne Torvik Trio. Some might call it accessible piano trio jazz, but the music brings with it attentive interplay, a clear lyrical vein, and a strong joy of expression.

30. april 2026

DølaJazz invites you to celebrate the International Day of Jazz at Fabrikken, Thursday, April 30.

14.04.2026

In 2026, the original quintet will reunite to perform the music from “Newborn Thing” live – this time with newfound experience and depth. Join a revival of a magical musical moment where everything felt new, boundaries were open – and where impulses from club music suddenly felt right at home in Norwegian jazz.

14.04.2026

Our former chairman Frode Sannum has received one of Norway's highest honors! We offer our heartfelt congratulations and are forever grateful for all the effort he has put into DølaJazz over the years.

13.03.2026

DølaJazz is delighted to announce that Leah Engevold has been chosen as the composer for the festival's major commissioned work in celebration of the 50th anniversary in October 2028.

12.03.2026

In December 2025, Lars Saabye Christensen and Steinar Raknes released the album "Tid". With lyrics by Saabye Christensen and songs by Raknes, this is a collaboration you won't want to miss.

08.02.2026

The DølaJazz Annual General Meeting will take place on February 25th from 18:30 to 20:30.

03.02.2026

With fingerpicking, effects, and looping, Steinar Raknes builds everything from subtle soundscapes to driving grooves, while Unni Wilhelmsen's voice weaves around, over, and through the soundscape with playfulness and precision.

19.10.2025

We are proud to give you Bugge Wesseltoft, Arild Andersen, and Gard Nilssen for DølaJazz 2026! It's almost impossible to get closer to a supergroup, both here in Norway and far beyond our borders.

19.10.2025

What an amazing festival it has been! This year's DølaJazz has offered a variety of concert venues, atmospheres, and musical moments. And already now we can share news that we are very excited about: The first booking for DølaJazz 2026 is already confirmed!

04.10.2025

We continue our tradition of giving young local musicians a place in the festival program on Friday afternoon!

29.09.2025

DølaJazz is expanding its offerings for young adults with two activities this year thanks to a grant from the Sparebank Foundation. New this year are FjernJazz and JazzHub!

26.09.2025

Welcome to an intimate concert with Nawara Alnaddaf, where the audience gets close to the creative process, and where the boundaries between tradition, contemporary, and personal storytelling are blurred.

24.09.2025

Do you play folk music or jazz and want to play with others across these genres? Are you between 17 and 25 years old? Then join the Interaction Seminar!

12.09.2025

For andre gang inviterer Dølajazz til Kunstløypa – en musikalsk tredelt reise gjennom byens sentrale kunstinstitusjoner. Tre ulike rom, tre unike møter mellom musikk og billedkunst.

05.09.2025

Every year, DølaJazz Lillehammer Jazz Festival organizes a seminar for young musicians (age: 15-20 years) who want to learn more about ensemble playing, improvisation, and chords.

02.09.2025

This year's opening concert is dedicated to youthful musicality. We have chosen to feature two different ensembles. Welcome to a spectacular start to the festival!

29.08.2025

The chef has been in the kitchen and put together a five-course meal especially for this year's DølaJazz.

22.08.2025

Majken Christiansen sings revitalized jazz in the tradition of the great jazz divas, where Ella Fitzgerald will always be one of the greatest sources of inspiration.

22.08.2025

One of the four partner concerts will be Bjørn Berge. Bjørn Berge has, over the course of his career, built a solid live reputation as a world-class guitarist, which means he regularly visits major jazz, blues, and rock festivals and clubs around Europe and North America.

21.08.2025

A concert with Camilla, Frode, and Børre! Family concert for all ages: Well-known songs, joyful rhythms, and musical surprises.

21.08.2025

On Sunday, October 19th at 7:00 PM, we welcome you to the Dølajazz Mass at Nordre Ål Church. Gesellparken's Traditions Ensemble will participate along with the women's choir Flowers, parish priest Rosemarie Rustad Stakston, and cantor Gunnar Melbø.

18.08.2025

One of the four partner concerts will be Sanyu at Lillehammers new venue Wiese! In recent years, Sanyu has played at festivals such as Øya, Trondheim Calling, and regularly at jazz festivals in both Oslo and Copenhagen.

18.08.2025

One of the four partner concerts will be Gaute Storsve Band at Lillehammers new venue Wiese! Guitarist Gaute Storsve has, through three albums, united Nordic jazz with Latin American music traditions. 

18.08.2025

This year, DølaJazz is trying out a closer collaboration with two venues in the city. One is an old favorite and one is an exciting newcomer. New this year is that these two venues are acting as their own organizers of concerts in the DølaJazz program, but in good cooperation with us.

25.07.2025

As part of our focus on the meeting between jazz and folk music, we present two outstanding performers, Mari Midtli and Carl Petter Opsahl, in the newly restored chapel at Lillehammer Church. This will be a unique concert with encounters between traditions and genres.

23.07.2025

DølaJazz has received funding from the Sparebankstiftelsen DNB to develop JazzIncubator over a three-year period into a meeting point for young jazz talents in music, organization, and communication in the Nordic countries. 

03.07.2025

Tuva's Blood Club guarantees full houses at Riksscenen in Oslo once a month, but now they are heading north to give both folk and jazz a hell of a traditional punch on the dance floor!

17.06.2025

Hot Club de Norvège returns to Lillehammer! Since the 1970s, the quartet has enriched Norwegian jazz scenes with their interpretations of the music of the French gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt.

01.04.2025

Iver Kleive and Knut Reiersrud hold a special place in the hearts of the Lillehammer audience. They are beloved musicians who draw full houses across the country.

01.04.2025

At the annual meeting on 26.02.2025, DølaJazz got a new board, with two new, talented members.

01.04.2025

Welcome to our new website! First and foremost, we would like to thank Rifa AS for providing support to finance this website.