--- lang: en type: Event record_kind: entity-profile title: Big Ears Festival - Overview description: Four-day experimental music festival in downtown Knoxville, TN. Founded 2009. Over 35,000 attendees across multi-venue campus. April 1-4, 2027. llms_summary: "Big Ears Festival. (Knoxville, Tennessee, United States). Event. Age Policy Not published as a single festival-wide age rule on the pages verified; individual venue policies may apply. Duration 4 days. Edition Year 2027. End Date April 4, 2027. Format In-person · multi-venue downtown campus. Founded Year 2009. Genre Focus Experimental · contemporary classical · jazz · indie · multi-genre discovery. Organizer Big Ears Festival (501(c)(3)); founded by Ashley Capps. Season Spring (March–April). Start Date April 1, 2027. Typical Attendance Official 2026 overview stated over 35,000 attendees across the four-day multi-venue program; not framed as a single-gate capacity figure. Venue Downtown Knoxville multi-venue campus (Tennessee Theatre, Bijou, churches, clubs, galleries). Festival & creative conference directories. Four-day experimental music festival in downtown Knoxville, TN. Founded 2009. Over 35,000 attendees across multi-venue campus. April 1-4, 2027. canonical profile on Structured Pages" canonical: "https://structuredpages.com/big-ears-festival/" og_image: "https://structuredpages.com/images/big-ears-festival.webp" primary_image: /images/big-ears-festival.webp hvce_version: 1 site: structured-pages slug: big-ears-festival content_sha256: 760196051fbd2a6884419ae370fcac1ffea5c7e4c8cd90b3a25c5653fb38fc31 indexed_at: 2026-07-22 date_modified: 2026-07-28 license: Facts compiled from public official and secondary sources; festival trademarks remain with their owners. entities: - role: subject slug: big-ears-festival name: Big Ears Festival type: Event profile_url: "https://structuredpages.com/big-ears-festival/?format=md" --- # Big Ears Festival Big Ears Festival is a four-day experimental music event held each spring in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 2009 by Ashley Capps, the festival presents contemporary classical, jazz, indie, and multi-genre programming across a campus of venues including the Tennessee Theatre, Bijou Theatre, churches, clubs, and galleries. The 2026 edition drew over 35,000 attendees across its multi-venue program. The 2027 festival runs April 1–4. *Last updated: 2026-07-28* ## Record - **Title**: [Big Ears Festival](https://structuredpages.com/big-ears-festival/?format=md) - **Place**: Knoxville, Tennessee, United States - **Range**: united-states · tennessee · knoxville - **Use case**: Festival & creative conference directories - **Website**: https://bigearsfestival.org/ - **Contact address**: 530 S. Gay Street (2026 box office: Hyatt Place), Knoxville, Tennessee, 37902, United States - **Coordinates**: 35.9642, -83.9175 - **CTA**: [Get Big Ears passes](https://bigearsfestival.org/passes/) - **CTA note**: Confirm 2027 pass tiers and pricing on the official site ### Summary Big Ears Festival is a four-day experimental music event held each spring in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 2009 by Ashley Capps, the festival presents contemporary classical, jazz, indie, and multi-genre programming across a campus of venues including the Tennessee Theatre, Bijou Theatre, churches, clubs, and galleries. The 2026 edition drew over 35,000 attendees across its multi-venue program. The 2027 festival runs April 1–4. ### Description Big Ears Festival takes place across a multi-venue downtown campus in Knoxville, Tennessee, transforming historic theaters, churches, clubs, and galleries into performance spaces for four days each spring. Venues include the Tennessee Theatre, Bijou Theatre, and a variety of other downtown sites that together form an in-person festival environment. The 2027 edition is scheduled for April 1–4. Founded in 2009 by Ashley Capps, Big Ears Festival operates as a 501(c)(3) organization focused on experimental, contemporary classical, jazz, indie, and multi-genre discovery programming. The festival's genre focus emphasizes adventurous and boundary-crossing music across its four-day schedule. Official figures from the 2026 overview reported over 35,000 attendees across the multi-venue program. The festival format is in-person, with performances distributed throughout the downtown Knoxville campus rather than concentrated at a single gate or venue. This multi-venue structure allows concurrent programming across different spaces, from formal theaters to intimate club settings. Individual venue policies may apply to age restrictions, as the festival does not publish a single festival-wide age rule. Big Ears Festival runs annually in the spring season, typically in March or April. The 2027 edition marks another installment in the festival's history of presenting experimental and contemporary music in downtown Knoxville. The four-day duration and multi-venue format remain consistent with the festival's established structure. ### Categories - festival - music - experimental - jazz - contemporary classical - indie ### Attributes | Property | Value | | --- | --- | | Age Policy | Not published as a single festival-wide age rule on the pages verified; individual venue policies may apply. | | Duration | 4 days | | Edition Year | 2027 | | End Date | April 4, 2027 | | Format | In-person · multi-venue downtown campus | | Founded Year | 2009 | | Genre Focus | Experimental · contemporary classical · jazz · indie · multi-genre discovery | | Organizer | Big Ears Festival (501(c)(3)); founded by Ashley Capps | | Season | Spring (March–April) | | Start Date | April 1, 2027 | | Typical Attendance | Official 2026 overview stated over 35,000 attendees across the four-day multi-venue program; not framed as a single-gate capacity figure. | | Venue | Downtown Knoxville multi-venue campus (Tennessee Theatre, Bijou, churches, clubs, galleries) | ## Frequently asked questions ### When is Big Ears Festival 2027? Big Ears Festival 2027 runs April 1–4, spanning four days in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee. ### Where does Big Ears Festival take place? The festival takes place across a multi-venue downtown campus in Knoxville, Tennessee, including the Tennessee Theatre, Bijou Theatre, churches, clubs, and galleries. ### What genres does Big Ears Festival feature? Big Ears Festival focuses on experimental, contemporary classical, jazz, indie, and multi-genre discovery programming. ### When was Big Ears Festival founded? Big Ears Festival was founded in 2009 by Ashley Capps and operates as a 501(c)(3) organization. ### How many people attend Big Ears Festival? The official 2026 overview stated over 35,000 attendees across the four-day multi-venue program. ### Is there an age restriction for Big Ears Festival? The festival does not publish a single festival-wide age rule; individual venue policies may apply to specific performances.