The 22 award winners of the German Jazz Prize 2026 have been announced

At the German Jazz Prize 2026 ceremony on 25 April in Bremen, 22 individuals, ensembles and projects from the jazz scene were honoured. Among the central awards were the Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Aki Takase, Rebekka Salomea as Artist of the Year, and Phil Donkin for Album of the Year. Internationally recognised artists were also honoured, including Sullivan Fortner as International Artist of the Year and Johnathan Blake for International Album of the Year.

Curious to see who else won this year? You’ll find the full list of prize winners here.

The award ceremony took place as part of the 20th anniversary of jazzahead! and brought together numerous guests from music, culture and media in the Hanseatic city on the shores of the Weser. The evening was accompanied by a high-profile musical programme, including performances by the Moses Yoofee Trio, Adeolu, hilde and ganavya, who turned the German Jazz Prize into an unmissable live music event and showcased the latest facets of jazz. 

Missed it? No worries! The recording of the awards ceremony is already available to watch on YouTube and will soon be available on demand on ARD Mediathek, a streaming platform run by German public broadcaster ARD.

Still not had enough? Then have a listen to the winners’ playlist, curated by Apple Music! What’s more, as part of a partnership with the music streaming service, you can also dive into the sounds of all the nominees and individual categories!