[2] The Buenos Aires Jazz Festival was inspired, in part, by the after-dinner "café concerts" popular in large Argentine cities during the 1960s and '70s.

[3] Jazz festivals had been organized intermittently in Buenos Aires and a number of other Argentine cities, such as Rosario, La Plata and Avellaneda, during the 1990s.

Featuring mostly local artists, notably Pablo Ziegler and Dino Saluzzi, it was held in three locations: Thelonious, Notorious, and The Casual Bar.

[5] The event's success led to a second festival in April 2003, with the addition of the important San Martín Cultural Centre as a venue and with the introduction of paid ticket admission.

[6] Since then, the event has attracted other internationally renowned jazz artists, among them Kenny Barron, Anthony Braxton, Michael Brecker, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Ron Carter, Dave Douglas, David Gilmore, Herbie Hancock, Fred Hersch, Freddie Hubbard, Rosa Passos, Wayne Shorter, Ralph Towner, Chucho Valdés, Randy Weston, and Cassandra Wilson.