Di prize giving for Deutscher Jazzpreis go hold on 2 June 2027 inside Schauspiel Leipzig. Na di organizing body, Initiative Musik, announce dis one. Dem say di application window go open on 26 October and e go run reach end of day on 30 November 2026.
Wetin person fit submit? Dem say na outstanding and innovative work wey happen between 1 December 2025 and 30 November 2026. Katja Lucker, wey be managing director of Initiative Musik, talk say Leipzig na vibing jazz city and e stand for lively, open music culture. She talk say dis na first time di prize go reach Saxony, and dem dey very happy about am.
Lucker add say di city with him strong jazz scene give di correct setting, and she dey happy to make di diversity visible together with di Leipzig people wey dey inside di scene.
Nine categories dey open for external applications. For national side, dem be Big Ensemble of the Year, Album of the Year, Debut Album of the Year, Festival of the Year, Composition/Arrangement of the Year, Journalistic Achievement, plus Music Mediation and Participation. For international side, na Album of the Year and Debut Album of the Year people fit submit.
Ten more awards go dey wey di juries themselves go curate. Dis ones include instrument categories, Live Act of the Year, and Lifetime Achievement. All together, Initiative Musik go give 19 awards: 16 national and three international. Each award carry at least 10,000 euros. Even nominees wey no win go still collect at least 1,000 euros.
Nominees for 15 categories go be decided by one 25-member expert jury, while one 14-member main jury go choose di winners. For di Composition/Arrangement of the Year category, one five-member special jury go determine both nominees and winners. For Artist of the Year, International Artist of the Year, and Lifetime Achievement, dem get separate process. Dem go announce di juries early 2027.
Since 2021, di Deutscher Jazzpreis don do six editions. For dat time, e don give total 159 prizes and pay out more than 2.6 million euros in prize and nomination money. Di main supporter na di Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien. Also, from 17 October, di Leipziger Jazztage go mark 50 years of existence.
