Info

Three Days and Nights of Blues

Blues Alive is Central Europe’s leading international blues festival. Every November, it brings some of the world’s finest blues artists, legendary performers and exciting new discoveries to Šumperk in the Czech Republic. Alongside the concerts, the festival offers late-night jam sessions, artist interviews, listening sessions, discussions, film screenings and a wide range of accompanying events.

Unlike most summer music festivals, Blues Alive takes place in fully covered and heated venues. The main concerts are held on two stages, and visitors can move freely between them. The festival combines the excitement of major live performances with the intimate atmosphere of smaller music clubs.

Two Main Concert Stages

HOUSE STAGE is located in the main auditorium of the Šumperk House of Culture (Dům kultury, Fialova 3). It offers a spacious concert hall with ground-floor and balcony seating.

COURTYARD STAGE is situated in the adjacent Pavlínin dvůr courtyard, inside a large, fully heated, double-layer festival tent. It offers a more intimate, club-like atmosphere.

Both stages are equally important parts of the festival and feature full concert programmes. They are approximately 100 metres apart, so walking between them takes just a few minutes. Both venues are heated, meaning you can comfortably enjoy the concerts in a T-shirt.

Late-Night Jam Sessions

One of Blues Alive’s most cherished traditions is its late-night jam sessions, where musicians from different bands come together on stage for spontaneous performances, often in unexpected combinations.

Jam sessions take place every festival night at Courtyard Stage, usually starting around 12:15 am. Admission is included in your festival ticket. Visitors wishing to attend the jam sessions only can purchase a separate ticket directly at the entrance.

Festival Tickets and Reserved Seating

What Does a Festival Pass Include?

A three-day festival pass gives you access to all main concerts at both House Stage and Courtyard Stage throughout the festival, including the late-night jam sessions.

If you are visiting for just one day, you can purchase a single-day ticket, which provides access to the main programme on both stages on your chosen day.

Do I Need to Reserve a Seat?

No. Reserved seating is optional! Your festival pass or single-day ticket gives you access to all main concerts without any additional purchase. However, without a seating reservation, you are not guaranteed a seat.

For visitors who prefer guaranteed seating, we offer two options:

  • House Stage – Ground Floor: a reserved seat in the main auditorium.
  • Combined Seating Reservation: guaranteed seating on the House Stage balcony and at Courtyard Stage.

Seating reservations are valid for all three festival days. They are an optional addition to your festival admission ticket and are not valid for entry on their own.

BUY FESTIVAL TICKETS AND SEATING RESERVATIONS

Accompanying Programme

Blues Alive is much more than evening concerts. The festival also features artist interviews, listening sessions, lectures, discussions, music workshops, film screenings and exhibitions.

These events take place at various venues around Šumperk, particularly the T. G. Masaryk Municipal Library, the Monastery Church, Cinema Oko and the Šumperk Regional Museum.

Selected accompanying events require a separate admission ticket, even if you already have a festival pass. This is mainly due to the limited capacity of the individual venues.

Full details of event times, venues and admission requirements can be found in the festival programme. Each event is clearly marked to indicate whether it is included in the festival ticket or requires separate admission.

Arriving at the Festival

When you first arrive, please go to the festival reception in the House of Culture complex. After checking your electronic or printed ticket, our staff will issue your festival wristband, which allows you to enter and re-enter the main concert venues according to the validity of your ticket.

If you have also purchased a seating reservation, you will receive the appropriate seating wristband at reception. You will need to show your seating reservation, either on your phone or in printed form, to claim your reserved seat.

Our reception staff will also be happy to help you find your way around the festival grounds and answer questions about the programme.

Food, Drinks, Relaxation and Merchandise

A food and drink area is located between the two main stages, offering hot meals and beverages. There is also a restaurant inside the House of Culture and another bar at Courtyard Stage.

A dedicated chill-out area with its own bar provides a comfortable place to sit, relax and socialise between concerts.

Our festival merchandise shop offers official Blues Alive T-shirts and souvenirs, as well as CDs, vinyl records and merchandise from performing artists. Many musicians meet fans at the merchandise stand after their concerts and are happy to sign purchased recordings.

Festival Location and Accommodation

The main festival venue is the Šumperk House of Culture (Dům kultury), Fialova 3, together with the immediately adjacent Pavlínin dvůr courtyard. Other accompanying events take place in the town centre, mostly within walking distance of the main festival site.

For visitors travelling from further afield, we offer a range of accommodation options. Special Blues Alive All Inclusive packages are also available, combining a festival pass, hotel accommodation, transport between the hotel and the festival, and additional services.

Useful links:

The Origins of Blues Alive

Blues Alive was founded in Šumperk in 1996 as a one-day regional music event. The idea came from Petra Matysová, then a producer at the local House of Culture, with the support of its director Vladimír Rybička, who went on to lead the festival for more than a quarter of a century.

In 1999, music journalist Ondřej Bezr took over as programme director and brought booking agent Štěpán Suchochleb into the organising team. Together with Vladimír Rybička, they gradually transformed Blues Alive into an internationally respected festival featuring some of the biggest names in the blues world.

The festival’s artistic vision is built on three pillars: celebrating blues legends, presenting outstanding contemporary artists and discovering new talent. While deeply respectful of the blues tradition, Blues Alive also embraces the music’s continuing evolution and its connections with soul, rock, jazz and other genres.

An important part of this approach is Blues Aperitiv, an international talent competition that gives emerging musicians from the Czech Republic and abroad the opportunity to perform on the festival’s main stages.

The festival’s international reputation was further recognised in 2019, when Blues Alive received the prestigious Keeping the Blues Alive Award from The Blues Foundation in Memphis, USA.

Blues Alive is a member of The Blues Foundation, the European Blues Union and the Czech Association of Festivals.

Over three decades, Blues Alive has become a meeting place for musicians and music lovers from around the world. The close connection between artists and audiences, the informal atmosphere and the legendary late-night jam sessions are among the reasons why so many visitors return to Šumperk year after year.