The festival will open with a concert by Egyptian-Lebanese-Turkish band Karkhana, followed by Hungarian saxophonist Akosh Szelevenyi's band Akosh S. Unit and a piano concert by Kris Davis and Craig Taborn.

The No. 1 highlight of the festival, most of whose concerts will take place at the Cankarjev dom arts centre and in front of it, will be Friday's performance of the Archie Shepp Tribute to Coltrane project.

The festival will moreover join the celebrations marking the 90th anniversary of Coltrane's birth and the 50th anniversary of his death with a screening of John Scheinfeld's Coltrane documentary Chasing Trane.

Another highlight of the festival will be a concert by Lucia Cadotsch, who has been declared German jazz vocalist of the year and whose solo debut Speak Low has achieved great critical acclaim.

Jazz fans in Ljubljana will once again get a chance to hear Chicago cornetist Rob Mazurek, who is known for his combination of electronic music and trumpet outbursts.

The festival will also feature several Slovenian jazz musicians and international bands, such as pianist Kaja Draksler, the Artbeaters, Container Doxa and Velkro.

British saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings will close the festival with his project The Ancestors.